Are the Caps this years biggest frauds?

[Praetorian Caps]

To quote Mike Shanahan "your are what your record says you are" and The Capitals record says they have most wins in the Eastern Conference. If you don't like it take up with maths.

 

[Herregud]

No, they can run 4 lines with their insane depth, also have a fantastic D unit, along with a stellar goalie.

2nd in goals, and goals against. thats elite.


Ovechkin is a true superstar. what are you saying.

25 goals in 37 games (with a three game goal streak) doesn't count because empty netters or something.

That said, I don't really disagree with the poster you're quoting. The Caps don't really have *that* guy right now (I think they have a few people that are close in mentality but lack the production), but most teams in the league don't. What they do have is probably the most cohesive locker room in the NHL and that matters a ton. They just don't quit on each other.

Also, on topic... no, the Caps are not frauds any more than anyone else is before the playoffs start. OP going on about how unimpressive they are when their team has a 4 goals to 10 and 0 games to 2 season deficit is a little weird.

 

[Dowisetrepla]

Certainly not frauds. Favorites? Maybe not but top 5 team at the moment

 

[Matty Sundin]

Yes and no. The last few seasons, the league is still feeling the effects of diluted talent due to expansion and years of flat cap. There isn’t really any “super” teams or a team that are eye opening good. The caps are good for what the current level teams are. In other years, they are probably a very average playoff team, which is what they were for years after they won the cup.

 

[max21]

Not remotely jealous of the Capitals of all franchises.

Ya man I totally believe you

 

[GMR]

Ya man I totally believe you

Seriously? Outside of a “Flowers for Algernon” run in 2018, when have the Capitals ever done anything?

 

[qc14]

They are "frauds" in the sense that yes they have gotten lucky/unsustainable goaltending to be fighting for the President's trophy. The same could be said though about the Rangers last year, or Boston two years before, or Florida 3 years before them, or Vegas in the playoffs two years ago. To have a really good record you kind of have to be a "fraud" in the NHL. There's just too much parity and luck involved. A good team has to have some sort of unsustainable run to take them into the "great" category.

They aren't frauds though in that they have a legitimately good underlying profile -- from goal difference to xG share to goaltending talent to the eye test. They deserve to be clear of the wildcard muck in the east and in the fight for the division lead with Carolina and NJD. This is no Roy-era Colorado where there was literally nothing good about the team besides Varlamov.

Is it sustainable next year and going forward? A lot of guys are having career years, and Ovi and Carlson can't hold on forever so probably not. We can deal with next year next year though.

 

[mad4comp]

Seriously? Outside of a “Flowers for Algernon” run in 2018, when have the Capitals ever done anything?

won a SC and made the playoffs 9 out of the last 10 years and a couple of presidents trophies along the way... meanwhile most people don't even know when the last time the redwings even made it to the playoffs.

 

[22Brad Park]

Having watch them some and idk how they have 77 points.

How are they doing it?

I see they have 7 OT losses which has given them a but of an artificial lead over some of rest of the leaders in the east,

I see teams in the east getting past them easily.

Carolina, Florida, Toronto, maybe NJ.

Leafs lol Based on what.. Easily u said

 

[PlushMinus]

They’ll get bounced in round 1 or 2

And Sid and the boys will have already hit the links by then!

 

[MetalheadPenguinsFan]

And Sid and the boys will have already hit the links by then!

We’ll be hitting the links the day after the regular season ends.

Thanks Kyle and Mike!!!

Ah well, hopefully another team can step up and send the Craps to the golf course after round 1.

 

[Stealth1616]

For a team that has been successful for so many years, they sure have done a good job keeping the team competitive in the Ovi golden years. And actually look to have a pretty strong future.

They have made some great additions through trade and free agency.

Basically the opposite of what the Penguins have managed to do

 

[PlushMinus]

We’ll be hitting the links the day after the regular season ends.

Thanks Kyle and Mike!!!

Ah well, hopefully another team can step up and send the Craps to the golf course after round 1.

I guess we'll have to wait and see

 

[TheBeard]

Beefing up their defense with some shrewd additions and then getting perhaps the most underrated goalie in the game will do that.

I’m curious to know what they add at the deadline.

 

[TheBeard]

Seriously? Outside of a “Flowers for Algernon” run in 2018, when have the Capitals ever done anything?

Honestly, that cup run should have been their peak for an aging team with Backstrom and Kuznetsov… and every year we expect their demise similar to Pittsburgh, yet unlike Pitts they didn’t need to sacrifice their future to remain relevant. That’s impressive.

 

[SI90]

I feel like they look legit and if they can continue to get strong goaltending play they can make noise in the playoffs.

 

[Osprey]

I'm not shocked that they're this good. They added several responsible, hardworking players... and PL Dubois.

 

[TheSmokingMan]

I can understand why hockey fans who don't pay close attention to the Capitals would think that this years team is a fluke. The common narrative for them after they won the cup was that they had a good regular season team who couldn't make it past the first round of the playoffs.

They had a high salaried core that was starting to show it's age with declining production and injuries (some injuries ended up being career ending). They were no longer a serious contender and the last few years the only media coverage the Caps got was Ovechkin chasing down Gretzky. The new popular narrative became that they weren't interested in winning a cup, only getting Ovie the record (which was not true, of course).

Last season, Spencer Carbery came in and inspired the team to over achieve and make it into the last wild card slot despite an unheard of -37 goal differential. The games they were winning were tight low-scoring games and the games they lost were usually blowouts. They received astonishing goaltending from Lindgren and relied heavily on veterans like Ovechkin and Carlson to shoulder the load.

A lot of posters here like to incorrectly say that they didn't deserve to make the playoffs last season. Even though they were swept by the top-seeded Rangers, they definitely earned their spot in the playoffs. However, the push to grab the last wild card slot proved to be too taxing and they were faced with a deep Rangers team pitted against an injury decimated defense comprised of mainly AHL players. Their veterans, who had carried the team to the playoffs, were exhausted and out of gas. The result of the series was inevitable, but it shouldn't take anything away from the accomplishment of that team making the playoffs.

Fast forward to this season. While most people were still repeating tropes of how the Capitals weren't serious about competing for a Cup, the Caps were busy trading for, drafting, and developing young players like McMichael, Protas, and Sandin who are all having career seasons. Additionally, with Backstrom and Oshie announcing that they won't be playing this season, that freed up Cap room to acquire some talented depth like Chychrun, Roy, and Mangiapane. The two biggest additions have been Dubois and Thompson, players who were unwanted in their previous organizations, who Washington took a chance on, may turn out to be future finalists for the Selke and Vezina. Not to mention Spencer Carbery is the frontrunner for the Jack Adams.

The statistics speak for themselves. The Capitals have scored the 2nd most goals in the league and given up the 2nd fewest. On special teams they have the 13th ranked PP and the 3rd ranked PK. Wilson, Strome, Chychrun, and Dubois are all having career years and Ovechkin is having one of the best 39 year old seasons in NHL history. They have a good mix of veteran leadership and youth. Their skaters are physically imposing while still having speed and mobility. The goalie tandem may be the best in the league right now, and they have good depth in all positions. The Caps have also been one the most consistent teams in the league, so you can't say that this is just a hot streak. They've been doing it all year.

I understand that when you haven't been following the team that closely, past performance tends to weigh more heavily when evaluating what a team might do in the playoffs, but all of the indicators we have so far show a team that is poised to compete for a Stanley Cup and not a fraud. Not only that, but their window for the next few years could just be opening.

Don't forget that the Capitals still have more youth on the way with Leonard, Hutson, Lapierre, Miroshnichenko, Parascack, Protas, and Crystal. They haven't traded away many of their draft picks, and they have plenty of Cap Space to make moves. They have arguably been one of the best managed teams in the league, and I think their name will be in the Stanley Cup conversation for several more years to come.

 

[HockeyWooot]

Slight overachievement at best, they’re good and playing well.

Timing had been huge- Chychrun and Roy are big additions to that defensive group, Thompson who has shown potential in the past has come into his own with the Caps.

Mainstays like Ovi, Strome and Wilson performing well while getting another wave of depth from youngsters in McMichael and Protas.

A lot of things coming together at the same time.

I also suspect Ovi closing in on Gretzky’s goal total and doing it the way he has this year, is a factor. He’s not trickling over the total, he’s looking to smash it.

Seeing this future hall of famer who will finish as the game’s greatest goal scorer scoring at his age the way he is, has to be some kind of inspiring and giving the group a boost.

As if this year’s team has some kind of destiny with the history books.

Pretty cool as a neutral fan to see.

 

[Langway]

How can they have one of the easiest schedules so far but 2nd easiest moving forward?

They just play in the terrible awful NHL. If the Caps aren't frauds then the league is...

They need to add another top six forward in addition to Leonard probably. McMichael's early season brilliance has faded hard and he doesn't have the look of someone that's going to leave much of a dent in the playoffs. Protas is frfr tho.

 

[KCC]

Having watch them some and idk how they have 77 points.

How are they doing it?

I see they have 7 OT losses which has given them a but of an artificial lead over some of rest of the leaders in the east,

I see teams in the east getting past them easily.

Carolina, Florida, Toronto, maybe NJ.

They are the Canucks of last year where players are massively overachieving and everything is going right for them. PDO and all that jazz. But every season we get a team that surprises and then drops back down to reality eventually.

 

[Schennanigans]

I don’t think so. They have good players. Could be argued that ovi is no longer the best player on the team.

 

[kk]

No doubt they'll make the playoffs, but I can easily see them as getting bounced in the opening round. Easily. They are overachieving big time.

 

[johnnyonthspot]

Too many people want to be the ' next one ' to call out teams for being frauds. There are teams built for regular season success vs teams built for playoff success.

It is hard to tell what the Caps are built for but there is a fine line between overachieving and being simply a good team that does not have playoff mentality.

 

[John Price]

They're being boosted by Thompson who is playing out of his mind right now