The Washington Capitals reshaped two-thirds of their fourth line this past summer when Brian MacLellan signed wingers Brandon Duhaime and Taylor Raddysh on the first day of NHL free agency. The two are slated to join longtime Capitals centerman Nic Dowd and will be vital to the team’s success.
“They (will) play a lot of important minutes,” Carbery said Wednesday. “This isn’t an eight-minute-a-night line. This is a potentially 14-minute-a-night line that can not only get a bunch of D-zone starts but also potentially can give us something from an O-zone possession standpoint. Doesn’t mean they all have to score 15 goals apiece.”
Carbery will see the trio together for the first time in a game against the New Jersey Devils on Thursday. The second-year bench boss has had them gelling since Training Camp opened last week.
“I’ve really liked their practices,” Carbery said. “Feel like as quickly as they can, new guys playing together are getting on the same page with the identity of the line, what they’re going to do, being predictable, reading off one another. They’ve been communicating. They all three have great personalities, so the communication between them before or after drills, during drills, has been really impressive to watch.”
Duhaime, 27, is a hard-hitting winger who recorded 13 points (5g, 8a) in 80 games last season with the Minnesota Wild and Colorado Avalanche. He scored a career-high nine goals in 51 games with the Wild in 2022-23.
Raddysh, 26, recorded 14 points (5g, 9a) in 73 games with the rebuilding Chicago Blackhawks. He scored a career-high 20 goals and tallied 37 total points with Chicago during the 2022-23 campaign.
Under Carbery last season, the fourth line primarily consisted of Dowd centering Beck Malenstyn and Nicolas Aube-Kubel. The trio mainly matched up against the opposition’s top line and took just 28 total offensive-zone faceoffs in 50 games. Last year’s fourth line just 41 percent of the shot attempts during their five-on-five ice time, a mark Carbery hopes to improve this season with this new unit.
“We want to try to be able to unlock a little bit of offensive O-zone puck possession time there, which we weren’t able to do as good of a job last year,” Carbery said. “With Duhaime and Taylor Raddysh, who scored 20 goals in this league, (we’re) feeling like we might be able to take a step in that department with Dowder’s line.”
While Carbery and Dowd think the fourth line could contribute more offense, they don’t plan to change their play style.
“I think that our game is still going to be the same thing, right?” Dowd said. “Everything’s going to start with a forecheck or a faceoff. And we’re going to have to do the little things really, really well. The hard way is going to be the way that it’s going to have to be done. And then I think what you’ll see is if we’re able to forecheck well and get the puck back, then you’re going to start seeing some high-level plays being made by the line as a whole. And then I think that’ll translate to offense.”
Dowd, personally, is excited about the new mix and is already noticing how the difference in profile from his old linemates could help him be more effective in all three zones.
“I mean, both really, really fast, high talented players,” Dowd said. “So, for me, it’s been really nice because, as a centerman, I find myself getting stuck down in the D-zone a lot on breakouts. So, having the two guys that can get up the ice with a lot of speed is going to make a big difference for our game as a line for sure.
“And it’ll just help me out individually knowing that those guys are going to be able to get on pucks. Both those guys have done a good job in camp so far, showing, kind of highlighting the high level skill that they both have.”
On Wednesday, Washington will square off with the Devils at Prudential Center with a 7 pm puck drop. Alongside Dowd, Duhaime, and Raddysh testing their newfound chemistry, Alex Ovechkin will debut with Dylan Strome and Andrew Mangiapane, another line Carbery has tried during camp.
