Going into the thick of the offseason, the Washington Capitals have some areas of need to address, and positivity for the future.
That said, The Hockey News conducted its first offseason poll to get a sense of how the fans are feeling heading into the summer. Over 100 fans took to the Internet to take part in our survey.
Here are the results.
On a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being very optimistic and 1 being very pessimistic, how do you feel about the Capitals going into 2025-26?
Fans were more positive here, with 59.8 percent of surveytakers saying they feel optimistic (a four out of five) with regard to the Capitals going into next season. Twenty-nine percent of voters are very optimistic, 10.3 percent are in between pessimism and optimism, and .9 percent are pessimistic.
What was the biggest key to the Capitals' success this past season?
A lot of different answers in here, but the biggest kudos went to second-year head coach Spencer Carbery. The Jack Adams nominee had a notable impact on several players, and his system appeared to click for the original veteran core and the new additions.
Beyond that, fans pointed to the tight-knit locker room and the team-first mentality, along with the chemistry on and off the ice. The Capitals have one of the closest rooms in the league, so it's no surprise to see that the team was able to have the success it did in the regular season.
In addition, Pierre-Luc Dubois and the new acquisitions earned a lot of love, with fans citing how the trade for PLD helped revamp the second line while Jakob Chychrun added significant offense to the blue line. Logan Thompson also earned credit for his performance between the pipes as he and Charlie Lindgren worked well as D.C.'s new established tandem for the future.
Finally, Alex Ovechkin completing his "GR8 Chase" and pulling off a 44-goal season earned a handful of votes, as did the breakout years for young guns like Connor McMichael and Aliaksei Protas.
What's the biggest area of concern for the Capitals going forward? What do the Capitals need to do going forward to make a deeper run next year?
Two main areas were cited in this part of the survey: scoring with the Alex Ovechkin era winding down, and more depth on the blue line with John Carlson entering the final years of his career.
Offensively, the Capitals needed more consistency, especially when it came to secondary scoring and bottom-6 contributions. Ovechkin was able to do what he does best and several players hit the 20-goal mark, but beyond the top two lines, there wasn't enough depth on offense. That's a key area the team wants to address this summer, and will likely look to the trade market to clean up.
Meanwhile, defensively, Carlson's season left quite a bit to be desired, and defensive lapses and missed coverage proved costly at key times for Washington. That said, the team has established a solid young core for the future, but more stability on the blue line will be key going forward.
When it comes to making a deeper run, fans pointed to the need for more stability and depth scoring, and continuing to get younger and adding more depth while bringing more prospects on board. Ovechkin's role changing was also alluded to, with fans wanting more ice time for the likes of Connor McMichael, Tom Wilson, Aliaksei Protas and more.
Which player was the biggest surprise this season?
An overwhelming 63 percent of voters cited Aliaksei Protas as the biggest surprise, and with good reason. The 23-year-old had a breakout year, putting up 30 goals and 36 assists for 66 points — more points than he'd put up in all of his previous NHL seasons combined — while earning Selke consideration and making a name for himself as one of the top 5-on-5 players in the NHL.
Meanwhile, 18 percent of voters gave kudos to Pierre-Luc Dubois, who put up a career year and thrived as the team's second-line center while also earning Selke votes and making a name for himself as a top shutdown pivot.
Jakob Chychrun, Alex Ovechkin, Logan Thompson and Dylan Strome also earned honorable mentions, along with Brandon Duhaime.
Which player was the Capitals' unsung hero?
There was a lot more variety here, with the majority of fans again voting for Aliaksei Protas and Pierre-Luc Dubois. After that, Martin Fehervary earned the most love, with surveytakers citing just how much his void was felt in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Matt Roy also earned praise for his under-the-radar shutdown game, and Brandon Duhaime, providing heart in the room and playing key utility minutes, also got votes. Charlie Lindgren, Jakob Chychrun, Nic Dowd Tom Wilson were among the honorable mentions.
Which player needs to improve the most?
The majority of voters looked at prospects coming up in the system, stating that Hendrix Lapierre and Ryan Leonard need to continue to work on their games if they want to find consistency at the highest level. I think Leonard is in a bit of an unfair situation, given he was thrown onto the NHL scene late in the year and had to try to find his footing and live up to a lot of pressure in the throes of the playoffs.
Beyond that, Rasmus Sandin and John Carlson got votes, with fans wanting more from the blue line.
What player (name or type) would you want to see the Capitals pick up in free agency?
It's no surprise that fans want to see the Capitals make noise with a top-6 winger and/or third-line center, with well over half of surveytakers listing these types of players. Some fans want Washington to go for a big swing, with Mitch Marner, Sam Bennett, J.J. Peterka and Nikolaj Ehlers' names making the list, but other fans have also pointed to more experienced players like Ryan Donato and Brock Boeser.
Jonathan Toews, though he doesn't fit the criteria for what D.C. is looking for this summer, also made the list.
Which prospect(s) do you want to see make the NHL jump next season?
Roughly 60 percent of fans want Ivan Miroshnichenko to make the full-time NHL jump next season, with Andrew Cristall also earning a number of votes as he knocks on the door following a record-setting WHL campaign.
Meanwhile, a lot of Capitals fans are excited to see what Ilya Protas can bring.
As for long-time players already in the system, a handful of surveytakers want Hendrix Lapierre to get another crack at the NHL, while others want Henrik Rybinski and Bogdan Trineyev to get their chances at the highest level.
How should the Capitals handle the goaltending situation going forward?
Finally, it was interesting to see what fans thought of the goaltending situation. Logan Thompson finished the year as the bonafide starter, but 57.9 percent of surveytakers want Thompson and Charlie Lindgren to split the duties again, a system that boded well for D.C. en route of its first-place finish in the Eastern Conference. After that, 22.4 percent of voters think the team should ride the hot hand with whichever goaltender is in the groove, and 19.6 percent think Thompson should be the No. 1.
