With the 2025-26 season over for the Washington Capitals, the offseason starts early in the DMV. Some fans can’t help but think “what-if?” or “if only” They missed the playoffs my just one point! Going back to change the past requires a Delorean and Doc Brown, which is out of the question. But what happened? Last season, the Capitals were the top point getter in the East with 111 points. This year they had 95 points and missed the playoffs. What happened? Pierre-Luc Dubois only played in 29 games.
I went on the record in August of 2024 about how the Capitals made a great move to trade for Dubois. Last season, Dubois set highs in points (66) and assists (46) and was the center on what was IMO the best two-way line in hockey. Tom Wilson, Connor McMichael, and Dubois each posted career highs in points, with Wilson and McMichael also setting career highs in goals. The line was also mostly deployed against other teams’ best players, where the trio tipped the ice in toward the Caps offensive zone, but also disrupted play against the top lines in the NHL, one of the major reasons they Caps were so tough to beat.
But Dubois only played five games in October before he went down with an abdominal injury, which he required surgery. The Caps dropped them toward the bottom of the Metro Division. Without Dubois’ scoring, skating, and defensive chops against opponents top players, the team lacked consistency. His absence did allow for the emergence of rookie Juston Sourdif, who showed he could hold the 2C down in a pinch, but may be the answer at the 3C. Dubois came back to play a couple of games before the Olympic break.
After the break, Dubois played well but did not score at the same rate as last year (.81 ppg vs. .66 ppg.) He centered a productive line of Wilson and Aliaksei Protas. Coach Spencer Carberry mixed lines up in March, trying to find a winning formula as the Caps made a late run. When Ilya Protas got the call up from Hershey for the last four games of the year, Pierre-Luc centered a line with rookie Ryan Leonard and Connor McMichael. Those three showed some chemistry, which hopefully carries over into next season.
With the offseason underway in Washington, there is certainly a lot for the team to do to improve on this season’s disappointing finish. Hopefully, one thing they can rely on is that Dubois will be healthy and ready to go. They simply play better with him in the lineup and could have used him for more than 29 games in 2025-26. Dubois would have stabilized the Capitals’ other lines, making it more difficult to play Washington, and would have helped the Caps win a few more games.
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