The Washington Capitals 2025-26 season is officially in the books, but there is plenty to unwrap about a season that came to an end far too soon and a future that still looks mighty bright – whether or not the big man calls it a day. So let’s talk about some things…

Q1: What is the most pressing need to address this offseason?

Rob: They need some high-end skill, specifically at forward; obviously any team will take elite skill where they can find it, but with Jakob Chychrun and Cole Hutson, they look like they’ll have enough on defense. The forwards, however, are still a bit of a middle-six caliber jumble with no clear scoring threats. Jack Han called out the lack of high end talent as the biggest concern with the Caps during their charmed 2024-25 season, and J.P. recently pointed out how much the Caps struggled coming from behind in 2025-26. This isn’t a new problem, but was exacerbated this year when they didn’t have the whole team hitting career best numbers, inflated by unsustainable shooting percentages.

It’s hard not to think that another elite scoring forward wouldn’t have helped the power play as well (but they also had plenty of talent to be much better than they were in that respect). At the end of the day, who is The Guy that they are going to lean on when they need a goal? Who is The Guy that opposing coaches are going to lose sleep over while game planning for the Caps? They aren’t going to come away from this summer with one of the perennial Art Ross favorites, but they need to find a top line scorer to lean on, whether or not Ovi returns.

J.P.: Agreed on the need to add high-end talent, of course, but I’m seeing some red flags on the defensive side of things. Here’s a quick look at the score- and venue-adjusted rates of what the Caps have given up at five-on-five over Spencer Carbery’s tenure (via NST):

What stands out are the last five columns (and how they were essentially masked by Logan Thompson’s season, which we’ve discussed before and which shows up in that GA/60 column). That was actually the 9th-highest expected goals-against rate in the League (maybe they didn’t “deserve” a playoff spot after all). And while the trade-off was a tick more offense (expected, but not actual), there were stretches where the Caps’ defense was a little too open for my liking, and something they’re going to need to tighten up going forward, especially as they balance the need to defend with some of the more offensive impulses of a Ryan Leonard or Cole Hutson.

Alex: I agree with Rob, I think a top-six forward is a top priority this offseason. When watching games this season, it was glaringly obvious at times just how much an elite forward would have made a difference. I do think that Tom Wilson stepped up as much as he could considering his skillset, but as important as he is to this team (both on and off the ice), he just doesn’t have that elite scoring touch that so many successful teams in the league do have. I also wonder, however, how much of this glaring need was impacted by Dylan Strome’s lower offensive output this year. Regardless, there was a lot of “we’re one piece away from being a top contender” from several voices in the organization this season, and that piece needs to be a high-end forward who can really help jumpstart the offense.

Becca: Those are three smart hockey people who preceded me and they’re spot on: top-six up front and maybe a little help on the blue line…but I’ll throw out one more, and that is potentially a different backup goalie. Probably not the most pressing need, but maybe something worth exploring. Were Charlie Lindgren’s struggles this season on him or were they on a team that generally had trouble in front of him, and (as J.P. notes above) were just bailed out more by Thompson? Not sure another goalie would have better luck but if it was something Lindgren was struggling with rather than just a product of playing on a scrambly team, that’s worth taking another look at in the next few months.

Q2: Of the pending UFAs (not named Alex Ovechkin) and RFAs, who is your top priority to bring back?

J.P.: They really don’t have many pending free agents (with the obvious GOAT in the room exception), so I’ll go with Connor McMichael. He may be Lucy-with-the-footballing me here, but I think he can be more of a contributor than he showed this year, if put in the right situation. In a Roundtable towards the end of the season, I said, “he looks to be a fine complementary player if he’s the third-best player on a line, but as a trio becomes more reliant on him to generate offense or to be its defensive conscience, he’s going to find less individual (and likely team) success” and I stand by that.This isn’t a team with so much offensive talent that they can let someone who has some just walk, and this is a profile I think they can work with/around and at a price that should be manageable (I also think he’s a better defensive player than he is showing and a useful penalty killer; via HockeyStats):

Rob: Gotta be McMike, but that might be as much about the lack of other options as it is his performance. We’ll see where he settles in between the highs and lows of the last two seasons, but he looks like a solid middle six complimentary piece. Every team needs those guys, and coming off the low season you would think his re-sign price tag would be more modest. The UFAs that are in that ~50 point range are going to likely be more expensive, older, and frequently less reliable as all-around players. From an asset management, cap management, and roster construction perspective he’s the guy that makes the most sense to keep around. Honorable mention to Trevor van Riemsdyk, because they are going to be looking for RHD this summer and he seems to have embraced the elder statesman role for the young kids, but ideally he should be easier to replace on the open market and would be the 6/7D on a truly competitive team.

Alex: McMichael really is the only name that jumps out on that list, for all of the reasons J.P. and Rob have already listed. To add to Rob’s Trevor van Riemsdyk train of thought, however, I would like to see if the team can bring him back on a cheaper contract. He’s not the defenseman he was when joined the team in 2020 or when he signed his most recent contract in March of 2023, but I think he’s valuable as a RHD and as a penalty killer.

Becca: I’m the head of the TvR fan club so I’d love to see him back – particularly for his mentorship as one of the older guys on the blueline, and as Rob notes, his embracing of that role. The way he has kind of adopted Ryan Leonard as his little brother who you will not touch while he’s on the ice is very sweet. If they decide to move on from him, though, I’d agree on McMichael – although I would actually also like to see if they can hang on to Timothy Liljegren, at least on a short-term deal to see what they have there. Reuniting him with Spencer Carbery (and with Rasmus Sandin) could get the best out of him.

Q3: Who is someone who spent all/most of last year with Hershey you’d like to see get a shot at a full-time spot with the Caps full time next season?

J.P.: Does Ilya Protas count? Because it’s him and it’s not close. But if he doesn’t count, give me Clay Stevenson (which is less about Stevenson and, well, you can extrapolate).

Rob: J.P. took the obvious answers so I’ll say Miro. If he’s not traded this summer as part of a package to upgrade the forward corps, it’s time to play him regularly in the NHL with other forwards that can create offense (at least theoretically). I’m not letting him off the hook entirely for his lack of NHL production, but playing on the fourth line with Duhaime isn’t exactly going to get the most out of him. Time to see what he’s got at the NHL level and figure out whether he’s part of the future here.

Alex: Agreed on all of the above, which are the big names that jump out when you look at the Hershey roster. I’ll also throw Andrew Cristall’s name out there. This was his first AHL season and he’s second on the team in points with 60 (20G, 40A) behind Ilya Protas. 58 points also puts him in the top 20 in scoring for all AHL skaters. He might need another AHL season before he’s ready to make the jump, but I’d like to see the Caps at least give him a chance to earn a spot.

Becca: No, Protas does not count…he’ll definitely be up with the big club next season. My vote is for Miroshnichenko, as well. He’s still only 22, and he’s got two more years until he needs a new RFA deal, so it feels like this is the time to start bringing him along at the NHL level and see if he can stick with better linemates). He’s been one of the best players in Hershey, and while we’ve seen flashes of that up with the Caps, he hasn’t yet figured out how to do it consistently – but it feels like he’s so close to putting it together.

Q4: Let’s hand out some awards and superlatives and other nonsense:

Becca:

J.P.:

Rob:

Alex

Q5: What is your bandwagon playoff team this spring?

J.P.: Team Meteor.

Becca: The Stars are sort of my Western conference team, so they’re probably my top pick…beyond that, Team Meteor in the East plus whoever is playing the Carolina Hurricanes.

Rob: Vegas Golden Knights

Alex: Utah could be a fun team to root for, so maybe them. Fully on board with Team Meteor in the East though.

Q6: Hand out some grades, please:

J.P.:

Alex:

Becca:

Q7: Finally…is this it for 8, yes or no?

J.P.: No.

Becca: No.

Rob: No.

Alex: No.