The Washington Capitals are on a roll in the playoffs. They’ve taken a 2-0 first-round series lead over the Montreal Canadiens, outscoring the Habs 6-3. The Caps have received great goaltending, clutch goal-scoring, and big contributions up and down the roster.
Brandon Duhaime has perhaps given the team the most creative offering. The checking-line forward, who usually sacrifices his body regularly to block shots, deliver hits, and punch opposing players in the face, is using his body in a different way to inspire his teammates. He’s eating the starting lineup card before each game.
“YA DOGGY,” the Capitals said on social media. “LET’S EAT.”
Game 1
Game 2
Duhaime’s ridiculous pre-game superstition has gotten so much attention that Dylan Strome, the author of the Capitals’ game-winning goal in Game 2, was asked by Sportsnet’s Shawn McKenzie about it.
“Is Brandon Duhaime going to have to eat the lineup card every single night now?” McKenzie asked.
“I guess until things don’t go that well,” Strome responded, laughing.
Jakob Chychrun, a friend of Duhaime’s since childhood, said the pregame tradition has given the team “a good laugh” each time.
“It’s good,” Jakob Chychrun said. “He keeps things loose when everyone else might be tight. He’s just a great balance, a great guy to have. He’s been the same since he’s been a little kid, and I’ve had the pleasure of being with him for a long time. To be with him here in the NHL has been a blessing and great memories that I cherish every day. And I’m glad that the guys here get to experience Dewey the way I have since I’ve been a kid. Special guy, special teammate, and fun to be around.”
As for why the eating of an inedible object, Chychrun explained, “That’s Doggy, that’s what he does.”
Since arriving with the Capitals, Duhaime has not only brought toughness to the team’s lineup, but literal barking to the Capitals locker room. The team frequently barked at Duhaime when he’s received kudos from Spencer Carbery during the team’s post-game victory speeches because, like the viral meme, he’s got that dog in him.
While Duhaime’s dog-like chewing of the paper may be new, Caps’ players reading the starting lineups before games is not.
The Capitals have been doing the special reads since the start of the regular season. Dylan McIlrath was one of the first to take part in the tradition, doing the honors for a five-game stretch starting with the second game of the campaign.
“I think the way it goes here, we keep it going as long as you win,” McIlrath told RMNB earlier in the year. “It’s fun. It’s a way to get the boys fired up.”
The lineup reads by players is especially supported by Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery, who admitted that Duhaime’s locker-room shenanigans have been matched or surpassed by others over the season. To him, stunts like Duhaime’s form part of the emotional core of this team, which has helped them enjoy themselves while performing at a high level.
“I can tell you this, that’s just scratching the surface of what the cameras see with our group,” Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery said on Thursday. “They’re a really tight knit group. We have a ton of personality, which I love. It’s one thing to be really close as a team and have a love and care, and it’s another thing to have a lot of life, laughter, energy, different personalities. I feel like we have a lot of that, which I think is a huge positive. Because it brings a group that has that foundation of caring about one another, wanting to do the right thing, (wanting) to be there for their teammate, win, and do the necessary things for each other to accomplish that.
“But then you’ve got also these guys that, you know, don’t always see eye-to-eye on certain things or don’t have the same outlook on certain situations in life and that, and they all fit together. And they all are welcoming to one another from different backgrounds, different walks of life, different personalities. You’ve got quieter guys like Matt Roy and you’ve got loud, flamboyant Brandon Duhaimes. And that’s, I think, what makes our group special from a cultural standpoint and why we have so much fun at the rink, even in a competitive environment where we’re trying to work and get better and win hockey games.”
