The Capitals can't say enough good things about Brandon Duhaime. (Geoff Burke — Imagn Images) [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/26f25e07-6871-4437-884a-47c6da09a5c3.jpeg] The Capitals can't say enough good things about Brandon Duhaime. (Geoff Burke — Imagn Images) ARLINGTON, V.A. — Over a handful of weeks in the summer, the Washington Capitals made quite the statement, overturning a third of the roster with an on-the-fly retool. Among the big-name acquisitions like Jakob Cychrun, Pierre-Luc Dubois and Logan Thompson, Washington made a quiet depth deal, inking Brandon Duhaime to a two-year deal to help fill the void on the bottom-6. Little did they know it would change everything for the team. The 27-year-old doesn't get much credit. He isn't flashy, with the exception of his rough-and-tumble style and physicality, with a couple of big plays sprinkled in here and there. However, a big reason that the Capitals, who feed off the energy and enthusiasm in their tight-knit locker room, is Duhaime's presence. "He's kind of like the life of the room," Dylan Strome said. "Always keeping everything light, always having fun. Loves to joke around with guys, but when it comes down to it, not many guys work harder than him on the ice." Through all 82 games, Duhaime thrived with Nic Dowd on the powerhouse fourth line and penalty kill, helping play a key shutdown role and generating offense. The 27-year-old took it one step further, too, hitting career-high marks in goals (9), assists (12) and points (21). "A lot of it plays into confidence and the staff having confidence in me and the team and how tight-knit the group is, is super important," Duhaime said of his individual success. "Anytime you come into a team like this, you grow close to guys and you want to kind of play hard for them." He's carried that success over into the postseason, and so far through the Stanley Cup Playoffs, he's been one of D.C.'s most important pieces. Not only is he piling on the hits — his 20 so far through five games are the most on the Capitals — and stepping up defensively, but he has three goals in five games, including a pivotal game-tying goal against the Montreal Canadiens that helped set the stage for the Capitals in reclaiming control in that series. Not only that, but he ranks eighth among all Washington forwards in chance contribution per 60 minutes. "I loved what he brought," coach Spencer Carbery said, adding, "He doesn't go, 'Oh, you know,' and make excuses... he's gotten significantly better through the years, so credit to him, because it's not easy to do it. It takes a lot of work, it takes a lot of time and it takes a lot of commitment and he's put that time in." He deserves it. He’s been grinding all year. Didn’t miss a game, I don’t think, and he plays some pretty hard minutes... we need everyone contributing and we’ve been getting that," Strome added. While he's stepped up his on-ice play, Duhaime also remains committed to keeping it loose and light in the room as the postseason goes on. He's still the resident prankster, likely responsible for changing Ryan Leonard's laces at practice and putting an egg in Tom Wilson's stall — though he wouldn't confirm he was the mastermind. But besides being a comic relief, he's a steady presence that sets the tone. "It's hard to have a bad day with this job... You come in with the same attitude every day. And it should be a positive attitude," Duhaime said. "Every day, coming here and doing what we do is a privilege." As the Capitals move on to face Carolina, a familiar adversary, Carbery noted how important scoring depth will be from all four lines, and beyond that, the players being there for one another. And "Dewey" is ready to rise to the occasion. "He's been an unsung sort of addition... he was a huge addition to our team, our culture, a lot of different areas, our penalty kill, just our overall personality of our team," coach Spencer Carbery said. "He just is so positive, brings so much juice on a daily basis... which goes a long, long way. He doesn't have a bad day and he's cranking it up every day."
