Pierre-Luc Dubois is the newest member of the Washington Capitals. The 25-year-old centerman was dealt to Washington by the Los Angeles Kings for goaltender Darcy Kuemper this week.
PLD will arrive in DC for his first Training Camp with the team in September, and he is reportedly excited about the new opportunity. When he walks into MedStar Capitals Iceplex, he will have a few familiar faces waiting for him.
During his four years with the Columbus Blue Jackets to start his NHL career, Dubois had Kenny McCudden, current Capitals assistant/skills coach, filling the same role in Columbus that he now does in Washington.
“He does things as a bigger player so well in small areas,” McCudden told The Athletic’s Tom Reed in 2018. “He’ll shorten up on the stick to receive a pass. He’s good with knee bends to pick pucks up out of his feet.
“You can just see him getting quicker in accelerating out of tight areas. He’s just a gifted player as a big man in that way. It’s pretty neat to see because we know there are a lot of big guys in this league who need a lot of road to get going. He’s not one of those players.”
McCudden was hired by the Capitals to be part of Spencer Carbery’s staff ahead of last season. Dubois has been a major fan of working with him in the past.
“I love Kenny’s drills and the pace he sets,” Dubois said in 2018. “When you have a guy like Kenny in your organization, if you don’t try to use him as much as you can, you’re missing out.
“I’m working on getting my shots off as fast as possible. Finding those little pockets of space and finding ways to get in those little areas. I think I’m smart enough to find those areas, but Kenny is great at helping you get to them faster.”
Dubois was also teammates with current Capitals winger Sonny Milano for parts of three seasons with the Blue Jackets. The two shared the ice at five-on-five for just over 308 minutes. Their underlying stats in those minutes were good, seeing 53.6 percent of the shot attempts, 57.6 percent of the expected goals, 57.5 percent of the scoring chances, and 56.9 percent of the high-danger chances.
The two Columbus first-round draft selections scored their first NHL goals in the same game against the New York Islanders on October 6, 2017.
Additionally, the Capitals have a fellow Quebec-born player set for a role on the team in 22-year-old forward Hendrix Lapierre. Pierrick Dubé, another French-speaking player in the organization, should also push for a role on the Capitals after scoring 28 goals for the Hershey Bears this past season.
Dubois has also expressed his preference for playing with Russian linemates and the Capitals have captain Alex Ovechkin, Ivan Miroshnichenko, Alex Alexeyev, and the Belorussian Aliaksei Protas all set for roles with the club next season.
Outside of joining up with current Capitals staff and players from his past, Dubois has also spent time on teams with former Capitals players.
- JF Fortin (assistant coach) – 2016-17 Blainville-Boisbriand Armada
- Brad Shaw (assistant coach) – 2017-21 Columbus Blue Jackets
- Scott Arniel (assistant coach) – 2022-23 Winnipeg Jets
- Gabriel Carlsson – 2017-21 Columbus Blue Jackets
- Taylor Chorney – 2017-18 Columbus Blue Jackets
- Mathieu Perreault – 2020-21 Winnipeg Jets
- Brenden Dillon – 2021-23 Winnipeg Jets
- Zach Sanford – 2021-22 Winnipeg Jets
- Nate Schmidt – 2021-23 Winnipeg Jets
- Axel Jonsson-Fjallby – 2022-23 Winnipeg Jets
- Pheonix Copley – 2023-24 Los Angeles Kings
