After dropping their season opener to the New Jersey Devils, Washington has gained 4 in a row and has achieved so in opposition to formidable competitors. The Caps beat the Vegas Golden Knights, Dallas Stars after which the Devils in a rematch, earlier than trouncing over the struggling Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday evening.
They’re going to play Philly once more within the second half of a back-to-back sequence on Wednesday, seeking to make it 5 straight.
The best way the Capitals are successful appears far more sustainable than final season, when their offense struggled to regulate play and plenty of of their victories have been on account of puck luck and goaltender Charlie Lindgren’s heroics. In all 5 of Washington’s video games so far, the staff has lit the lamp a minimum of 3 times, and it’s getting stable manufacturing from all areas.
Dylan Strome has emerged as a bona fide star, with eight factors in 5 video games. Tom Wilson has been a goal-scoring machine, discovering the again of the online in every of Washington’s first 4 contests. Connor McMichael is acting at a point-per-game tempo as he continues to develop right into a core piece of the staff’s future and John Carlson stays one of many NHL’s finest offensive blue-liners.
Then, after all, there may be Alex Ovechkin, who has solely tallied as soon as so far, however leads the staff in pictures on purpose, so he is due for some constructive development.
A lot of Washington’s offseason acquisitions have made a distinction as effectively. Andrew Mangiapane was the headline addition, and he is already scored a number of occasions together with a short-handed purpose in opposition to the Flyers (one in all two “shorties” that the Caps scored on Tuesday).
Defenseman Jakob Chychrun has been maybe the most important needle-mover so far, although, as he and Carlson have completely dominated the opposition whereas they have been on the ice.
The remainder of Washington’s roster is full of formidable depth, with a stable combination of rising youth and savvy veterans incomes their share of ice time every evening. Bringing again Jakub Vrana has appeared to reignite the speedy ahead whose profession had fallen on exhausting occasions since being traded by Washington in 2021, and retaining fourth-line middle Nic Dowd throughout final season’s sell-off has proved to be the proper name.
All in all, it is about as promising of a begin for Washington as one may have realistically hoped for. Former common supervisor Brian MacLellan did a formidable job of fixing his staff’s roster holes earlier than stepping down from his place late final summer season, and second-year head coach Spencer Carbery has his revamped squad shortly constructing some very good chemistry.
The Capitals’ 2023-24 playoff berth could have been largely a product of smoke and mirrors, however what it did accomplish was holding the group in a mindset of maximizing its alternatives. That has paid off so far this season, and if the Caps sustain their scorching begin, this staff needs to be their finest one in a number of years.
