**Perspective by Barry Svrluga:** From a player’s perspective, the Washington Capitals’ mission over the season’s final 34 games is simple.
“We want to be in a playoff spot,” captain Alex Ovechkin said. “We want to be fighting for the top. And I think it’s — How I say? — it’s up to us.”
Except it’s not that simple. We are not at a point in the Capitals’ evolution in which playing their best hockey means racking up wins, regardless of the opponent. We are at a point where every shift is tense, every turnover is magnified. These Caps don’t blow people away like the old “Rock the Red,” young guns version once did. These Caps live every night on the edge.
And with the trade deadline looming a month from Thursday, that edge is tricky for Ovechkin and the franchise that he both built and has been built around him. After [Tuesday night’s 5-2 loss to the Montreal Canadiens](http://washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/02/06/capitals-canadiens-losing-streak/?itid=lk_inline_manual_6) that included an ugly three-goal first period, the Capitals sit on the outside of the playoff picture looking in — seven points back of the two wild-card spots in the Eastern Conference, with five teams ahead of them. The old Caps might have added at the deadline and made a push. These Caps? That just wouldn’t be wise.
The more jarring thought: If the Capitals sell, there’s more than just the typical discussion about who to move and what the appropriate returns would be — which we’ll get to. There’s a serious discussion with Ovechkin about how any trade makes sense both for the team’s competitiveness in the next two seasons — the final two seasons of his contract, perhaps the final two seasons of his career — *and* for his (currently sputtering) [pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goals record](https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/12/14/alex-ovechkin-goals-record/?itid=lk_inline_manual_9).
Maybe an unpopular or minority opinion but I think roster balancing is the way ovi chases the goal record. Trading mantha, dowd, etc for some picks or prospects and bringing in some youth through the system or in the offseason might be the offensive spark ovi needs. I don’t know who that would mean to bring in I just know what we have right now isn’t helping either situation
Badbackbjj420
I’d rather the team be good or setting itself up to be good. The current product is shit and it’s honestly the first time in many years I don’t care if I miss a game.
_SCHULTZY_
The organization isn’t going full firesale and sell off. You’ll continue to see them move older veterans and continue to see more trades like when they got Sandin. They’ll continue to look for young free players like Strome and Bear.
Eventually they’ll have a massive amount of salary cap space and make one major trade to bring in a top line player. They’ll spend big on one or two free agents. This will fill in the top end of the talent. Washington has done a good job stockpiling the mid level talent to round it out
mcjimmybingo
To me it just drives home how much of the secret sauce in the best years was Backy.
The timing of his departure clearly altered this team’s trajectory.
Tufoguy
I don’t see how playing people like Miro, Lapierre, Phillips, and Alexeyev full time is a bad thing. At worst, we’re at the same spot we are now, but they get NHL playing time. At best, they boom, and we’re in the playoffs because they’re playing great.
This is why I don’t even use the word “rebuild” because that isn’t really a rebuild. When you still have Ovi, Wilson, Oshie, Carlson, and Keumper, it’s just playing different people.
6 Comments
**Perspective by Barry Svrluga:** From a player’s perspective, the Washington Capitals’ mission over the season’s final 34 games is simple.
“We want to be in a playoff spot,” captain Alex Ovechkin said. “We want to be fighting for the top. And I think it’s — How I say? — it’s up to us.”
Except it’s not that simple. We are not at a point in the Capitals’ evolution in which playing their best hockey means racking up wins, regardless of the opponent. We are at a point where every shift is tense, every turnover is magnified. These Caps don’t blow people away like the old “Rock the Red,” young guns version once did. These Caps live every night on the edge.
And with the trade deadline looming a month from Thursday, that edge is tricky for Ovechkin and the franchise that he both built and has been built around him. After [Tuesday night’s 5-2 loss to the Montreal Canadiens](http://washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/02/06/capitals-canadiens-losing-streak/?itid=lk_inline_manual_6) that included an ugly three-goal first period, the Capitals sit on the outside of the playoff picture looking in — seven points back of the two wild-card spots in the Eastern Conference, with five teams ahead of them. The old Caps might have added at the deadline and made a push. These Caps? That just wouldn’t be wise.
The more jarring thought: If the Capitals sell, there’s more than just the typical discussion about who to move and what the appropriate returns would be — which we’ll get to. There’s a serious discussion with Ovechkin about how any trade makes sense both for the team’s competitiveness in the next two seasons — the final two seasons of his contract, perhaps the final two seasons of his career — *and* for his (currently sputtering) [pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goals record](https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/12/14/alex-ovechkin-goals-record/?itid=lk_inline_manual_9).
**Read more:** [**https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/02/07/alex-ovechkin-gretzky-record-capitals/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=reddit.com**](https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/02/07/alex-ovechkin-gretzky-record-capitals/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=reddit.com)
Maybe an unpopular or minority opinion but I think roster balancing is the way ovi chases the goal record. Trading mantha, dowd, etc for some picks or prospects and bringing in some youth through the system or in the offseason might be the offensive spark ovi needs. I don’t know who that would mean to bring in I just know what we have right now isn’t helping either situation
I’d rather the team be good or setting itself up to be good. The current product is shit and it’s honestly the first time in many years I don’t care if I miss a game.
The organization isn’t going full firesale and sell off. You’ll continue to see them move older veterans and continue to see more trades like when they got Sandin. They’ll continue to look for young free players like Strome and Bear.
Eventually they’ll have a massive amount of salary cap space and make one major trade to bring in a top line player. They’ll spend big on one or two free agents. This will fill in the top end of the talent. Washington has done a good job stockpiling the mid level talent to round it out
To me it just drives home how much of the secret sauce in the best years was Backy.
The timing of his departure clearly altered this team’s trajectory.
I don’t see how playing people like Miro, Lapierre, Phillips, and Alexeyev full time is a bad thing. At worst, we’re at the same spot we are now, but they get NHL playing time. At best, they boom, and we’re in the playoffs because they’re playing great.
This is why I don’t even use the word “rebuild” because that isn’t really a rebuild. When you still have Ovi, Wilson, Oshie, Carlson, and Keumper, it’s just playing different people.