#2 Peter Bondra
Before there was #1 on our list there was Peter Bondra who lit the lamp in Washington. Bondra was one of the biggest faces of the Capitals throughout the 1990’s and the early part of the new century. The team drafted him in the eighth round at 156th overall in the 1990 NHL Draft. Prior to his draft selection, Bondra played four seasons with HC Kosice of the Czechoslovakian League.
Bondra scored 12 goals in his rookie season and added 28 his second year. Bondra’s third season saw him score 37 goals and 85 points. However, his most memorable game came in his fourth season. On Feb. 5, 1994 Bondra had a five-goal game against the Tampa Bay Lightning which included four goals in the first period.
In the season the Caps made their run to their first appearance in the Stanley Cup Final in 1997-98, Bondra led the league with 52 goals and 13 game winning goals. In the playoffs he added seven goals and five assists and had a clutch goal in overtime in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals to give the Caps a 2-1 series lead.
After Bondra’s numbers dipped from 31 to 21 goals, respectively, the next two years, Bondra rebounded in the 2000-01 season with 45 goals including a league-leading 22 on the power play.