Nicklas Backstrom and Andre Burakovsky join their team in saluting the crowd after a game.
Geoff Burke : USA Today Sports

By Gabriel Foley

In their last ten, the Washington Capitals have gone 7-2-1. In their 47 games played so far, only eight teams have been able to beat the Caps in regulation. Of these eight teams, five of them are top 15 in the league standings. The Winnipeg Jets, Calgary Flames, and Columbus Blue Jackets have held on to beat Washington in overtime.

The league-leading Capitals also have the least goals against, with 100. That averages out to about two goals against a game. Meanwhile they average about three goals a game. The Capitals have had such success because of so many players who have stepped up as contributors. Leading Washington in points is Evgeny Kuznetsov.

Kuznetsov has 49 points (15 goals, 34 assists) in 47 games, which is more than one point a game. He also has the highest plus/minus in the league with a plus 24. This is his second full season with the Capitals. Last season, he participated in all but two games of the regular season. He was able to notch 37 points in those 80 games. Prior to that, he had played just 17 games in a Capitals jersey, during the 2013-14 season. He only had nine points in those games. His breakthrough as an playmaker with the Capitals has led them to the top of the league. Kuznetsov mostly centers Andre Burakovsky and Justin Williams, two other player who have broken through their shells over the course of this season.

Williams, while we’re mentioning him, has played surprisingly well. He has the fourth most points on the Caps, behind Ovechkin, Backstrom, and Kuznetsov. The freshly-turned 34 year-old has more points than all-stars T.J. Oshie and Marcus Johansson. Halfway through the season and Williams has 33 points in 47 games. What’s surprising is how much of a name Williams has made for himself in Washington. The Capitals signed him on the first of July, this past offseason. The signing was surprising but was overshadowed by the Capitals’ acquisition of T.J. Oshie.

Oshie was expected to be an all-star with the Capitals. Playing with players like Ovechkin, Backstrom, and even Williams, it was expected to mean big points for Oshie. But now, halfway through the season, Williams is overshadowing Oshie. He has shown impressive chemistry and comfortability with Washington. During his time with the Kings, he had 266 points in 427 games. Four of his almost six full seasons with L.A. were 40-plus point seasons and two were 50+. Yet at this rate, Williams is looking at getting his first 60-point season. That is not counting the postseason the Capitals are sure to make. On a line predominately centered by point-leading Kuznetsov, Williams has done a good job of staying balanced. His 33 points are almost split down the middle, with 16 goals and 17 assists.

The most impressive aspect of the season so far for the Caps, is their goaltending. Braden Holtby has proved himself time and time again this year he has been almost unbeatable and is one of the leagues best. So far this season, Holtby is 30-5-3. He currently has the most wins in the NHL and his save percentage is an impressive at .929. He averages about two goals against a game, but when you consider how well the players in front of Holtby have played, it’s not bad. During his time as a Capital, Holtby has won 60 percent of his games. He is 131-56 in 217 games while in the Capitals sweater. The Capitals are putting a lot of trust into Holtby, starting him in most of their games so far.

Holtby has certainly earned the minutes, however, the Capitals backup, Philipp Grubauer, has also played decently. Grubauer is a sold 5-3-1 in  his 11 games. Out of those games, he started eight of them. Grubauer currently posts a save percentage of .925 and averages 2.12 goals against a game. These numbers seem average but they’re impressive when you only have 566 minutes between the pipes this season. Impressive when you are the backup to one of the leagues best goaltenders.

Another reason the Capitals are so successful this season is they are dominant on special teams. They lead the league with a power play percentage of 26.8, and have the fourth best penalty kill percentage of 84.7 percent. The Capitals best known for their offensive strength and are arguably one of the best shooting and passing teams in the league. That strength is portrayed through their league-leading power play numbers.

Even with the numerous roster changes the past couple of seasons, they have striking chemistry. Along with that chemistry, they have some of the best shooters in the league, in Ovechkin and Williams. They also have many young players whose ability to shoot the puck which is overlooked, like Burakovsky. The Capitals also have one of the best assist-men in the league in Nicklas Backstrom. Backstrom currently has the 11th most assists in the league, with 29. Since the 2012-13 lockout, Backstrom has finished in the top three most assists each year, including leading the league with an impressive 60 assists last season. Since 2012, Backstrom has had 161 assists in 212 games. That averages out to one and a half assists every two games, or three assists every four games. Those numbers don’t include this season, where Backstrom has averaged just under 1.5 assists every two games.

What is going to bite the Caps in the butt in the upcoming seasons is their salary. In this upcoming offseason, the Capitals will have seven restricted free agents (RFA) and 10 unrestricted free agents (UFA). Among the seven registered free agents include Connor Carrick, Marcus Johansson, and Tom Wilson. It wouldn’t be a surprise if Johansson and Wilson asked for hefty contracts, after playing as well as they have been. Star defenseman Dmitry Orlov might also be a problem when it comes to staying under the salary cap for the 2016-17 season.

The real problem will come after next season, in the summer of 2017. The Capitals will have to resign Williams, Oshie, and Karl Alzner. Those three are set to become unregistered free agents that season. Nate Schmidt, Burakovsky, and Kuznetsov all become RFAs that same summer. The Capitals should be able to keep a majority of their roster, with a few smart signings and steals. However, they will have to get rid of some key ingredients along the way. The team will then face the challenge of staying strong, despite the new, and missing, faces.

Looking at this season alone, the Capitals are almost guaranteed a playoff spot if they keep playing the way they have been. But their past playoff appearances haven’t been flawless. They haven’t made it to the Stanley Cup finals, or even past the Conference Semifinals, since the 1997-98 season. Their struggles in the playoffs can easily be fixed with the play they’ve shown, if they can keep it up for the second half of the season.