Capitals continue to impress despite slight step back

The Washington Capitals were the surprise team of the 2024-25 NHL season, as they rebounded from barely sneaking in the year prior to powering their way to the top spot in the Metropolitan Division a year ago.

Alexander Ovechkin broke the all-time goal record as the Capitals paced the Eastern Conference with 111 points, and Washington ousted Montreal in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs before falling to Carolina in five games in the second round.

Many expected some regression from Washington this season, and that has taken place, as they find themselves well back of Carolina for first in the division, but the Caps are still firmly in the playoff picture, and they own the second best goal differential in the East.

On Tuesday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, host Tyler Yaremchuk and co-host and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton discussed where the Capitals stand through the midway point of the campaign.

Tyler Yaremchuk: I was looking at them and wondering if this was going to be maybe a little bit of a step back kind of year for them just because last year was so stunningly positive. The regular season they had, nobody saw that coming. So I was curious if with no Ovi record to chase, Logan Thompson, could he do what he did last year again? What we’ve seen through 41 games is that maybe they aren’t an elite team in the East, but they’re still a really damn good hockey team.

Carter Hutton: Yeah, for sure. And again, when you start to think down the stretch, I think the power play becomes even more important too. Things are going to tighten up 5-on-5… I think I rated them a little higher as we did our consensus on voting. I thought there was going to be a set back, so I almost favor them for answering the call again here. Ovi with 17 goals. The year Tom Wilson has had, and then Logan Thompson, the shadow of not making the 4 Nations… to answer the call and be as good as he’s been to make Team Canada and help this team be there, he’s the number one goalie right now in advanced analytics.

You can watch the full segment and the rest of the episode here…