3 players that exceeded expectations this year
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#1 Evgeny Kuznetsov
Perhaps the one Capitals player who has exceeded the most expectations this season is Evgeny Kuznetsov. After being the subject of trade rumors throughout last summer, the Caps sure are fortunate they didn’t part ways with him.
Kuznetsov has also heated up with points in 19 of his last 21 games with eight goals and 17 assists. He’s also on a two game point and assist streak with three. He had an assist in Washington’s win over Colorado. He had two in their win over the Montreal Canadiens. He has two against the Philadelphia Flyers and one against the Boston Bruins for a total of six in his last five games.
Overall Kuznetsov has 23 goals and 52 assists for 75 points. He’s eight points from tying his career high in points that he set in 2017-18 and we all know what happened that year thanks to his playoff performance. He’s five assists away from a career high in that category that he set in 2015-16. He’s also four away from tying a career high in goals that he set in 2017-18.
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The Caps will go as far in the playoffs as Kuznetsov will take them. They’ve been decimated with injuries and problems at center that would’ve multiplied if they dealt Kuzy.