Dylan Strome was the best Washington Capital of 2023-24.
By the Numbers
| Summary | |
|---|---|
| 27 | goals |
| 40 | assists |
| 82 | games played |
| 18.0 | average ice time |
| On-ice percentages | |
| 51.1 | 5-on-5 shot-attempt percentage |
| 53.5 | 5-on-5 expected goal percentage |
| 46.6 | 5-on-5 actual goal percentage |
Isolated Impact by HockeyViz
About this visualization: This image by Micah Blake McCurdy of hockeyviz.com shows how the player has impacted play when on the ice. At the top of the image is the team’s offense (even strength at left, power play at right) and at bottom is the team’s defense (with penalty kill at bottom right). In each case, red/orange blobs mean teams shoot for more from that location on the ice, and blue/purple means less. In general, a good player should have red/orange blobs near the opponent’s net at top, and blue/purple bobs near their own team’s net at bottom. The distributions in middle show how the player compares to league average at individual finishing, setting up teammates to score, and taking and drawing penalties. The number at center is Synthetic Goals: a catch-all number for the player’s impact.
Player Card by All Three Zones
About this player card: This image from Corey Sznajder of All Three Zones shows how the player compares to league averages in different microstats in the defensive, neutral, and offensive zones. Blue bars mean the player has a higher rate in that statistic compared to league average, and orange means a lower rate. The numbers are Z-scores, also known as standard deviations, indicating how far the number is from league average, where more than two standard deviations means the player is on the extreme edge of the league.
Player Card by Evolving Hockey
About this player card: This card from Josh and Luke of Evolving Hockey compares the player to league averages based on their impact on on-ice statistics. GAR means “goals above replacement,” where “replacement” means an average player called up from the AHL. xGAR is the same figure but assuming league-average goaltending. The numbers at top are the player’s percentile ranks overall and then for offense and defense alone.
Player Overview by NHL Edge
About this visualization: The NHL’s advanced statistics program, Edge, tracks player and puck movement. At left are the player’s numbers in various statistics along with the average number for that same stat among players of the same position and the player’s percentile rank in it. At right is a radar chart for various statistics, where the bigger the shape the better the player performs in those measures.
Fan Happiness Survey
About this visualization: At three times during the season, RMNB shared an open survey with fans, asking the following question for each player: “On a scale from 1 to 5, how HAPPY are you to have this player on the team?” The numbers above show the average score for the player in each survey period.
Peter’s Take
What a season. With almost 30 goals and being the team’s best driver of play, Dylan Strome had a career year while the team around him was in the pits. Every player with two minor exceptions (Phillips and Bear) did better – much, much better – when they shared the ice with Strome. The table below shows the percentage of shot attempts (SA%) that Washington controlled when each player was on the ice with and without Strome.
| Teammate | SA% with Strome | SA% without Strome | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ovechkin | 62.8 | 50.1 | +12.7 |
| Carlson | 63.9 | 38.7 | +25.3 |
| Wilson | 61.9 | 40.0 | +22.0 |
| Sandin | 51.0 | 46.6 | +4.4 |
| Oshie | 63.7 | 44.3 | +19.4 |
| Fehervary | 52.3 | 40.6 | +11.7 |
| van Riemsdyk | 52.3 | 40.5 | +11.8 |
| Jensen | 46.3 | 35.0 | +11.3 |
| Pacioretty | 60.0 | 48.3 | +11.7 |
| Milano | 50.7 | 49.9 | +0.8 |
| Edmundson | 50.1 | 42.2 | +7.9 |
| Protas | 52.2 | 44.2 | +8.0 |
| Alexeyev | 48.4 | 43.7 | +4.8 |
| Miroshnichenko | 53.1 | 43.9 | +9.2 |
| Mantha | 68.3 | 52.4 | +15.9 |
| Bear | 44.6 | 46.2 | -1.6 |
| Phillips | 44.9 | 50.0 | -5.1 |
| Kuznetsov | 76.4 | 41.7 | +34.8 |
| Lapierre | 64.1 | 46.7 | +17.4 |
| McMichael | 48.7 | 44.6 | +4.1 |
Those are monster numbers. The Kuznetsov one knocks me out. That was mostly when 92 was playing on the wing. In those 92 minutes, the Caps outscored opponents seven to zero. Zero goals against – while Evgeny Kuznetsov was on the ice. Evgeny Kuznetsov. From Washington. Stunning.
And the Blackhawks gave this player away.
That part is important. Strome didn’t come up in Washington’s system, but he’s still young, 27, with four years left on his deal. He’ll be great for seasons to come, and he’ll see the team transition from Ovi Era to Whatever’s Next. In the remaining duration of the Ovi Era, I hope he’ll stop being the “least worst” option to center Ovechkin (as great as he is, Strome doesn’t have the playmaking Ovechkin needs) as new players come in (but not necessarily come up, if you know what I mean). Strome should keep doing exactly what he’s doing: being an elite two-way forward with excellence in all three zones.
Player Summary by ChatGPT
Ryan’s brother Dylan also players in the N.H.L.. With 82gp, 27g, 40a, 67pts, +/- -13 in the 2023-24 campaign, Stromer, the Mississauga native was among the chief warriors of Washington’s squadron.
But with an underage of rizz, doubts abound about the star power of Strome. Be that as it may, this pivot will perform centreman for the Capitals for campaigns yet untold, and who knows, not I, what mysteries will unfold in those campaigns yet untold.
Jordan on RMNB
- Technically this happened last season, but the Stromes adopted a cute puppy.
- In November, Strome scored his first OTGWG.
- It took until December for the Caps to finally give Ovi real time with Strome.
- On the team moving to Virginia (which they won’t, by the way): “there’s also nothing wrong with where we play in DC.” (The full quote is a bit more open-minded.)
- ASG snub.
Dylan Strome reveals ‘the best I’ve ever played, the best game of my life’
- Strome has hit twenty goals in three straight seasons.
- About his team nickname.
- Goalstradmus.
Matt Strome touched that older brother Dylan Strome came to watch him play for first time in 9 years
Your Turn
Is Strome really the least worst center option for Ovechkin? Is anyone better there?
