Eastern Conference - Southeast Division
Washington Capitals
| Team's name: Washington Capitals Conference: Eastern Division: Southeast  Location: Washington D.C. Nickname: Capitals Mascot: Slapshot Team Colors: Red, White and Blue Joined the Conference: 1974 General Manager: George McPhee Hockey Head Coach: Chris Clark Hockey Stadium: Verizon Center Current Capacity: 18,277 First Year of Hockey: 1974 Team Titles: Stanley Cup: none Conference Championships: 1997-98 Division Championships: 1988-89, 1999-00, 2000-01, 2007-08, 2008-09 |
Established in 1974, the Washington Capitals are members of the NHL’s Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was added as an expansion during the NHL’s rivalry with the World Hockey Association; as such, the Capitals had few options for the roster and ended their inaugural season with a miserable record, even for an expansion team.
The Capitals’ foul record led to rumors that the team would be moved from Washington, D.C. However, in 1982, the team hired David Poile as General Manager, who then made several fortuitous trades with the Montreal Canadiens. In particular, the acquisition of Rod Langway turned the team around; the Capitals would make the playoffs for the next fourteen years in a row, and would claim their first division championship in 1988-89.
Despite winning the Eastern Conference championships in 1997-98, the Capitals did not win the much-coveted Stanley Cup.
The team was sold in 1999 and, in 2000 and 2001, won two consecutive division titles. The team began to acquire high-priced talent, including the juggernaut Jaromir Jagr and his Pittsburgh Penguins linemate, Robert Lang. But still, the Stanley Cup eluded the team.
Jagr never lived up to expectations, and a few years later was traded to the New York Rangers.
Then, in the 2004 Entry Draft, the Capitals acquired soon-to-be superstar Alex Ovechkin. Although the team finished the 2005-06 season in the cellar, Ovechkin exceeded expectations, leading both rookies and the League. The 2006-07 season proved little better for the team.
At the start of the 2007-08 season, the Capitals signed Nicklas Backstrom and Simeon Varlamov and bolstered their defense. At the same time, Ovechkin’s contract was extended to 13 years with a league-record $124 million. The team also fired coach Glen Hanlon after a slow 6-14-1 start, replacing him with Bruce Boudreau, former Hershey Bears coach. The changes were good ones for the team; the Capitals finished with a winning record at 43 wins and 31 losses.
The 2008-09 season proved even better. The Capitals claimed the Southeast Division and entered the 2009 playoffs at second seed. They defeated the New York Rangers in the first round but lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second. Nevertheless, their 2009 regular season record was their most impressive in many years. The team finished with a strong 50-24-8, but has still yet to win a Stanley Cup.
Washington Capitals Current Roster
| Centers | |||||
| No. | Name | Age | HT | WT | Shot |
| 20 | Keith Aucoin | 30 | 5-9 | 187 | R |
| 19 | Nicklas Backstrom | 21 | 6-0 | 183 | L |
| 91 | Sergei Fedorov | 39 | 6-2 | 206 | L |
| 15 | Boyd Gordon | 25 | 6-0 | 198 | R |
| 21 | Brooks Laich | 25 | 6-2 | 205 | L |
| 92 | Michael Nylander | 36 | 6-1 | 195 | L |
| 39 | Dave Steckel | 27 | 6-5 | 222 | L |
| Left Wings | |||||
| No. | Name | Age | HT | WT | Shot |
| 87 | Donald Brashear | 37 | 6-2 | 235 | L |
| 14 | Tomas Fleischmann | 24 | 6-0 | 188 | L |
| 53 | Quintin Laing | 29 | 6-2 | 200 | L |
| 8 | Alex Ovechkin | 23 | 6-2 | 212 | R |
| 28 | Alexander Semin | 25 | 6-0 | 180 | R |
| Right Wings | |||||
| No. | Name | Age | HT | WT | Shot |
| 10 | Matt Bradley | 30 | 6-3 | 199 | R |
| 17 | Chris Clark | 33 | 6-0 | 200 | R |
| 16 | Eric Fehr | 23 | 6-4 | 212 | R |
| 25 | Viktor Kozlov | 34 | 6-5 | 235 | R |
| Defense | |||||
| No. | Name | Age | HT | WT | Shot |
| 4 | John Erskine | 28 | 6-4 | 215 | L |
| 52 | Mike Green | 23 | 6-1 | 198 | R |
| 23 | Milan Jurcina | 25 | 6-4 | 233 | R |
| 26 | Shaone Morrisonn | 26 | 6-3 | 205 | L |
| 2 | Brian Pothier | 32 | 6-0 | 198 | R |
| 3 | Tom Poti | 32 | 6-3 | 202 | L |
| 55 | Jeff Schultz | 23 | 6-6 | 224 | L |
| Goalies | |||||
| No. | Name | Age | HT | WT | Shot |
| 1 | Brent Johnson | 32 | 6-3 | 198 | L |
| 60 | Jose Theodore | 32 | 5-11 | 182 | R |
| 40 | Simeon Varlamov | 20 | 6-1 | 200 | L |