Caps got worse no doubt about that, but I agree, they're still a top team In the league and can most definitely win the cup. I think the biggest loss was Nate Schmidt. He was a real stud for them In the playoffs. Arguably their most consistent D. Caps should've made a deal with Vegas to protect him

I agree that the caps are definitely a good playoff team, but how much of your prospect base is just your favourite team bias? I've hardly heard of half the prospects you list here, so I bet most of them aren't going to be as good as you think they'll be. It's just like how I think Tampa has a great prospect base with Erne, Yan, cirelli, Stephen, masin, spencer, Thomas, Joseph, raddysh. I bet most of these guys won't pan out to their potential, but all people think their prospects are great

Buddy nailed it.... everyone fan base thinks they have the best prospects..... Caps have a weak forward prospect pool... and this is coming from a die hard caps fan.... and why dont we trade OVI? we cant get past the second round with him.. and dont give me this BS that hes the leading point man in the playoffs for the caps.. because he never comes to play or makes the play when it is needed most. IE the guy has 0 OT goals in the playoffs... just take that in

This is very similar to what I think the Caps will field. I would just switch Vrana and Connolly.

For those wondering about the prospects, analysts like Pronman think pretty highly of most of them. Vrana is a skilled winger with top-6 talent, putting up 75 points in 88 AHL games and 20 points in 38 AHL playoff games. Djoos was 3rd in scoring among all AHL dmen last season, with 58 points in 66 GP. Bowey is harder to judge due to missing most of last season with an injury, but he is a product of the Kelowna Rockets, who put out a lot of star dmen. The Caps don't have much top-end talent in their prospect pool, but they've also got most of their top-6 and their top pair locked in already.

Why do you assume it's Ovi that is the problem? Why not trade Backstrom or Niskanen or Kuznetsov or Carlson or Holtby? Why does everyone like to throw Ovechkin under the bus when he's nearly a point per game in the playoffs? Backstrom has been in as many playoffs as Ovechkin and has a lower points per game. Yes Ovi is getting older, but with his cap hit and his standing with the franchise, he's not going anywhere for a while.

People just want them to be bad. They'll be contending for a Cup for years.

Crosby has 1 OT playoff goal. Do you consider him a non-factor when he is needed the most?

i gave you 5 stars for the following reasons

1) no one knew who nate schmidt was before the draft people heard people say it turning it into a thing....he wasnt a huge roster player and can easily be replaced by djoo
2) you havent heard of the caps prospects bc their roster has been so loaded that names like barber vrana Gersich ..........wouldnt come up. if you look caps youth is all over top 10 list in ahl.
3) look at the pens cup team....who heard of dum shearly getz rust kun murray...ect this seemed to be a solution not an issue
4) ovechkin isnt aging isnt on a downhill slide he saved himself for the playoffs then got hurt........last 3 years ......8th in points 1st in goals by over 20 goals
5) if they slide into a wild card spot look at garbage like ott can be a ecf team in the scenario why not the caps

Even if they slip a bit, they still are in the top 3 in the East. You mentioned Samsonov. I would how difficult it will be getting him to North America at a ELC contract when he can make a lot more money in Russian.

He has said he wants to play in North America. Not every Russian wants to stay there. I don't understand everyone's BS claims that every Russian is never playing here. Russians have played in the NHL for decades without issues. There's a reason it's such a big deal when a guy leaves for the KHL; it RARELY happens.



Exactly. This season will be a disappointment compared to others, but I think they still have a chance to be competitive this year. AND, while the forward prospect pool is shallow, the caps have finally started to hold onto some draft picks. Maybe they pick closer to 20 this year rather than 25-27. Vrana and Gersich can be top 6 wingers. They'll also have Kuznetsov and Burakovsky as top 6 guys for an extended period of time. Wilson is an average 3rd liner and he's young. A guy like Barber could surprise and be a solid middle 6 guy. This doesn't even include Backstrom and Ovechkin. They'll be gone eventually, but by that time, we will have prospects to put in place of them. And even if only half of the capitals defensive prospects pan out, they'd still have too many defensemen. And the caps goalie pipeline is one of the best in the league, with Grubauer, Samsonov and Vanecek highlighting that list. The caps will be fantastic for years to come. And if they have to take one subpar year to achieve that, then it's worth that loss. Backstrom and Ovechkin are running out of time, but just because their time is over doesn't mean the Capitals will never be good again.

Also, five star team

I feel that you are overvaulting your prospects. Recently, an EPSN columnist ranked Philadelphia number one in NHL prospects. Realistically, around 3-6 of those guys will pan out, while we hope for 7-11.

Some of Philadelphia's top prospects are Philippe Myers (A chance to pan out), Travis Sanheim (A- chance to pan out), Nolan Patrick (A chance to pan out), German Rubstov (A- chance to pan out), Carter Hart (B+/A- chance to pan out), Felix Sandstrom (B/B+ chance to pan out), Sam Morin (B chance to pan out), Robert Hagg (B chance to pan out) Morgan Frost (B chance to pan out), Isaac Ratcliffe (B chance to pan out). Everyone else is either a B- or below.

I am someone who puts a lot of stock in prospects, as I am not only a Flyers fan, I am a 76ers fan. Because nobody wants to rationally talk about the potential that a prospect doesn't reach their ideal potential, they subconsciously and sometimes consciously lower their expectation of it happening.

Everyone always thinks that top prospects are the next big thing, but many are blinded by the fact that there is a significant "bust chance" on most of these guys. Just be cautious on banking on players to pan out, I have seen it happen in all sports.

Dude. We get it. Prospects can be busts. We don't need you to drill it into these message boards. I think everyone is aware of that possibility.

Also, no one on this thread cares about the Flyers or 76ers. It's discussion about the caps.

Crosby makes the big play at the right time, you cant argue that... IE pass to kunitz vs sens game 7, or even the golden goal!?
Ovi also has the lowest Gwg % out of all the top 15 players with most gwgs.. so he scores just not at the needed times