Capitals’ Roadmap to Success: Key Factors for a Thriving 2024-25 Season
In less than a day on Tuesday afternoon, the 2024 NHL regular season will begin, after an exciting offseason that saw many high-profile free agent signings and trades. A fresh season always brings hope for most clubs, who are hoping to improve their postseason performance or make the playoffs after missing out the previous season. The Washington Capitals, headed by captain Alex Ovechkin, are among the teams with a lot to look forward to this coming season. Ovechkin is attempting to surpass hockey icon Wayne Gretzky's all-time career goal record, and he only needs 42 goals to do it. Along with Ovechkin's pursuit of breaking more records comes a reconstructed roster for the Capitals, who made significant changes during free agency by signing several new players and making some trades in an attempt to advance further in the postseason this upcoming season after making the playoffs last season, where they grabbed the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference and were swept by the New York Rangers, their division rivals. Let's examine some of the most important factors for the Capitals to have a successful 2024–25 season.
Improved Offensive Scoring
For the Capitals to have a better outcome this season will be primarily influenced by their ability to have a substantial increase in offensive scoring compared to a season ago. The Capitals' offense, which finished last season ranked 29th in the NHL in goals-per-game at 2.75 and 31st in shots on goal per game at 26.6, found it extremely difficult to stay with the best clubs in the Eastern Conference. In order to support Ovechkin, John Carlson, Tom Wilson, and Dylan Strome, former Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan made it a top priority to add scoring threats to the squad heading into free agency. The Capitals acquired Pierre-Luc Dubois in the offseason in a deal that sent goalie Darcy Kuemper to the Los Angeles Kings.
Dubois is a player that head coach Spencer Carbery expects will have a major influence on the team's offensive success. With just 16 goals in his last season in Los Angeles, Dubois' return to form is something the Capitals are counting on to happen. Nevertheless, Dubois scored 28 goals in 2021–22 and 27 goals in 2022–23, his two greatest goal–scoring seasons, with the Winnipeg Jets, the two seasons before. The Capitals will be in a good position to have an increase in offensive production alongside Ovechkin if they can get Dubois back on track and have him contribute much-needed scoring.
Quality Goaltending
Despite last season ending on a sour note against the Rangers in the playoffs, the Capitals saw a much-needed emergence in between the crease, with eight-year goalie Charlie Lindgren asserting himself as a starting goaltender in Washington. Last season, Lindgren put together a career-best season, finishing with a 25-16-0 record, a 2.67 goals-against average, a .911 save percentage, and six shutouts in 48 games started. As the Capitals prepare for this upcoming season, Lindgren will try to convince the front office that his success last season wasn't an anomaly and that they can count on him to develop into the team's future starter. Over the past few seasons, the Capitals have been looking for a replacement for former starting goalie Braden Holtby, who left the team after the 2019–20 season and helped them win their first-ever Stanley Cup in 2018.
Along with Lindgren’s anticipated continuing success this season, the Capitals are also entering this season with a huge upgrade in the backup goaltender depth, with former Las Vegas Golden Knights goalie Logan Thompson having been dealt to Washington during the 2024 NHL Draft this past June. In four seasons with the Golden Knights, Thompson played a key part in the team's Stanley Cup victory in 2023. He ended his Knights tenure with a 56-32-0 record, a 2.67 goals-against average, a .912 save percentage, and four shutouts. If Lindgren and Thompson can continue to provide consistent goaltending for the duration of the season, coach Carbery could be working with one of the top goalie tandems in the league.
Integration of New Players
The Capitals added seven new players to their roster during the busy offseason, including Dubois, Thompson, defenseman Matt Roy, Jakob Chychrun, and forwards Andrew Mangiapane, Brandon Duhaime, and Taylor Raddysh. These new faces give coach Carbery both a boost in talent and a tough challenge as the team prepares for the season. During the preseason, which concluded this past Saturday against the Boston Bruins, the coaching staff of the Capitals was tasked with helping the newly acquired players in adjusting to their new surroundings with ease. The risk of bringing in multiple new players in the offseason is that it may take some time for the longer-tenured players and the newcomers to gel as a team, as they learn where their teammates are most effective on the ice and how to plan ahead to produce the best results at any given moment. The Capitals will put themselves in a fantastic position to be contending for another postseason spot if they can overcome any potential early-season hiccups that may occur through the first month or two of the season.
