Analysis | RMNB

A closer look at Spencer Carbery’s coaching resume, his familiarity with Capitals players, and the power play he ran in Toronto

The Washington Capitals hired Spencer Carbery to be its 20th head coach in franchise history, Tuesday.

Carbery comes to DC with no prior head coaching experience in the NHL but did spend multiple seasons as the bench boss of the Hershey Bears. The 41-year-old former Stingrays player was in high demand as he interviewed with other teams before eventually agreeing to a four-year deal with the Caps.

So, what is all of the hype about?

(more…)

By Chris Cerullo 5 days ago

0 Comment

What if the Capitals got William Nylander?!

The Washington Capitals are in a tough situation. The meanest way I could put it is: their core is rotting. Kuznetsov wants out, Backstrom isn’t the same, Wilson is still recovering, Mantha isn’t working out, etc, etc etc. We know the team promised Alex Ovechkin they’d be competitive next season, and we know that getting Ovi to the goal-scoring record is a priority as well.

So what if – and this is a big what if – they got Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander to help them out with both of those projects? And how could they do it?

(more…)

By Peter Hassett 2 weeks ago

0 Comment

These teams better not win the Draft Lottery

The NHL Draft Lottery is scant hours away, and the fortune of one NHL team is about to change. The consensus number-one pick, Connor Bedard, is a special player who could transform a franchise. The Capitals have a six-percent chance of being that lottery-winning team — about the same chances you have of rolling a crit on your d20 — which means probably someone other than you is going to have a good night. And in some cases, that’ll be bad news.

We have already prepared for you a comprehensive primer on how the lottery will run, but here now is what I think Bedard would do for each team in the running, whether or not them getting him would be a good thing for the universe, and — naturally — what J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings thinks of each situation.

(more…)

By Peter Hassett 4 weeks ago

0 Comment

The players the Capitals could select at eighth, ninth, or tenth overall at the 2023 NHL Draft

The Washington Capitals will have a chance to move up to one of the top three spots in the 2023 NHL Draft at Monday’s lottery. But the cold reality is that they have a much larger probability of ending up picking either eighth, ninth, or tenth overall.

We’ve covered the potential top three picks in this year’s class in Connor Bedard, Adam Fantilli, and Matvei Michkov in case the Caps are blessed with good luck from the Hockey Gods.

Now, we’ll take a look at some maybe lesser-known names the Caps are much more mathematically likely to be targeting come June.

(more…)

By Chris Cerullo 4 weeks ago

3 Comments

Matvei Michkov broke Alex Ovechkin’s Russian record as a 16-year-old and could now join him on the Capitals

At one point in the 2023 Draft class evaluation process, Russian phenom Matvei Michkov was considered to be almost neck-and-neck with the now-surefire first overall selection Connor Bedard.

Michkov, as a 16-year-old, broke a Russian record previously held by Alex Ovechkin for the youngest player to ever suit up for the Russian National Team. Since then, he’s found some consistency issues in his game but is still projected as at least the third-best player in the draft.

Ovechkin’s Washington Capitals have a nonzero percent chance at selecting first, second, or third overall so it’s important Caps fans get acquainted with Michkov after doing the same with Bedard and Adam Fantilli.

(more…)

By Chris Cerullo 4 weeks ago

1 Comment

Why Michigan’s Adam Fantilli is considered the next best thing in the 2023 NHL Draft

While the focus at Monday’s 2023 NHL Draft Lottery will be on which team gets to select first and take super phenom Connor Bedard, the next best player in the draft class is no slouch either.

Adam Fantilli is a six-foot-two, 187-pound forward that played last season at Michigan University. Washington Capitals fans should get familiar with the name as the team has a chance to move up to the second overall selection in the second lottery drawing.

So, who exactly is Fantilli and why would he be a fantastic “consolation” prize for any team that just misses out on Bedard?

(more…)

By Chris Cerullo 4 weeks ago

11 Comments

What were the Washington Capitals?

Their season both disappointing and over, the Washington Capitals will be the topic of conversation a lot this summer. They’ve already fired a coach, and they’re bound for more drama around some star and core players like Kuznetsov, Backstrom, and Mantha.

But before we get into that, I want to get us on the same page about what the Capitals were. I recently saw a person characterize the 2022-23 Capitals in a way that was in conflict with what I saw, so I thought maybe all of us could benefit from a check-in with the cold hard facts.

These were your Capitals.

(more…)

By Peter Hassett 2 months ago

0 Comment

Back to more regularly scheduled programming: numbers for the morning after

The Washington Capitals got back in the loss column on Tuesday night against a historically good Boston Bruins team. The Caps went behind halfway through the second period and then trailed for the rest of the game, eventually losing 5-2.

The Bruins set the NHL single-season points record (133) with the win.

(more…)

By Chris Cerullo 2 months ago

0 Comment

Capitals somehow and for some reason beat the Islanders: numbers for the morning after

The Washington Capitals put a ding in their draft lottery chances on Monday night when they took down the playoff-hopeful New York Islanders 5-2. In the process, they also helped the Pittsburgh Penguins out massively in terms of their postseason chances.

That all sounds terrible to me.

(more…)

By Chris Cerullo 2 months ago

0 Comment

Capitals worries, ranked

Summer will come early for the Washington Capitals, who have not qualified for the playoffs for the first time in nine years. The 2018 Stanley Cup champions are suddenly non-factors in the league, despite an avowed promise to compete for the Cup every season through 2026.

Between them and regaining competitor status is a long list of concerns that must be sorted through and sussed out. And they need to get started on it right now.

(more…)

By Peter Hassett 2 months ago

2 Comments

12 3 4 5 Next ›Last »

Page 1 of 131