Here are all the season predictions from the Capitals press box crew, from Ovechkin's goals to Pacioretty's debut to who'll hit 20 goals and beyond.
WASHINGTON — The Washington Capitals are finally back, as the 2023-24 season officially gets underway with a rivalry showdown against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday.
That said, the Capitals' press box got together for its second annual media poll, as colleague Ben Raby put together a poll for us beat writers and personalities to make our preseason predictions.
Here are the results:
How many goals will Alex Ovechkin score?
Ethan Cadeaux (Monumental Sports Network): 41
Tarik El-Bashir (Monumental Sports Network): 44
Tom Gulitti (NHL.com): 44
Bailey Johnson (Washington Post): 48
Ben Raby (Caps Radio): 40
Sammi Silber (The Hockey News): 50
Matt Weyrich (Monumental Sports Network): 46
Steve Whyno (Associated Press): 41
When will Ovechkin score his 850th career goal?
Cadeaux: Feb. 6 vs. Montreal Canadiens
El-Bashir: Feb. 8 vs. Florida Panthers
Gulitti:Feb. 6 vs. Canadiens
Johnson: Jan. 14 vs. New York Rangers
Raby: Feb. 20 vs. New Jersey Devils
Silber: Feb. 11 vs. Vancouver Canucks
Weyrich: Jan. 14 vs. Rangers
Whyno: March 11 vs. Winnipeg Jets
How many points for Evgeny Kuznetsov?
Cadeaux: 65
El-Bashir: 68
Gulitti: 76
Johnson: 63
Raby: 69
Silber: 78
Weyrich: 66
Whyno: 72
How many games will be started by Kuemper? Lindgren? Others?
Cadeaux: Kuemper 55, Lindgren 27
El-Bashir: Kuemper 51, Lindgren 31
Gulitti: Kuemper 58, Lindgren 23, Hunter Shepard 1
Johnson: Kuemper 54, Lindgren 28
Raby: Kuemper 54, Lindgren 27, Shepard 1
Silber: Kuemper 50, Lindgren 31, Shepard 1
Weyrich: Kuemper 52, Lindgren 30
Whyno: Kuemper 50, Lindgren 30, Shepard 2
How many shutouts will the Capitals goalies combine for?
Cadeaux: 4
El-Bashir: 6
Gulitti: 2
Johnson: 4
Raby: 7
Silber: 6
Weyrich: 4
Whyno: 6
Who will be selected and/or represent the Capitals at the All-Star Game?
Cadeaux: Ovechkin
El-Bashir: Ovechkin, Tom Wilson
Gulitti: Ovechkin
Johnson: Ovechkin
Raby: Ovechkin, Wilson
Silber: Ovechkin, Wilson, John Carlson
Weyrich: Ovechkin, Wilson
Whyno: Wilson
When will Max Pacioretty make his season debut (Date, Opponent)?
Cadeaux: Jan. 3 vs. New Jersey Devils
El-Bashir: Dec. 7 vs. Dallas Stars
Gulitti: Dec. 14 vs. Philadelphia Flyers
Johnson: Jan. 5 vs. Carolina Hurricanes
Raby: Dec. 14 vs. Flyers
Silber: Dec. 23 vs. Tampa Bay Lightning
Weyrich: Dec. 4 vs. Arizona Coyotes
Whyno: Dec. 30 vs. Nashville Predators
Which Eastern team that made the playoffs last year won't qualify this year?
Cadeaux: New York Islanders
El-Bashir: Islanders
Gulitti: Islanders
Johnson: Islanders
Raby: Islanders, Florida Panthers
Silber: Islanders, Panthers
Weyrich: Islanders
Whyno: Islanders, Panthers
Which Canadian teams will make the Stanley Cup Playoffs?
Cadeaux: Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs
El-Bashir: Oilers, Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets
Gulitti: Flames, Oilers, Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators
Johnson: Oilers, Maple Leafs
Raby: Oilers, Maple Leafs, Senators
Silber: Oilers, Maple Leafs, Senators, Canucks
Weyrich: Flames, Oilers, Maple Leafs
Whyno: Flames, Oilers, Maple Leafs, Senators
Who will be Ovechkin's most frequent 5-on-5 linemate?
Cadeaux: Wilson
El-Bashir: Wilson
Gulitti: Kuznetsov
Johnson: Dylan Strome
Raby: Kuznetsov
Silber: Kuznetsov
Weyrich: Wilson
Whyno: Kuznetsov
Who will make his NHL debut with the Capitals this year?
Cadeaux: Ivan Miroshnichenko, Hardy Häman Aktell
El-Bashir: Miroshnichenko, Häman Aktell
Gulitti: Miroshnichenko, Häman Aktell, Shepard
Johnson: Miroshnichenko, Häman Aktell
Raby: Miroshnichenko, Häman Aktell, Shepard
Silber: Miroshnichenko, Riley Sutter, Häman Aktell, Shepard
Weyrich: Miroshnichenko, Riley Sutter, Häman Aktell
Whyno: Miroshnichenko, Sutter, Shepard
Who will lead the Capitals in fighting majors?
Cadeaux: Beck Malenstyn (4)
El-Bashir: Wilson (5)
Gulitti: Wilson (5)
Johnson: Wilson (5)
Raby: Wilson (5)
Silber: Wilson (6)
Weyrich: Oshie (4)
Whyno: Malenstyn (3)
Indicate, in order, the Caps' top-3 PP goal-scorers at year's end:
Cadeaux: Ovechkin, Kuznetsov, T.J. Oshie
El-Bashir: Ovechkin, Oshie, Carlson
Gulitti: Ovechkin, Oshie, Kuznetsov
Johnson: Ovechkin, Carlson, Kuznetsov
Raby: Ovechkin, Oshie, Wilson
Silber: Ovechkin, Carlson, Oshie
Weyrich: Ovechkin, Oshie, Nicklas Backstrom
Whyno: Ovechkin, Oshie, Carlson
Samantha Pell Special: How many Caps games will go beyond regulation?
Cadeaux: 18
El-Bashir: 16
Gulitti: 25
Johnson: 17
Raby: 22
Silber: 16
Weyrich: 17
Whyno: 16
Which Caps will hit the 20-goal plateau?
Cadeaux: Ovechkin, Wilson, Oshie, Kuznetsov
El-Bashir: Ovechkin, Wilson, Oshie, Strome
Gulitti: Ovechkin, Wilson, Kuznetsov, Strome, Oshie, Pacioretty
Johnson: Ovechkin, Strome, Kuznetsov
Raby: Ovechkin, Wilson, Kuznetsov
Silber: Ovechkin, Wilson, Oshie, Kuznetsov, Pacioretty
Weyrich: Ovechkin, Wilson, Oshie, Strome
Whyno: Ovechkin, Kuznetsov, Wilson
Who will be the Caps leading point-getter among North Americans?
Cadeaux: Carlson
El-Bashir: Strome
Gulitti: Strome
Johnson: Strome
Raby: Carlson
Silber: Carlson
Weyrich: Strome
Whyno: Wilson
Who will be the Caps leading goal-scorer among North Americans?
Cadeaux: Wilson
El-Bashir: Wilson
Gulitti: Wilson
Johnson: Strome
Raby: Wilson
Silber: Wilson
Weyrich: Oshie
Whyno: Strome
How many games with Alexander Alexeyev play?
Cadeaux: 43
El-Bashir: 36
Gulitti: 25
Johnson: 53
Raby: 58
Silber: 34
Weyrich: 41
Whyno: 24
Tiebreaker: The Chik-Fil-A Cow will be spotted most frequently in this section at Capital One Arena:
Cadeaux: 204
El-Bashir: 201
Gulitti: 120
Johnson: 112
Raby: 418
Silber: 101
Weyrich: 108
Whyno: 420