The many players making the Washington Capitals good and fun again

With Thanksgiving behind us, we are now fully in the Christmas season, at least for those who celebrate and those within earshot of the first group’s incessant playlists. But just because Thanksgiving is passed doesn’t mean the spirit of gratitude has left us. At the end of The Christmas Carol, Scrooge says, “I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.” I’ll try to do that, but with Thanksgiving.

As we continue our exploration of the Capitals, who are very good, after the twenty-game mark, let’s look at some players in particular, and why I’m so thankful.

Alex Ovechkin will return in good shape

Ovechkin, 39, led the league in goals (15) when he broke his fibula about ten days ago. Having scored five goals in the ~25 hours prior to the injury, Ovechkin’s sudden exit from play had an operatic level of drama to it. There was a moment of despair – for a second there I worried if that was the end.

But somehow a bone break, even if devastating for The Brand, was nearer to the best-case scenario side of the spectrum. Ovechkin will return rested after a four-to-six week break. And just because I pretend to be an optimist this time of year, I think he’ll return on the lower end of that range.

He’ll return as a player who is getting more chances, shooting harder, and skating faster than he did last year. He’ll be fine. RMNB, just with an asterisk on it.

Dylan Strome is again a top talent

Washington’s top-line center is once again its top points-getter, which should come as no surprise. According to HockeyViz’s Synthetic Goals catch-all statistic, he’s an elite player for the second year in a row.

A reminder that Chicago, in its mission to be really bad, let Strome walk in 2022 as a restricted free agent.

I’ve been a Strome fan since the drop, but before I had been skeptical of how his style could activate Ovechkin’s offense. I’ve been very wrong about that this season, as Strome got an assist on 12 of Ovechkin’s 15 goals before the big guy went out.

One part of that improvement has been a player I knew – or at least hoped – had this level to his game: Aliaksei Protas. Playing on Strome’s other wing, Protas has made the leap this season, and now it’s on him to sustain it.

Rasmus Sandin has kicked it up a notch

Defender Rasmus Sandin is just 10th in points, but his role on the team is so much more than that. He’s become a core reason of why the team has become so effective – and so fun – this season.

For starters, the Caps reliably out-chance opponents when he’s on the ice – following a trend of steady improvement since he came to DC. Line go up:

According to All Three Zones, Sandin has been the best zone-exit player (i.e. getting the puck out of the defensive zone and into the neutral zone) and the best zone-entry player (i.e. getting the puck from the neutral zone into the offensive zone) on Washington’s blue line. He’s a top-tier puck-mover.

As fun as the 2024-25 Caps are while on attack, Sandin is one of main reasons why they get on attack in the first place.

Charlie Lindgren kept it together

In hindsight, Charlie Lindgren’s own goal the other night is the funniest highlight of Washington’s season so far. It would not have been funny had the team not won that game – thanks to heroic play by Carlson, Strome, and Wilson in particular.

Own goal: Charlie Lindgren backhands puck into his own net giving Brayden Point bizarre hat trick

But consider this: after his goof-up, Lindgren locked it down. He faced eight more shots in the 12 remaining minutes, including three from under thirty feet away. All attempts put together, Lindgren saved more than one half an expected goal in the final minutes of the win.

So when Wilson skated over to Lindgren after the game and delivered a congratulatory chest pat, that was a signal of Lindgren’s resilience. It hasn’t been a great season for the 30-year-old goalie, but I’m more convinced now that he can turn it around.

Connor McMichael is a bona fide star

I can only ring this bell so often, but we were right and [former coach whose name I don’t have to bring up every time] was wrong. McMichael has delivered on the promise he suggested way back in his first season.

Only eight players in the league have had more high danger chances than McMichael, and yes, one is McDavid.

(McMichael is still ranked 11th if you go by rate.)

McMichael’s line with Dubois and Wilson is Washington’s best, and the future looks bright for CMcM.

Chris Patrick should be GM of the year

And I’m not sure it’s even close.

The Caps of last year recorded 91 standings points, which required the rest the Metropolitan Division to basically throw games down the stretch to achieve. Now they’re on pace for more than 100. That improvement in points-pace ties them this season with Minnesota, who are cracked, and New Jersey, who are playing better defensively under Sheldon Keefe and finally addressed their goaltending problem. In both cases, I’d credit Patrick’s moves above GMs Bill Guerin and Tom Fitzgerald for their teams’ improvements.

A cram session in which Chris calmly prepares Peter for Caps hockey

Pierre-Luc Dubois and Jakob Chychrun have been triumphs. Brandon Duhaime I’d trust with my life. Matt Roy and Lars Eller have been solid. Jakub Vrana makes me want to pull my hair out when he’s in the defensive zone, but I love him anyway. Patrick hasn’t missed on any of his swings. 10/10, no notes.

The improvement is across the board

Head coach Spencer Carbery deserves credit as well. Playing with a stronger roster, he’s delivered bounce-back seasons, sometimes dramatic ones, for most players – while avoiding backslides for all of them – save one.

Those are Evolving Hockey’s goals-above-replacement, or GAR, catch-all stats for Caps skaters compared to last season. The team’s biggest producers sit at top, with outsized impacts on the scoreboard.

And although fourth-line forwards Dowd, Duhaime, and Raddysh appear flat, I suspect they’re better than we’ve seen so far. I think they might be working through an injury or two.

I don’t make much of the difference between the three lines, only that together it’s turned downward since around the middle of November, which was a real bad week for them. I’m just not convinced they’re 100 percent, especially as Brandon Duhaime takes maintenance days. They’re wait-and-see for me.

There is so much more. Tom Wilson’s offensive contributions have improved. John Carlson has remained as productive in his mid-30s despite having three goals overturned. We can expect more goals from Pierre-Luc Dubois in the near future. And even if the fourth line drops in performance, they’re still better than they were last season.

Last week, as the Caps were playing one of their typically exciting come-from-behind wins, I got this message.

And I’d bet you’ve had a similar conversation with someone in the last couple months. The Caps are undeniably an exciting team to watch. They score a lot of goals, they keep the score close even when trailing, they move the puck well in the offensive zone, and they convert on snappy set plays.

Given where our expectations were at in April this year, the Capitals of November are a revelation. No one saw this coming. Don’t go into the comments and say you saw this coming; we’ll know you’re a liar.

The Capitals are much, much, much better than last year

For the Caps to be Actually Good has required the collective efforts of the front office, coaching staff, support staff, and the players – and to a person they’ve all delivered. It’s been fun. It’s been a delight, so thank you for that.

Statistics as of November 28. This story would not be possible without Natural Stat Trick, All Three Zones, Evolving Hockey, and Hockey Viz. Please consider joining us in supporting them.