Alex Alexeyev has something to prove
We’re almost done with the Washington Capitals playoff predictions. We are now on our last defenseman which is Alex Alexeyev and after this there are two forwards left and they’re both centers.
Alexeyev made the opening night roster. So did Lucas Johansen. Vincent Iorio is in Hershey. Joining him with the Bears is Hardy Haman Aktell.
I know some fans disagree with Haman Aktell being on the Bears and not the big club. In the end, his cap hit was too high for the Capitals to get under the salary cap for opening night which is why Johansen and Alexeyev are up there instead.
During the practices the last few days, Alexeyev has skated as the seventh or extra defenseman. The pairs were the following:
Sandin-Carlson
Johansen-Jensen
Fehervary-TvR
I wouldn’t read too much into this. I feel like we’ll see Alexeyev in there as the new coach Spencer Carbery tries things around over the first couple games of the season.
Alexeyev suited up for 32 games last season. He recorded five assists. My prediction is that he’ll score three goals and add seven assists for 10 points. It’s a good starting point for a kid who wants a bigger NHL role this season.
Alexeyev was taken just weeks after the Capitals won the Stanley Cup with the 31st overall pick in the first round in 2018. He seems to be good buddies with the other Russians on the Capitals which include Evgeny Kuznetsov and Alex Ovechkin.
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The defense looks a lot different. Dmitry Orlov is gone. It was a weird departure as he was one of the first to go in last season’s fire sale. But it opened up an opportunity for Johansen and Alexeyev and the injury to newcomer Joel Edmundson opened up a bigger opportunity to make the opening night lineup.