The Washington Capitals went through a bunch of changes this off-season, but kept some old stalwarts as well. Will that be enough to get them back into the playoffs for 2026-27?
In 2024 and 2025, the Washington Capitals made surprising playoff appearances. In 2026, they barely missed, and it left the team with its aging core at a crossroads.
After a busy summer in which they added a ton of big-name talent and got the most important player in franchise history back for what seems to be one final ride, expectations to get back in are clearly high.
So what needs to go right this year to ensure the Capitals make the cut for this coming season?
Here are a few ideas.
1. Capitals' Off-Season Investments Paying Off
When you hand out an $84-million contract to Alex Tuch, give up legitimate assets for Jordan Kyrou, and even add Boone Jenner, you want those guys to score for you.
The question is whether they will.
If recent history is any indication, Tuch is basically a guaranteed 30-goal guy. Anything less than that will probably be viewed as a pretty big failure for a 30-year-old who just got eight years, given where the team is at in its competitive cycle.
Interestingly, Kyrou used to be a surefire 30-goal guy, and last season he only scored 18. This is a pricey, high-risk, reclamation effort. There's a lot to like about the player, but he undoubtedly has something to prove.
Jenner's biggest problem isn't necessarily production. He's likely to put up 15-20 goals and around 40 points. However, his health remains a primary concern. The last time he suited up for more than 68 games in a season was in his 2019-20 campaign.
The four-year, $23-million commitment for guy whose biggest problem is lack of availability comes with a ton of concerns.
The fact that they might need all three of those guys to hit is not ideal. Especially because it ties into the need for…
2. Someone Else To Shoot The Puck
Alex Ovechkin is the best goalscorer in league history. He and the Capitals seem desperate to get to 1,000 career regular-season goals, but that effort was unquestionably to their detriment last season.
Ovechkin put 244 shots on net last season (17th-most in the league), and attempted 542 (12th-most). The problem? He generated just 25 rebounds, which weren't from dangerous areas of the ice.
When his shot is working, there are few that can fire it better, but it turns out when you're 40 you can't quite do it the way you could when you were 25, 30, or even 35.
The hope has to be that with Tuch and Kyrou possibly getting top power-play time, it gives the Capitals' man-advantage another dimension than, "Let's have Ovechkin bomb it from the top of the circle," or "Let's have Jakob Chychrun bomb it from the middle slot."
The old trick doesn't work anymore. Time for a new look.
3. Clarity On The Capitals' Defense
Late last season, the Capitals wisely moved on from longtime stalwart John Carlson, and in doing so, introduced a lot of mystery into the future of their defensive core.
Undoubtedly, Chychrun will continue to get big minutes, but now head coach Spencer Carbery is going to have to find out just what Cole Hutson can do. The 20-year-old looked very good in his audition at the end of last season, recording 10 points in 14 games while averaging just 17:27 of ice time per game, but he's going to need to step up.
Hutson showed in college that he can contribute big minutes in all situations, and there should be plenty of runway for him to show out. But there's a difference between getting the opportunity and making the most of it. It's not easy to be a rookie defenseman in this league.
4. Another Great Season From Logan Thompson
Much like the Islanders, the Capitals missed the playoffs despite getting another stellar goaltending season. Logan Thompson was fourth in Vezina Trophy voting with a .912 save percentage and led the league in goals saved above expected (29.3 GSAx) according to MoneyPuck.com.
To miss the playoffs despite that kind of performance is hard to do, but the Capitals unfortunately accomplished it. The good news is that Thompson has thrived under Carbery's system, stopping 26 goals above-expected in 2024-25 as well.
The good news is that all signs point to him being great once again. The bad news is that it wasn't enough last season, so his margin for error doesn't feel as high as it should be.
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