Washington Capitals: Potential dramatic change; New 2nd Line Center?

Missing a chance at Lord Stanley for a second straight year for the Washington Capitals may require some out of the box dramatic changes to reach those heights again.

The Washington Capitals rode their championship parade better than most any champion in the history of the NHL. As a follow up to that wonderful season, they were one and done in the playoffs not once but twice in two years. What started as a small turnover of the roster has now become a team in search of their old selves and the identity necessary to push the limits to go the distance.

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For most teams, winning the championship results in roster turnover in the first offseason making dramatic changes a part of the next step. In this process, there are some growing pains and even some surprise talent amongst the next group of players. The Washington Capitals could take note of how it was done by others in recent history, especially since it has finally made a real impact in their roster construction.

Before you say it I know, we never want to give props to someone like the Pittsburgh Penguins. But they have managed to find ways to slightly alter their lineups post championship to retool finding players that could contribute to their goals every year. Look no further than Jake Guentzel, who came in as a rookie to inject their lineup with some much needed youth and speed. This happened even when they had won the year previously, the result a second cup in a row.

Now after two years removed from their own championship the Capitals find themselves in need of their own injection of youth and speed. But like most rosters built to contend year in and year out where do you fit these players? In this discussion I propose a dramatic change that could handle this as well as shoring up a known weakness of the team.

Without further ado, I propose that the team entertain moving Evgeny Kuznetsov to the wing to make room for Connor McMichael as a new centreman. Before you lambaste me on making this suggestion first consider the key areas of the game which a center is expected to provide for his team. One is the ability to find gaps in the defense, pass the puck and create mismatches. Another is knowing when to push the action or when to sit back and wait to develop their own windows to pass through or even take shots of their own. And lastly, they are expected to get possession of the puck off the face off circle giving their team the best chance at gaining momentum and an advantage.

Connor McMichael, Washington Capitals (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images)

No one will argue that Kuznetsov can handle the first two areas but it’s the last area where the Capitals seem to struggle as a team. For all primary centremen on the team the best at the art of the faceoff is Lars Eller with a 51.9% FOW% in 2019-20. The next best on the roster is Nic Dowd at 49.7%; followed closely by Nicklas Backstrom with 49.2%. Where does Kuznetsov stack up but with 43.3%. Guess who did better than this mark while playing out of position, TJ Oshie who took on the dot over 200 times and still managed to win 50% of the time as a winger primarily.

Although a direct move of Oshie for Kuznetsov in the faceoff dot could help the team and be on the table for discussion, this would only alter the roster enough to fix the possession issue on one of the lines. Another issue the team seems to be dealing with is the lack of top end speed at various positions in the roster. This of course isn’t how the team is built to compete, but you still need a few players to put on the jets with their pure skating speed and ability to open other areas of the ice; for the other aspects of the Capitals style of play to maximize their impact.

How can Connor McMichael help in this area you might ask? While it’s not guaranteed to translate directly to the next level, the ability to control and win the faceoff is most likely one of those traits which should be taken to any level. For this aspect of the centers job, McMichael has only improved in his time at the OHL with the London Knights.

Before being drafted to the OHL by the London Knights, he had a FOW% of 43.2%. But once he arrived in London the faceoff became one of his best traits. In just 28 games in 2017-18 with London, McMichael had a 71.4% FOW% in just a handful of faceoffs. While the percentage dipped with more exposure in 2018-19, his amount of faceoffs increased dramatically. In 2018-19 McMichael took 595 faceoffs and won 55.1%, while producing just over a point per game rate. Things only got better in 2019-20, when he then took 880 faceoffs and won 56% while taking his production up to two points per game.

This production tells me two things, one he can handle his business in the faceoff circle and when the pressure is applied to McMichael he steps up and produces. So if the Capitals were to take a chance and move McMichael up, given he proves his worth with whatever training camp occurs, what would happen to the lineup?

First, it would move Kuznetsov to the wing on the 2nd line with McMichael at center; because Eller has proven best on the 3rd line and Backstrom has a track record on the 1st line. This would mean one of Oshie/Vrana would need to move down to the 3rd line. This would depend on what the team would like to do, if the Capitals are looking at best fit for a 3rd liner Oshie does everything on the ice so he could assume this role and bring a scoring touch not seen there already. But if you want to distribute your scoring prowess throughout the lineup Jakub Vrana could give Eller a great natural shooter to feed the puck. This would also move some speed down to the 3rd line and subsequently the 4th line as Carl Hagelin could be used on the 4th line with Dowd and Hathaway to form a great 4th line. This could allow the Capitals to trade Panik to a team in need of bottom six depth, and get some much needed cap relief.

So what is the alternative to bringing McMichael up? As it stands with his age and contract structure he still has one year in juniors. Why bring him up now, why not wait another year or two and let McMichael develop? From a production standpoint he has reached a level that Tom Wilson did where it would better suit his development to allow him to go through some growing pains at the big level instead of wasting his potential in London or Hershey another season or two. Connor has improved on his points per game production every year in London, and can only match his production while further beating up on guys he has proven himself against already. The only way he can be challenged to advance his skillset is to get an open shot at the NHL lineup. Unfortunately unless the Capitals make some roster adjustments this won’t be possible.

Lastly, before you write this off as only fluff and an overall reach of a proposal. Keep in mind, even assistant GM Ross Mahoney is intrigued in what he might be able to contribute once given a chance at training camp, especially after the great year he had in junior. Even his status amongst the top 100 prospects in the NHL has improved to a noticeable level which can not be ignored, especially a team that is up against the cap and in need of some slight change. Now to be fair there are some who believe he isn’t quite ready for the jump.

What do you say, do you think this could be a good move for the team or is this too far fetched at this point? Let us know what you think.