How Oettinger, A Different Summer Back Home & New Mindset Set Charlie Lindgren Up To Stake His Claim For Capitals Crease

"The goaltending position is so complex... I'm the kind of guy where I feel like if I see the puck, I'm gonna stop it," the Capitals netminder said.

WASHINGTON — Right now in D.C., it's Charlie Lindgren's world, and the Washington Capitals are basking in it.

The 29-year-old is off to one of the best starts of his still-young career, winning three of his last starts and posting a .969 save percentage and 1.01 GAA while capping it off with a shutout win over the defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights.

"F—ing A right! Let's f—ing go!" Lindgren screamed in the locker room after Tuesday's result.

His stellar play between the pipes, featuring big glove stops, timely butterfly saves and a perfect record when it comes to mid and long-range shots, has helped propel Washington, who started the year 1-3-1, to second in the Metropolitan Division while putting the coaching staff on notice.

"I got some really good momentum going right now, feeling good in practice, feeling good in games," Lindgren said matter-of-factly.

"Chucky's earning opportunities with his play, and he's playing at an elite level right now," head coach Spencer Carbery noted, adding that he has nothing against changing the goaltending approach and splitting more starts between Lindgren and signed starter Darcy Kuemper.

But where did it start for Lindgren, and what inspired his recent hot streak that has taken D.C. by storm?

It all started back on April 11 against Boston, where he made a highlight-reel, bare-handed save and then a full scorpion stop. He ultimately left the game with an injury — he tweaked his back on the final stop, and also suffered a concussion after taking a David Pastrnak shot to the mask — but he was inspired.

That was the Charlie Lindgren he wanted to be every night. The one willing to put anything on the line to stop a shot, by any means necessary.

"The goaltending position is so complex... I'm the kind of guy where I feel like if I see the puck, I'm gonna stop it," Lindgren told The Hockey News, adding, "Goalies are a different breed."

The back of his mask even features a credo that embodies the style he wants to play and his spirit animal: the lion.

"I will persist until I succeed. I was not delivered into this world into defeat, nor does failure course my veins. I am not a sheep waiting to be prodded by my shepherd. I am a lion, and I refuse to talk, walk and to sleep with the sheep. I will persist until I succeed," he recites, tracing his finger along the quote painted onto the backplate.

It wouldn't be an overnight transition, though. There was a lot of work for Lindgren to do to get to that point. So, after taking an unconventional trip to Italy with his wife and hitting reset, he made a call to hometown friend and Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger and got to work.

The biggest thing for the Lakeville, Minnesota native, who admitted he's leaner and not as flexible as other netminders in the league, was simply learning more about the human body. He and Oettigner went to work with chiropractor Anthony Benda in Minnesota, where Lindgren became a believer in the ancient Chinese method of "cupping."

After that, Lindgren would add a new element that changed his approach: a mobility coach. Oettinger introduced him to Grace Witthuhn, who helped Lindgren work on specific areas of his game. It helped him push his limits, working wonders for his reactive style of play.

"I'm probably not one of the more limber goalies out there. Naturally, I'm someone that can barely touch my toes. I have pretty good [groin muscles]. I can't do the splits, but I'm somewhat close. But my hamstrings, IT bands, they're just muscles that are tight on me," Lindgren explained. "Hips are important for goalies, and so just working on those different muscles in a different way, I think really benefitted me and just gave me new tools to work with."

Then, coming back to D.C., Lindgren had a shift in mentality. The goal wasn't just to be a better goalie in games, but a better goalie on a daily basis. That all starts in practice, where even his teammates have a tough time facing him.

"He's hard to score on," Dylan Strome, who leads his team with seven goals this season, noted.

Lindgren has also been fine-tuning different elements of his play with goaltending coach Scott Murray. All of that has worked wonders and has helped him get to this point, where fans are chanting his name and he finds himself leading his time out as the No. 1.

"The more I play, kind of the better I feel and I think again it’s a testament to the product of what I’ve been doing in practice, honestly... making sure I’m coming to the rink every day with a purpose and with the mindset to try to get better. I think my practices really set me up for the games," Lindgren said.

His overall record to start the year is 3-1-0 with a .947 save percentage and 1.76 GAA. And Going forward, the goal is to keep building ont hose numbers and remain consistent — by any means necessary.

"It’s extremely hard to win in this league. We’ve played some really good opponents lately, we got really good opponents coming up and really every night’s a tough night, so that’s why you gotta bring your best every night, especially for myself," Lindgren said. If you don’t bring your best as a goaltender, your team probably doesn’t have a chance to win. So we put a lot of pressure on ourselves and that’s what makes the goaltending position so fun.”