Washington Capitals Report Card: Pheonix Copley
Braden Holtby enters the final year of his contract with his future unclear. The Washington Capitals goaltending future lies in the hands of Pheonix Copley.
Pheonix Copley is next on our Washington Capitals end-of-season player report cards. In case you missed it, here’s our first player report card on Matt Niskanen.
The Capitals entered the 2018-19 season with their biggest question mark being the backup goalie situation after Philipp Grubauer. Grubauer was more than just a Capitals backup goaltender in their run to the Stanley Cup.
He played so well while Braden Holtby needed a mental reset that many fans were calling on Grubauer starting Game 1 of the playoffs that year. Grubauer struggled the first two games of the first round and Holtby regained his spot shortly after.
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Holtby’s return between the pipes likely prompted the Capitals to decide to take the risk in trading him to the Colorado Avalanche. Grubauer finished his final season in Washington with a 15-10-3 record in 28 starts with a 2.54 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage.
All of this presented big shoes to fill for Copley, who inevitably was named to backup Holtby. To make things even more intimidating, Copley had never suited up in a Capitals game before.
Despite the challenges this new role presented, Copley performed well enough to get a three-year contract extension worth $3.3 million, an annual cap hit of $1.1 million.
Copley appeared in 27 games last season with 24 of those being starts. He finished with a 16-7-3 record with a 2.90 GAA and a .905 save percentage.
Grade B-: This wasn’t an easy decision but the biggest factor in this grade was the expectations exceeded. Copley got off to a rocky start allowing six goals to the New Jersey Devils in his first start bak in October.
Since then, Copley has both improved and been reliable whenever the Capitals needed him. Whether Holtby needed a night off or if it was the second night of a back-to-back, Copley was ready.
The goaltending question remains even bigger this summer with both next year’s expansion draft and Holtby’s final year of his contract. Because of both those factors and Copley’s reliability, the Capitals were confident enough in their backup to give him a contract extension of up to three more years.
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Copley’s best stretch came after that contract was signed when he won six games in a row with a .913 save percentage. The above-average first season as a backup goalie on a team facing pressure of defending their Stanley Cup deserved an above-average grade.