Capitals: Top 5 clutch players of the season so far
There have been a few clutch moments during the 2019-20 Washington Capitals season.
The Washington Capitals made epic comebacks and many stars have led the way. This piece will highlight them all. We all know where the Caps stand right now, first in the Metropolitan Division with 90 points and a 41-20-8 mark.
It would stink if the season got cancelled but right now it’s in a pause and with the Olympics postponed there might be some optimism surrounding a return. After all, the NHL said they’re determined to award the Stanley Cup and the Caps would like nothing more than a good reset possibly in July.
We don’t know what will happen but for now, we can reflect on where they are. They were tops in the league for much of the first half of the season. When the calendar flipped to 2020, they were mostly a .500 team at best. Maybe the break is a good thing.
But don’t say that any of the following five players we are about to mention. They’ve all been clutch all season long and if the season continues they’ll be counted on even more as the Caps look to resume their chase to their second Stanley Cup.
#5 Alex Ovechkin
The captain starts this off. He’s number five on this list but number one in our hearts. Alex Ovechkin leads the Capitals with 48 goals on the season. Three of those 48 goals are game-winners.
My favorite moment of those three game-winning goals had to have been the natural hat trick he had against the Los Angeles Kings back in February. The cool thing about that moment was how quiet the building most of the night. Then Ovechkin singlehandedly made it come alive to the tune of “Shake, rattle, and roll” and it put him just two goals away from the big 700.
It wasn’t just any hat trick either. It was a natural hat trick. It propelled him up the ladder of the NHL leaderboard and inched closer to 700 by scoring 696, 697, and 698. It all came alive in the third period late with just over six minutes left and the Caps on the brink of an embarrassing loss.
Todd Reirden told Mike Vogel of WashingtonCaps.com after the game:
“That’s what superstars do. We’re fortunate to have him – I say it all the time – that D.C. and the surrounding areas are just so fortunate to be able to witness what we’re seeing in front of our eyes and have seen over the last number of years. This is a real, real special player.”
#4 T.J. Oshie
T.J. Oshie recovered well from his injury that he suffered in the playoffs a year ago and has scored 26 goals and added 23 assists for 49 points. He was on pace to tie his career-high of 33 goals that he set in the 2016-17 season.
Our favorite Oshie game-winning goal, which he’s had four of this season, had to have occurred on Feb.23 when the Caps hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The goal came at 10:40 of the third period in a tie game on a backhanded shot that Oshie followed through on. It was a big win to keep the Capitals ahead at first place in the Metropolitan Division.
We also enjoyed Oshie’s game-winning overtime goal against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Dec. 27 that came at 3:13 in the extra session.
Oshie’s goal came on a rebound and his goal song is the perfect sing along. County roads, take me home, to the place I belong, West Virginia. Mountain mama, take me home, country roads.
Sorry, I couldn’t’ resist.
Oshie also had the go-ahead goal in Colorado against the Avalanche in the third period at 17:56.
In the second game of the season, Oshie came up big against the New York Islanders to help Ilya Samsonov to win his first NHL game.
#3 Tom Wilson
Tom Wilson is enjoying another career season with 21 goals and 23 assists for 44 points. Five of those goals are game-winners. Wilson began this clutch surge back on Oct. 20 scoring a third period goal to help the Caps to a 5-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks.
He followed that up with another big third period goal two nights later in a 5-3 win over the Calgary Flames.
His biggest game-winning goal came in overtime on Nov. 7 17 seconds into the extra three-on-three session. He also had the game-tying goal in the third period.
Lost in the hat trick madness of the Capitals win over the Detroit Red Wings back was Wilson’s game-winning goal late in the third period. Ovechkin empty netters took care of the rest.
Finally there was Wilson’s most recent clutch moment which came on the first day of March in a contest against the Minnesota Wild.
As you can see, Tom Wilson is a very important player and we’re lucky as Caps fans to have someone who can make an impact in the game the way he has. And he’s not going anywhere anytime soon.
This leaves us with two more players. Who could possibly be #2 and #1? Click the next slides to find out.
#2 John Carlson
John Carlson is enjoying a career year with 15 goals and 60 assists for 75 points. Six of those goals are game-winners. Carlson’s first one of the season came in a 4-1 thrashing of the Dallas Stars on the road early in the year.
Carlson also came up big in a home win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on the power play. Carlson has two power play goals on the year.
Carlson also was the difference in the first period against the San Jose Sharks en route to a 5-2 win. The very next night he scored two goals in Los Angeles against the Kings.
One week later was our favorite clutch moment from Carlson which was a game-winning goal against the Boston Bruins at 4:42 in the third period to send Caps fans home happy.
Finally, Carlson came up big in the third period at his old hometown of New Jersey 42 seconds in to help the Capitals to a 6-3 win at the rock.
Those are four clutch players and a plethora of clutch moments. We now come down to one last player. Who takes the tape as the most clutch player of the season. Head over to the next slide to find out.
#1 Jakub Vrana
Last but simply not least is Jakub Vrana who has been a big breakout impact player on the Capitals this season. He’s scored a career-high 25 goals and 27 assists for 52 points and six of those goals are game-winners.
Our favorite was the one he did in the first game against the St. Louis Blues which was a game-winning goal in overtime to defeat the champs and start the season on the right foot.
We also enjoyed his hat trick against the Calgary Flames which happened to be Nats night at the Caps game.
In Anaheim it was Vrana’s goal that was the difference 1:37 in after Adam Henrique of the Ducks tied things at the 45 second mark.
Vrana also had the game-winning goal in a 4-3 grinder against the Carolina Hurricanes on the road.
In front of Barry Trotz and company and the New York Islanders on the road and perhaps lost in the shadow of an Ovechkin hat trick to chase toward 700 goals, it was Vrana’s that proved to be the difference at the 17:30 mark before Ovechkin sealed the win with an empty netter.
Finally, there was a second period goal that would be the difference in a 4-2 road win over the Montreal Canadiens.
There you have it. Those are our top 5 clutch players of the season. Who are yours?