Early 2022 predictions for Zach Fucale

We now conclude our goaltending portion of our Washington Capitals early player predictions with Zach Fucale. He impressed in his very brief time with the Caps as he mostly spent last season with the Hershey Bears but did get his call ups from time to time.

In case you missed it, here are our early predictions for Darcy Kuemper and Charlie Lindgren.

Fucale went 1-1-1 last season with a 1.75 goals against average and a .924 save percentage. He impressed right from the start becoming the first goalie in Capitals franchise history to record a shutout in their NHL debut.

In that game Fucale stopped all 21 shots he faced against the Detroit Red Wings on Nov. 11, 2021 at Little Caesars Arena. In his next game he stopped all seven shots in a loss to the Blues. That was a game he came on for in relief.

He got the start the next day against the Minnesota Wild and stoped 21 of 22 shots. His shutout streak ended and he got the loss in the shootout.

Fucale then allowed four goals on 16 shots making 12 saves against the Boston Bruins before getting pulled. That would turn out to be a loss. That was his last time playing in the NHL.

In the AHL with the Hershey Bears, Fucale went 11-15-7 with a 2.62 goals against average and a .896 save percentage. In the playoffs he didn’t play instead serving as an extra on the Caps playoff roster.

I think we’ll see Fucale play in two NHL games. He will go 1-1-0. The one win will also come on home ice. His goals against average and save percentage should finish around the same as last year.

His loss shouldn’t be as bad as the one against the Boston Bruins. That game was just a complete disaster and implosion. It would be better if that one loss came from a close game.