The Washington Capitals are earning attention as the NHL Awards continue to be unveiled over the course of the offseason.
Defensemen John Carlson and Jakob Chychrun earned national attention for their performance in 2024-25, earning votes for the Norris Trophy as the NHL's top blueliner, while captain Alex Ovechkin finished fourth in Masteron voting.
Colorado Avalanche blueliner Cale Makar won the award for the second time in his career. The award, which goes “to the defense player who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-around ability in the position,” is voted on by members of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association.
Carlson finished 16th in voting, receiving one fourth-place vote, and Jakob Chychrun finished tied for 17th, earning one fifth-place vote. The Boston Herald's Stephen Conroy voted for Carlson, and Viasat Finland's Antti Makinen voted for Chychrun.
In 79 games this past season, Carlson picked up five goals and 46 assists for 51 points, while improving from a minus-7 in 2023-24 to a plus-17. He averaged 23:34 minutes a night, ranking in the top-20 of NHL defensemen in average time on ice this past season. This is the seventh time in his career he's finished in th etop-20 in the Norris race.
Chychrun, meanwhile, had a breakout first year with the Capitals. Acquired in the offseason, the 26-year-old put up a career-high 20 goals and 27 assists for 47 points in 74 games, and was a plus-17 after finishing as a minus-30 the season before with the Ottawa Senators. Chychrun skated 21:04 minutes per night and was one of just three defensemen league-wide to score at least 20 goals in a season. His performance earned him an eight-year contract extension in D.C.
Meanwhile, Ovechkin finished fourth in Masteron voting, earning 16 first-place votes. The Masterton goes to the player who “best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.”
Ovechkin missed 16 games with a broken leg but still came back to score 44 goals, the third-most in the NHL, to overtake Wayne Gretzky as the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer.