As the Washington Capitals scuffled early in the season, Connor McMichael excelled.
After washing out at the NHL level the year before under Peter Laviolette, the 2019 first-round pick came out of the gate flying under new head coach Spencer Carbery, playing with a newfound confidence.
McMichael may only have three points (2g, 1a) in seven games, but Carbery thinks the 22-year-old forward could easily lead the team in goals.
“I have liked his game a lot this year,” Carbery said. “I noticed him again tonight. I’ve noticed him quite a bit throughout the year… He’s making way more plays. He probably, we were talking about it as a staff today, you could argue, with his looks – if you just looked at his scoring chances for in six, seven games, he’s probably had 12 Grade A’s. Like Grade A, him and the goaltender.
“He could potentially have six, seven, eight goals – no problem,” Carbery said. “I’m not talking B chances. I’m talking right on top of the goaltender. He had one the other night in New Jersey. He scored obviously. But he put himself into those spots.”
To put this goal total in perspective, Dylan Strome currently leads the Capitals with five tallies. The goal in New Jersey that Carbery is referring to is McMichael’s first career game-winning goal in the NHL, coming on October 25.
Mikey squeaks one by for the lead pic.twitter.com/I0DbJuDYVe
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) October 26, 2023
Carbery’s observations check out in publicly available process stats in Natural Stat Trick. Amongst all Capitals forwards, McMichael has been on the ice for the most high-danger chances in the team’s favor (20) and has the third-highest expected goals percentage (54.7) at five-on-five.
McMichael has noticeably honed in on a two-way game in Washington, a role that he began transitioning into last season in Hershey. The Bears tasked McMichael with not only consistently producing points at even strength and on the power play, but also routinely killing penalties, a spot typically not tasked to highly-skilled offensive prospects. But the Ajax, Ontario native grew into the role and eventually helped the Bears win their twelfth Calder Cup championship.
McMichael has continued killing penalties in Washington, where he has the fourth-most shorthanded minutes among all Capitals’ forwards (10:03).
Carbery explained, “the penalty kill part, that’s what we feel like — and [McMichael] did it last year in Hershey and it’s going to be an important part of his role moving forward — is yeah, contribute offensively, probably at some point in his career will find himself on the power play. And he’ll want to thrive in that situation too. He’ll be the first to tell you that, but he also has to be good at the other end. He’s embraced that role. That’s something in junior where you ask him, I don’t know how much he killed in London. He probably actually did kill, but they were trying to score when he was on the ice on the penalty kill.
“What I’m getting and my point is that he embraced the role in the American Hockey League,” Carbery continued. “Can I add this to my repotoire? Son now I’m an offensive player. I’m trying to score and create offensively. I want to be a point producer. But can I also be a 200-foot player? Be on the penalty kill? Shut down teams’ best players? And that’s what he embraced over the last 12 months and he’s done a really good job. Because he’s done a really good job, he can kill in the National Hockey League.”
McMichael’s blossoming versatility could make him an important part of the lineup for years to come and also gives him a bigger role on a Capitals team that’s veteran heavy at forward. Not only is it smart for his career, but it’s the unselfish thing to do for the team, too.
Headline photo: Alan Dobbins/RMNB
