Washington Capitals
From expansion struggles to Stanley Cup champions.
The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The Capitals compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team is owned by Ted Leonsis, through Monumental Sports & Entertainment, and initially played its home games at the Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland, before moving to Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., in 1997. The franchise was founded in 1974 as an expansion team, alongside the Kansas City Scouts.
- Season Number
- 49th
- Establishment Date
- June 11, 1974
- Playoff Elimination Date
- April 4, 2023
- Eliminating Matchup Result
- Florida Panthers defeated Buffalo Sabres 2–1
- Previous Playoff Miss
- 2013–14 season
- Consecutive Winning Seasons Ended
- 15
Verified Timeline
Lore & Background
The Capitals struggled throughout their first eight years of existence. Beginning in 1982, with a core of players such as Mike Gartner, Rod Langway, Larry Murphy, and Scott Stevens, they became a regular playoff contender for the next 14 seasons. After purchasing the team in 1999, Leonsis revitalized the franchise by drafting star players such as Alexander Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, John Carlson, Braden Holtby, Evgeny Kuznetsov and Tom Wilson. In the 2009–10 season, the Capitals won the franchise's first Presidents' Trophy. They won it a second time in 2015–16, and for a third time the following season in 2016–17. The Capitals have reached the Stanley Cup Final in 1998 and 2018, winning the latter in five games against the Vegas Golden Knights.
In Their Own Story
The narrative of the 2022–23 season is one of broken continuity rather than a single dramatic on-ice event. The story began with the release of the regular season schedule on July 6, 2022, setting the stage for another year of expectations. As the months passed, the pressure mounted to maintain the franchise's impressive 15-year streak of consecutive winning seasons. That streak, a rare accomplishment shared by only twelve NHL teams in history, came to an end alongside their playoff hopes. The defining moment arrived on April 4, 2023, when fans across the league watched the Florida Panthers secure a 2–1 victory over the Buffalo Sabres. That result mathematically eliminated Washington from playoff contention, instantly ending their eight-year run of postseason appearances and cementing the season as the first time since 2013–14 that the Capitals failed to qualify.
Reader's Guide
The Capitals have retired the use of four numbers in honor of four players. The team holds an association with a number of individuals inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. The Capitals are affiliated with two minor league teams: the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League and the South Carolina Stingrays of the ECHL.
Did You Know?
- The Capitals' inaugural season in 1974–75 set NHL records in futility, finishing with an 8–67–5 record and a .131 winning percentage, the worst in NHL history.
- The team name was decided via a contest in which 12,000 entries were given to owner Abe Pollin; other names included the Comets, Cyclones, Streaks, and Domes.
- In 1982, a fan-led 'Save the Caps' campaign helped defeat a tax measure that threatened the team's move out of Washington.
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