The Washington Capitals loaded up in the offseason, acquiring some of the best players available on the market.
Aliaksei Protas had previously given general manager Chris Patrick rave reviews for his “great” work.
He elaborated more in a recent Russian-language interview with Match TV.
When it was pointed out to the Belarusian forward that the Capitals are now one of, if not the biggest, teams in the NHL, Protas was asked if this was a path to a Stanley Cup championship, judging by the Carolina Hurricanes‘ recent win.
“Of course, technique and skating are important, too,” Protas responded, as translated by Google Translate. “But we have a good, technical team. You can’t call Tom Wilson a hockey player with bad skating. With our size, we can get results somewhere. Recent seasons have proven that teams with bigger size have a better chance of winning.”
While Stanley Cup champions of late have not always ranked among the NHL’s largest from top to bottom, each featured significant size in important roles. For instance, the Hurricanes were led by Conn Smythe-winner Jordan Staal (6-foot-4, 220 pounds), who scored six goals in the Stanley Cup Final and had 12 points overall (8g, 4a) in 19 postseason games. Carolina also featured Andrei Svechnikov — a 6-foot-3, 201-pound skater who is one of their most dangerous scorers, and K’Andre Miller (6-foot-5, 209 pounds) and Alexander Nikishin (6-foot-3, 218 pounds) on defense.
What ultimately made Carolina special, though, were other things: its speed up and down the lineup, puck-moving ability, and suffocating forecheck.
The last five Stanley Cup winners, in fact, had rosters with an average size of 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds — almost identical to the NHL-wide norm over those five seasons. But they all leaned on several large, physically imposing members in their core during their championship runs.
The back-to-back Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers had Aleksander Barkov (6-foot-3, 214 pounds), Matthew Tkachuk (6-foot-2, 201 pounds), and Aaron Ekblad (6-foot-4, 220 pounds) while the 2023 champs, the Vegas Golden Knights, relied on Mark Stone (6-foot-4, 212 pounds), Jack Eichel (6-foot-2, 205 pounds), and Alex Pietrangelo (6-foot-3, 214 pounds).
Entering next season, the Capitals will be the heaviest team in the league (205 lbs) and the third tallest on average (6-foot-2), featuring 10 players 6-foot-3 or taller including Vincent Descharnais (6-foot-7), the Protas brothers (6-foot-6), Dylan McIlrath (6-foot-5), Alex Tuch (6-foot-4), Tom Wilson (6-foot-4), Pierre-Luc Dubois (6-foot-4), Logan Thompson (6-foot-4), Dylan Strome (6-foot-4), and Alex Ovechkin (6-foot-3).
How far that takes Washington is anyone’s guess, but Stanley Cup-winning player and the Capitals’ current president of hockey operations, Brian MacLellan, stated his belief in 2021 that “size and skill is how you win, especially in the playoffs.”
During his chat with Match TV, Protas was also asked if he perceived the acquisitions of Jordan Kyrou and Tuch as replacements for Ovechkin.
“I knew it wouldn’t affect the signing of Alexander Mikhailovich,” Protas said. “And the general manager said throughout the season that he would look for reinforcements, and he did. The team has simply gotten stronger, and that’s great.”
He was also asked if he could ever imagine Ovechkin suiting up on the Capitals’ third line.
“We actually have a team that I’ve never felt like there was a division [between lines],” Protas replied. “We have a deep, evenly matched team that will play good hockey.”
