Previewing Washington Capitals For 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs
This has to be the year right? Right!? As many of you may know, the Capitals come into the playoffs looking like the favorites to win the Stanley Cup, but always disappoint, especially after last year when they looked really strong and looked to finally get over the hump. They lost in six games to the their arch nemesis, Pittsburgh Penguins, in six games in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. But this year, its different. This is a win or bust type year as salary cap issues are about to be a problem for them in the offseason. Also, this is the strongest team they arguably have ever had especially as they won the Presidents trophy for the second consecutive season. They seem more confident and more poised. So it has to be the year. But lets look at the roster.
Goalies
Braden Holtby
Philipp Grubauer
Holtby is nicknamed Holt-Beast because he simply is a beast in the net. He is like a brick wall and is a very tough goalie. Grubauer is a reliable backup.
Defensemen
Karl Alzner
John Carlson
Taylor Chorney
Matt Niskanen
Dmitry Orlov
Brooks Orpik
Nate Schmidt
Kevin Shattenkirk
This is the “weakness” of the team when they are actually really good. Carlson is one of the best defensemen in the league. Orlov, Niskanen, Alzner, and Chorney are all solid and outstanding players. Orpik has Stanley Cup experience so that should help here. Schmidt is really underrated player who is slowly becoming a top defenseman. Shattenkirk came over in a trade mid-season and gives the Capitals a huge boost.
Forwards
Nicklas Backstrom
Jay Beagle
Andre Burakovsky
Brett Connolly
Lars Eller
Marcus Johansson
Evgeny Kuznetsov
TJ Oshie
Alexander Ovechkin
Jakub Vrana
Justin Williams
Tom Wilson
Daniel Winnik
Riley Barber
This part of the team is just too much fire power as its the scariest part of the squad. Backstrom has been with the team for a long time and is one of the best forwards on the team. Beagle is good player who is honestly very underrated. Burakovsky is sneakily good as most teams don’t cover him as well as they should. Connolly, Eller, Winnik, and Vrana are all really good players that have put in some really good work this season. Johansson is a really good offensive player who can sometimes be hard to defend when hot. Kuznetsov is a young player who is going to be a top star real soon. Oshie is one of the best all round players in the game and one of the speediest which makes it really tough for people to defend him. Ovechkin is the best player in the NHL, enough said. Williams is nicknamed Mr. Game 7 because of his ability to come in the clutch. Wilson is the enforcer on the squad who is always smart about who to fight in timely situations. Barber is there as depth.
This team really should be able to do it in the playoffs as they are the best all round team. This has to be the year they come through and win that coveted prize. The Capitals matchup with the Toronto Maple Leafs who are a young, but talented team lead by rookie phenom Auston Matthews. The Capitals should be able to get by them with no problem. The Capitals are the favorite to win it all this year, so why not!?
