Stars and Sticks
Fansided

Washington Capitals: Three Predictions for John Carlson

By CJ Witt

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 01: Washington Capitals defenseman John Carlson (74) looks up ice during the Calgary Flames vs. the Washington Capitals NHL game on February 1, 2019 at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.. (Photo by Randy Litzinger/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 01: Washington Capitals defenseman John Carlson (74) looks up ice during the Calgary Flames vs. the Washington Capitals NHL game on February 1, 2019 at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.. (Photo by Randy Litzinger/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 3
Next
LAS VEGAS, NV – JUNE 07: John Carlson #74 of the Washington Capitals lifts the Stanley Cup in celebration after his team defeated the Vegas Golden Knights 4-3 in Game Five of the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena on June 7, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Capitals won the series four games to one. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/NHLI via Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV – JUNE 07: John Carlson #74 of the Washington Capitals lifts the Stanley Cup in celebration after his team defeated the Vegas Golden Knights 4-3 in Game Five of the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena on June 7, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Capitals won the series four games to one. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/NHLI via Getty Images) /

He will get the available Alternate captain spot

With the retirement of fellow defenseman Orpik there is now a leadership spot that needs to be filled. The A that once rested on Orpik’s shoulder shouldn’t fall too far. In my opinion as well as others it should land with his former D partner Carlson.

Why should it go to number 74? Well, he’s already a leader on this team. He’s been a part of this franchise for the last ten plus seasons, being a huge part for most of those years. He’ll be on the team for the foreseeable future thanks to the eight year contract he signed in 2018. Lastly, he’s one of the best defenseman the NHL has. That earns instant respect from his teammates and peers.

The Capitals are pretty lucky to have a handful of guys to choose from. However I don’t think they have a better option than Carlson. I’d be pretty surprised if Carlson does not have that A on his sweater at the start of the season on October 2nd.

WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 26: John Carlson #74 of the Washington Capitals celebrates after scoring a goal in the third period against the Carolina Hurricanes at Capital One Arena on March 26, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/NHLI via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 26: John Carlson #74 of the Washington Capitals celebrates after scoring a goal in the third period against the Carolina Hurricanes at Capital One Arena on March 26, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/NHLI via Getty Images) /

He will have a career high in goals

The Capitals aren’t losing a ton of offense with the departures of the guys mentioned earlier. Niskanen scored eight goals last season and Orpik, never being a big offensive guy only scored two. Still that’s ten goals from the back-end that need to be made up. Carlson could be the guy to take on a lot of that.

Last season he scored 13 goals. That’s pretty much his average. His career high is 15 which was accomplished during the 2017-18 season. I think he beats that this coming season.

Could be a reach. Going all the way back to his junior hockey days Carlson has never scored more than 16 goals in a season. He scored 16 in his last year in junior with the London Knights in 2008-09.

I’m not going to sit here and tell you he’ll put up Mike Green or Brent Burns numbers, putting up nearly thirty goals. With the ability Carlson has I believe we’ll see a slight spike in goals and I’d guess 17-20 goals.

Home/Editorials