Washington Capitals News

Home

Quizzes

Newsletter

Rasmus Sandin, Washington Capitals (Photo by Kavin Mistry/NHLI via Getty Images)

How Can the Capitals Contend for Playoffs?

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Hayley Paljug | Last updated Jan 28, 2026 3:40 PM ET

It’s been an up-and-down season for the Washington Capitals. The team that was once first in the Metropolitan Division has now dropped out of playoff contention entirely and sits sixth in the Eastern Conference. While some teams tend to hit a bit of a midseason slump around the end of December and into early January, the Capitals have, seemingly, yet to recover from theirs.

They have just 57 points on the season (tied with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Philadelphia Flyers). They would have to make a huge jump of at least nine points to slip back into a wild-card spot in place of either the Montreal Canadiens or the Boston Bruins. If they have any hopes of making the playoffs this season, some big changes need to occur soon, especially after the Winter Olympic break.

Shot Volume Should Increase

The Capitals simply are not taking enough shots. In their recent game against the Seattle Kraken, they registered just 20 shots on goal to the opponent’s 32. The game before, against the Edmonton Oilers, saw just 27 shots to the Oilers’ 40. They are getting outshot time and again, and that’s impacting the final score.

Players who were once the team’s high-volume shooters, such as Alex Ovechkin, Tom Wilson, or Dylan Strome, are not getting nearly enough shots. In the game versus the Oilers, Ovechkin and Strome registered one each, with Wilson not registering any. The highest shot producer of that game was Connor McMichael with five; however, he has just a 7.6% conversion rate on the season.

If generally high-scoring and accurate-shooting players cannot pick up their pace, the Capitals are going to fizzle out quickly and lose all playoff dreams. The team’s television broadcasters, Joe Beninati and Craig Laughlin, mused in the game against the Kraken that the team simply needed to shoot anything and everything. Perhaps the Capitals could use some “chaos hockey”. Shoot, shoot, shoot, and see what happens.

The Team Must Stay Healthy

Washington has been going through the injury roundabout lately. Wilson was out for an extended period of time, Jakob Chychrun and Justin Sourdif have recently been banged up, and now the team is without defensemen Rasmus Sandin and Matt Roy, who are listed as day-to-day.

Their absences were notable in the loss to the Kraken. Throughout the game, the backend had just 11 blocked shots and six hits, along with a noticeable lack of puck control in the zone. Sandin and Roy are critical members of the Capitals’ defense who put up impressive numbers each game.

For example, Sandin blocked four shots on his own against the Calgary Flames, more than a third of what the entire defense did in his absence. Roy also registered three hits in that game, and the Capitals took home a 3-1 victory. When the team is missing key players, they falter, so staying healthy will be a major factor in the team’s success down the stretch as they try to get closer to playoff contention.

Winning Critical Games Will Make or Break the Season

Competition in the Eastern Conference is never easy, and this season is no exception. The Capitals have a 14-12-4 record against their conference opponents, per StatMuse. With the conference having such tight competition, wins against conference opponents are more critical than ever.

They have four games against conference opponents before the Olympic break: the Detroit Red Wings, Carolina Hurricanes, Flyers, and New York Islanders. Wins in these games are, potentially, make-or-break for the playoffs. If the Capitals win all four they may be back in or near a wild-card spot. If they take some losses, and they could drop even lower in the standings.

The team has dropped some games recently that should have been easy wins and helped them climb the standings. Just in January, they took losses to six non-playoff teams: The team faltered against the Chicago Blackhawks (.481), Florida Panthers (.567), Nashville Predators (.510), Ottawa Senators (.529), Kraken (.548), and the Vancouver Canucks (.368).

With just 28 games left in the season, it’s time for the Capitals to fire on all cylinders, dig deep, and grind har every game to get necessary wins. If they can’t win most of those games, especially those within the conference, they’ll be taking an early vacation entering the offseason with hopes of a high draft pick.

The Capitals will be eagerly and desperately seeking wins as they face the Red Wings on Thursday and the Hurricanes on Saturday to conclude the month. It’s time for the team to step up or prepare for a disappointing end to the season.