Can washington repeat?

[Ridley Simon]

I expect them to have a massive cup hangover as Ovechkin and his pals don't seem to have the discipline you'd need to refocus after finally breaking through. I think they'll barely make the playoffs and exit in the first or second round.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

Sure they can. But this is the toughest sport to repeat after winning a cup. It takes such a big toll.

 

[Cloned]

Jets vs. Lightning in the next Cup Final.

 

[Armourboy]

Sure they can. But this is the toughest sport to repeat after winning a cup. It takes such a big toll.

My take on it. I dont think it's a slight against Washington to say they probably won't, it's just hard to do.

 

[Shockmaster]

Ask Nashville how easy it is to make a return trip to the Finals. Everyone had them penciled in the Finals before the season started.

 

[Silky mitts]

Beagle is pretty important to the team dude! He's not easy to replace!

Got to trust the process and clear a path for Pinho, Gersich, or Boyd, maybe leave them enough money for Kempny or another acquisition down the road.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

My take on it. I dont think it's a slight against Washington to say they probably won't, it's just hard to do.

Seen how the shorter summer effects teams. Would be a great feat if they could do it. Have to sign or replace Carlson. He's a valuable player.

 

[haveandare]

Yes, of course they can. They may or may not, comes down to a lot of small things, some of which depend on little more than luck - injuries, hot goalies, etc.

 

[DowntownBooster]

Based on the last two decades of Stanley Cup winners, I would have to believe the odds are against them to repeat. They have a good team but the league is so balanced as far as competition goes that it's an extremely difficult goal to achieve. Maybe they'll be like Chicago or Los Angeles and win it again two years from now with a different team winning next year.

 

[hockey4sale]

Only Pens can stop them

 

[Connor McConnor]

If Kuzy continues his ascend into a top 10 C and Backstrom is able to stay healthier playing more of a 2C role + Vrana becomes a much more consistent player (50-60 pts) I think it's possible. They have a solid core to build around - this assumes they resign Carlson. Would be nice if Madison Bowey stepped up into some sort of role as well. They COULD do it, but I would probably put their odds behind Tampa, Pitt, Boston & Toronto next year.

 

[beach]

No

 

[Turin]

Not going to say it’s impossible, but the chances are extremely slim.

 

[Equinsu Ocha]

"Can washington repeat?"


Betteridge's law of headlines is an adage that states: "Any headline that ends in a question mark can be answered by the word no."

 

[Maruk moustache]

The Jets were I think the best team this year, y'know, for almost the whole year. From what I've heard, they are unlikely to get worse this offseason. I like the Jets a lot to win it. And I'm grateful, as a Capitals fan, that the Caps did not have to face them this year.

I doubt the Caps will win it again next year. But then again I doubted they would win it this year until the point they were up 3-1 vs. Vegas. I'd like to think the core now "knows how to win" and this will bump their chances next year to a large degree at least though. But there were a lot of secondary guys making huge contributions. That's the part that's probably pretty difficult to expect two years in a row.

 

[theVladiator]

Reasons to say "No":
1. Carlson and Trotz may be gone.
2. It is generally very hard

Reasons to say "Yes":
1. A number of players on upswing, and the core is ageing well.
2. Very convincing wins against other contenders. Two best teams in the East (PIT and TBL) were beaten quite convincingly. The team that went through West like knife through butter (VGK) was systematically dismantled in the finals. Seems like there might be some headroom left.

 

[sovietsanta87]

Reasons to say "No":
1. Carlson and Trotz may be gone.
2. It is generally very hard

Reasons to say "Yes":
1. A number of players on upswing, and the core is ageing well.
2. Very convincing wins against other contenders. Two best teams in the East (PIT and TBL) were beaten quite convincingly. The team that went through West like knife through butter (VGK) was systematically dismantled in the finals. Seems like there might be some headroom left.

It’ll be interesting to see the caps vs pens series in 2019 with the shoe on the other foot. Pens were clearly running on fumes in the Washington series this year.

 

[gtrower]

Wow that's a hot take.

Caps are 14:1, Tampa favorite at 9:1, I feel like that's low for the Caps if you assume they're resigning Carlson but I'd make them 12:1 or 11:1 at best. Their offseason moves are pretty easy to forecast: Carlson, Wilson, DSP probably back in increasing likelihood; Beagle, Grubby almost certainly gone; Kempny and Trotz unsure.

Kempny is more important to resign than DSP. Not discounting what DSP did because he had some insanely timely goals for us. Grubs almost certianly gone to free up cap space for signing Carlson or to include in a trade for Carlson’s replacement (likely the former).

But Kempny was a rock back there for us with Carlson. I’d hate to break them up.

 

[Revelation]

Depends on how well Burakovsky/Vrana/Eller/Stephenson/Wilson/Djoos do next year. They still arguably have the best roster in the league if Carlson comes back and either Kempny is back or Djoos takes a leap forward.

 

[Silky mitts]

Kempny is more important to resign than DSP. Not discounting what DSP did because he had some insanely timely goals for us. Grubs almost certianly gone to free up cap space for signing Carlson or to include in a trade for Carlson’s replacement (likely the former).

But Kempny was a rock back there for us with Carlson. I’d hate to break them up.

Kempny is UFA, DSP RFA, so I just can’t come up with a scenario where they lose DSP.

 

[Devonator]

If they resign Carlson yes they have a shot...Ovi still has at least a couple of more great years ahead of him....and the rest of the squad are relatively young....if they lose Carlson, highly unlikely then.

 

[theVladiator]

It’ll be interesting to see the caps vs pens series in 2019 with the shoe on the other foot. Pens were clearly running on fumes in the Washington series this year.

Well, for full role reversal Washington would have to win the Cup in 2019 . I am kind of suspicious of fatigue factor in general, simply because it's used so liberally. I seem to recall that people were forecasting doom for Washington because Ovechkin spent all his energy chasing 600 goals all season, and Crosby was saving himself for the playoffs. That forecast aged well.

That said, for sure a rematch in 2019 is not guaranteed for either team.

 

[ColbyChaos]

Not if they face Fleury, he is in their heads

 

[Langdon Alger]

Anything’s possible, but I’m guessing they don’t.

 

[EHCler]

Lets see first how the team will look like.
I think The Caps will again belong to the 5 favorites to win the cup.

First celebrate the win, do the homework in the offseason and than play hockey again.