NHL Journalist & Reporter
Washington D.C.
- NHL Out Of Beijing Olympics And On Pause Due To COVID-19 Spike - December 23, 2021
- Capitals Defeat Ducks In Shootout - December 7, 2021
- Capitals’ Consistency Earns NHL’s Top Spot - November 30, 2021
The Washington Capitals have a problem but it’s a good one. The All-Star and league known goalie, Braden Holtby has been the focal point for the past five seasons.
Holtby in those seasons racked up 197 wins in the regular season, not including playoffs which is very impressive considering he only won one Vezina Trophy for leagues top goalie in those years.
But even still, this isn’t about Holtby’s excellence in net for the Capitals, it’s about Ilya Samsonov. The 22nd pick in the 2015 NHL Draft has been pretty much unstoppable. Samsonov became the franchise’s first goalie to ever win their first 12 of 14 games starting.
Samsonov has a 2.11 goals against average which is the best in the NHL currently. He also is seventh in the NHL in save percentage at .925 %. The Russian-born goalie broke the NHL’s record for a rookie to win their first eight career road games as a goaltender starting. It just keeps going in accolades and it won’t stop.
The rookie goalie is now tied with Bob Mason, who played for the Capitals in 1984-85, with a winning streak of eight games.
So many records could be shattered if he continues to be dialed in and and confident. The league should be worried, not just for this season but for years to come.
In terms of the problem the Capitals have (which isn’t one at all), they’ve now discovered how great of a team they can be this season and with the emergence of Samsonov, that only bolsters the all-around confidence.
With the dominant team they’ve formed, it just seems like they could hoist up Lord Stanley again in the near future.
