The Washington Capitals made seven big acquisitions over the offseason to try and improve last year’s team.
While the Capitals saw the departures of Darcy Kuemper, Max Pacioretty, Nick Jensen, Nicolas-Aube Kubel, and Beck Malenstyn from their starting lineup, they added major depth in forwards Andrew Mangiapane, Taylor Raddysh, and Brandon Duhaime; defensemen Jakob Chychrun and Matt Roy; and goaltender Logan Thompson.
The biggest deal former general manager Brian MacLellan made over the summer was to bring in Pierre-Luc Dubois from the Los Angeles Kings. The move was aggressive — Dubois has a $8.5 million cap hit with seven years remaining on his deal — but could be transformative if the forward can re-find his past form; he’s scored 25+ goals and 60+ points three different times in his career. The 25-year-old center is pegged to be a top-line player in Washington but his perceived attitude and effort concerns at his three previous stops make him a wildcard and a project for the coaching staff.
Sportsnet hockey insider Elliotte Friedman, spoke about the Capitals’ outlook for next season during his latest episode of the 32 Thoughts Podcast. Friedman thinks the Capitals’ roster has improved from last season, noting that Dubois presents the most compelling storyline among the new additions.
Friedman called Dubois’s opportunity with the Capitals his “last shot” in the NHL and concluded that if there’s any coach that could get the most out him, it would be the “Carbonator:” Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery. Friedman used a recent anecdote from Rasmus Sandin to illustrate how Carbery’s coaching style could help Dubois fulfill his potential.
Here’s what Friedman had to say on the 32 Thoughts Podcast:
I think the guy here that is the most fascinating is obviously Dubois.
I heard a story last year where there was a time that [Kings GM] Rob Blake went on the ice with Dubois. Like, Rob Blake put on the equipment and he went on the ice with Dubois and he talked to him about battling and playing hard. And I was like, “Wow. I don’t know if I’ve ever heard that before.” The Kings said all the right things on the way out. Blake, again, he could have ripped Dubois but he ate it, which really impressed me. Dubois, this is basically his last chance. This is his fourth organization and everyone’s talked about how good he can be and Spencer Carbery he’s got huge respect for being able to unlock players.
Rasmus Sandin told me a really good story. I’m going to write about it, but now I’m going to give it away. Rasmus Sandin said that his exit meeting with Carbery last year, [Carbery] said, “You know what? Let’s take a timeout and talk in a few weeks.”
So they had their exit meeting by phone, a few weeks after the season. And they said, “Okay, how do we both feel about our years?” And Rasmus Sandin said, “I was in a much better position to be honest about what I did well and more importantly, what I didn’t do well.” He said, “I didn’t have a great year and I want to be better.” And Carbery said, “I agree, and this is how I think we’re going to get you better.” And you know, I have all the notes, I’ll write about it, but Sandin talked about all the things he worked on to get better. And he really appreciated the way Carbery handled it.
If this guy can’t unlock Dubois, this is his last chance. He’s going to play with Ovechkin. He knows what everybody’s saying about him. I know what you say behind my back, (new 32 Thoughts Podcast host) Kyle (Bukauskas), so it motivates me to be better. So now the question’s going to be: Dubois knows what everybody’s saying. It’s not even behind his back, it’s to his face. It’s being written out there plainly. He’s gotta deliver.
Dubois came into the 2023-24 season with huge expectations from the Kings after inking a max eight-year contract. He exited after a controversial first season there, posting only 48 points (20g, 28a) in 82 games. His points-per-60 of 1.52 marked his second-worst output of his career.
For his part, Carbery has already shared his excitement to try and rejuvenate such a talented player.
“I love the challenge, and that’s my job,” Carbery said at the conclusion of the Capitals’ Development Camp in July. “When we acquire players that have been very, very productive and have a ton of potential and have shown that potential, that’s what coaching is. That’s what I love to do. Hopefully [he] comes here, the environment, the team, the coaching staff, it enables him to be very, very productive and reach that potential that everybody has seen.”
Carbery has already proved that he can rejuvenate a challenging, underperforming player after sparking Anthony Mantha to a 20-goal season for the first time since his 2018-19 season with the Detroit Red Wings.
“My initial conversations with [Dubois] have been great,” Carbery added. “And I won’t focus on the LA stuff, last year, this, that, you’re playing behind (Anze) Kopitar and (Phillip) Danault. To me, it’s him coming into a situation where we’ve got a ton of opportunity that he can take advantage of and grab onto. And we’re going to work with him every single day to try to get the best out of him.”
