The Washington Capitals have enjoyed productive scoring from players on the bottom three lines.
It’s no secret that the Washington Capitals have a lineup loaded with talent. Alexander Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Justin Williams, and T.J. Oshie are all household names and have done great things throughout their NHL careers.
While those stars have been playing great, it’s been the secondary scoring that’s really stood out for the Caps this season.
Take Monday’s epic 8-7 loss at Pittsburgh. The result wasn’t favorable, but the head coach Barry Trotz had to be pleased with the play of his guys on the bottom two lines. The team scored seven goals, and Ovechkin, who leads the team in goals for the season, didn’t have a single one.
Lars Eller pitched in two goals, Brett Connolly scored one, as did Andre Burakovsky. Daniel Winnik added an assist, and defenseman Matt Niskanen had a pair of helpers. Sure, Backstrom, Williams, and Oshie all made it onto the score sheet, but the play of the secondary guys kept the Caps in the game.
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Monday was just a small sample size.
Guys like Winnik, Burakovsky, Connolly, and defensemen like Niskanen, Nate Schmidt, Dmitry Orlov have been putting up solid production all season. Fourth-line center Jay Beagle is one of the best face-off guys in the league and just had a two-goal game in Washington’s recent win over Chicago.
Even tough guy Tom Wilson has gotten in on the offensive action with four points in the last five games.
The knock on Washington the past few seasons has been the lack of depth. The team has been top-heavy, but couldn’t get enough production from the secondary guys. That lack of depth has clearly hurt them in recent postseason showings.
Fortunately, that no longer seems to be the case in DC. With the production the Capitals have gotten lately, they are one of the deepest teams in the NHL. That depth could play a huge role when the postseason hits.
There’s still a long way to go in the season, but Washington is currently enjoying great production from some guys other than the starts of the team. If that continues, the Capitals will be a very dangerous team in the postseason.