Washington Capitals: Top 5 key players for a successful season

RALEIGH, NC – APRIL 18: Washington Capitals defenseman Dmitry Orlov (9) skates in a timeout during a game between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Washington Capitals on April 18, 2019, at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, NC. (Photo by Greg Thompson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

#2 Dmitry Orlov

At one point in his Washington Capitals career, defenseman Dmitry Orlov was given the nickname “Scorlov” for his offensive touch in his two-way game. However, last season was a down year for both Orlov and his pairing partner Matt Niskanen. The Capitals shipped out the latter to the Philadelphia Flyers for Radko Gudas, meaning General Manager Brian MacLellan trusts his 28-year old Russian to bounce back.

Orlov scored just three goals last season, a significant drop off from the career-high 10 he had in the 2017-18 regular season. Aside from John Carlson, the Capitals will be looking to Orlov as another long-time Capitals veteran defensemen to lead the new unit.

Expect Orlov to be back on the middle pairing which could be a three-way competition between Gudas, Christian Djoos and Jonas Siegenthaler for that spot. Orlov averaged the third-most ice time last season of 21:38 per game. With Niskanen gone, expect that average ice time to go up.

Orlov finished with a career-high 137 hits last season and added 103 blocked shots, his second-highest. Orlov’s Corsi-For percentage at even strength last season was 48.50%, a drop off from the previous regular season where Orlov’s Corsi was 49.49%.

WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 13: Dmitry Orlov #9 of the Washington Capitals skates with puck against the Carolina Hurricanes in Game Two of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Capital One Arena on April 13, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

Carlson and Michal Kempny are the top dogs on the defense but other than them, if Orlov has a better season the defensive unit can improve overall.