The Washington Capitals were back on the ice for the first official day of 2024 Training Camp on Thursday. The Caps split their 72-man roster into three separate groups ahead of their first preseason game against the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday.
Group A jumped out onto the main rink at MedStar Capitals Iceplex first, and Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery gave some early indications of what the lineup may look like on Opening Night.
Per lines provided by NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti, the biggest highlight is the top pairing of new defenseman Jakob Chychrun and long-time number-one blueliner John Carlson. Washington acquired Chychrun from the Ottawa Senators in a July trade for Nick Jensen and a draft pick.
Former Caps general manager, Brian MacLellan, was excited about Chychrun’s fit on the roster, stating his belief that the offensively-gifted Chychrun could be an excellent match to partner with Carlson or any of the team’s top three right-sided defenders.
“You could see Chychrun and [John Carlson], which I think would be a good pair,” MacLellan said then. “You could see Chychrun and [Matt] Roy. You could see Chychrun and [Trevor van Riemsdyk]. I think they can move the left side around depending on what they want to accomplish match-up wise.”
The two veteran rearguards could form a potent duo as Washington desperately needs increased production from their defense. The Capitals got just eight goals combined from non-Carlson defensemen last year.
Chychrun scored 14 goals by himself last season, and his previous career high is 18 markers, set with the Arizona Coyotes during the 2020-21 campaign. Among current Capitals blueliners, not even Carlson has scored 18 goals in a single season.
“I think [being paired with John] would be great,” Chychrun said Thursday. “I’m really excited for it. I feel like I enjoy playing with guys who think the game the same way. I think John and I are both guys that love to generate offense, take pride in defending, and play in all situations on the ice and in the game. I think we’ll really be able to play off one another and make reads off one another. I’m excited to see where it goes.”
In Chychrun’s short time in DC, the 26-year-old South Florida native has already shown off his eccentric and open-book personality. Whether it’s his public Instagram stumping for politician Robert Kennedy Jr., showing off his summer workout routines, or eating an entire watermelon, Chychrun looks to be in stark vibe contrast to his potential partner, Carlson, and the latter appears aware of that.
“He doesn’t hide much,” Carlson said. “I think you know exactly what you’re getting. He’s that kind of guy, which is fantastic. Just seeing, playing together, practicing, playing against him all that stuff. I think a lot gets talked about in terms of chemistry, but I think with a lot of the guys, it’s just being out there a little bit together.”
Outside of the potential new top defensive duo, other takeaways from the morning’s line combos include a checking line made up of Brandon Duhaime, Nic Dowd, and Taylor Raddysh. With Beck Malenstyn and Nicolas Aube-Kubel departing the team over the summer, Dowd needs two new wingers. Duhaime and Raddysh could be early frontrunners for the spots after signing contracts with Washington on the first day of NHL free agency.
While Alex Ovechkin is not part of Group A, Pierre-Luc Dubois did line up with Ovechkin’s regular running mate on Washington’s top line, Tom Wilson. Dubois expressed his excitement about potentially connecting with the NHL’s greatest goal scorer in June. Ovechkin also directly approved of the deal once the team moved to acquire the talented centerman.
Carbery has committed to trying Dubois out with Ovechkin at some point during the preseason.
