ARLINGTON, V.A. — For Pierre-Luc Dubois, the Washington Capitals are everything he'd hoped they would be, and more.

Just one year ago, the 26-year-old pivot was struggling to find consistency and ultimately, his role with the Los Angeles Kings. It led to a rather lackluster year for Dubois and, subsequently, a trade to the Capitals for Darcy Kuemper.

Fast forward now, and Dubois stands as one of the league's best 200-foot centers and a beloved leader in Washington's dressing room.

"He's such a great guy, such a fun guy," Tom Wilson said of Dubois. "He's obviously a heck of a hockey player. We've just got along very well since Day 1, he's fit in well, I think he's taking on a leadership role... he's really finding his groove here."

Through 82 games, Dubois put up 20 goals and 46 assists for 66 points, along with a plus/minus of plus-27, while often going up against other teams' top lines.

Now, heading into the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Montreal Canadiens, the Capitals are looking to him to be an X-Factor. And given his turnaround this year, he's expected to contribute significantly this postseason.

What triggered that turnaround, though, and why did Dubois click with the Capitals when it appeared that other teams couldn't unlock his potential?

A lot of it comes down to a simple fundamental: respect.

"When you can have a conversation with your coach, it helps a lot," Dubois told The Hockey News. "It helps a lot. When you can communicate and you know, you're not always going to be on that same page, but as long as that mutual respect (is there) between the two — at the end of the day, the coach is right. But as long as you can have a relationship and communicate... individually it helps a lot."

After all, coaching is everything to the Quebec native. Dubois' father is a defensive coach, and he grew up in a household where knowing the exact X's and O's was just as important as executing them on the ice.

So, when Dubois arrived in town, coach Spencer Carbery immediately got to work, getting to know the newest member of the Capitals roster and figuring out what coaching style works for him and what doesn't.

"As far as him coming here and us getting on the same page... utilizing his strengths. 'What do you do well? Where are you best utilized? Tell me when you feel like you are playing your best? What is a head coach doing with that? How do you learn? What's your deployment? How do you like that play in certain situations? What wingers?' All those things of learning about the player and what Dubie, when he's at his best, what is happening around him and what is the coach doing to affect that."

That alone marked progress, but Carbery also applauded Dubois' personal growth as his career has progressed.

"He's grown, obviously, as a person, as a player, matured. At this point in his career, he's gone through a lot of experiences, right or wrong or good or bad, that have helped him in this moment where he is right now," Carbery said.

The result has been a player that Carbery, alone with Dubois' teammates, believe can be a Selke candidate going forward.

"He's been as consistent of a player we've had all year long, from game No. 1 to game No. 82, of playing at your standard. Every player has a little bit of this, but his are like 10 good, maybe one where he struggles, but then right back up," Carbery said, adding, "He's as intelligent of a player as I've ever coached. Centerman, size, the intangibles, the skill, everything that he did, why he was so highly touted. The thing that doesn't go unnoticed, where he's grown into, is an intelligent two-way, 200-foot centerman."

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Rarely does Dubois have to make a correction, and when he does, he knows exactly what needs to be done and the fundamentals behind it. That, of course, comes from his father's upbringing, but also Dubois' high hockey IQ and vision.

"He's such an intuitive, intelligent player who has such a good sense for the game and everything that's happening around him," Carbery said. "It's a pretty impressive quality."

Now, as he heads into a first-round series against his home province Montreal Canadiens, he's looking to keep the momentum going in order to help D.C. make a deep run.

"I have one goal, and it's to win a Stanley Cup. Everything after that doesn't really matter to me," Dubois told The Hockey News.