After missing the playoffs in 2022-23 for the first time in nine years, and just the second time in 15, trouble seemed to be brewing in Washington. They had a core of aging players, and while they had a few solid, younger pieces surrounding them, there wasn’t a lot going for them. Along with only some minor changes to the lineup in the summer, the 2023-24 Capitals didn’t have a lot going for them. Well, except for Alex Ovechkin’s continuous quest for the all-time goals record, which felt inevitable considering his goal-scoring prowess, even at 38…
And then Ovechkin started the season with just eight goals in 43 games. Suddenly the one highlight to the Capitals‘ season no longer felt like an inevitable thing and became a matter of if he could pull it off. But Ovechkin caught fire in the last half of the season, all while the Caps hung around in the playoff race until the final days of the schedule. They managed to sneak in to the eighth seed thanks to a 2-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers, with the game-winning goal being an empty netter because Flyers coach John Tortorella went all in on a regulation win for the Flyers even though the Detroit Red Wings had already eliminated the Flyers from playoff contention, and then the goal and win clinched the final spot for the Caps and eliminated the Red Wings. It was a confusing and chaotic day; you had to be there.
But, the Capitals were clearly outclassed compared to the rest of the Eastern Conference in the playoffs, going in with the worst goal differential (-37) of any team to qualify since 1991, and the New York Rangers walked all over them on route to a four-game sweep, outscoring the Caps 15-7. But, the Caps showed that they still had some life in them overall, so management took that as a sign to make some moves. They moved out a few pieces and added several, especially on the back end, and now they’ve gone from a one-and-done playoff team to looking like a competitive playoff team. But are the moves enough to make the Caps a legitimate threat for the playoffs, or are they just better suited to get Ovechkin to 894 goals?