Capitals Finally Cash In on Power Play - Blue Jackets Routed in Statement Win
The Washington Capitals are back to winning ways after the Tampa Bay Lightning forced them into a short detour this past weekend. The Caps came to play right from the outset on Monday night and beat up on the Columbus Blue Jackets for a 5-1 victory.
Much better overall effort. More of that.
- This is one of those rare games where the five-on-five stats and I don’t get along. According to NaturalStatTrick, the Blue Jackets created more five-on-five expected goals (3.05) than the Capitals (2.24), and I just think that’s a little ludicrous watching the actual game. So, this will be one of the times where I express how numbers are fantastic and tell a good story, but you always have to use context and your own eyes to paint the full picture. I don’t think Columbus was ever in this game. The Caps had their zone on lockdown.
- Jakob Chychrun had a baller game, scoring two goals in a team-high 24:54 of ice time. Among all defensemen, Chychrun’s eight goals this season rank second in the league, behind only Cale Makar (9). He has a point in eight-straight games and 11 total points (5g, 6a) during that stretch.
- Another pretty brilliant game from Justin Sourdif’s second line, featuring him, Aliaksei Protas, and Tom Wilson. The three forwards combined for five points (1g, 4a), and with specifically Protas on the ice at five-on-five, the Capitals finished up 22-8 in shot attempts, 12-3 in shots on goal, 3-0 in goals, 12-3 in scoring chances, and 5-0 in high-danger chances.
- Logan Thompson rebounded from his horror show against the Lightning, making 22 stops on 23 shots faced. Per MoneyPuck, he stopped 1.9 more goals than expected, a true return to form.
- The power play went 1-for-3, and the penalty kill was a perfect 2-for-2. Praise be.
- My one annoyance from this game will be what we saw on the five-on-three power play the Capitals were given. Ryan Leonard drew the initial penalty and then drew the second to put the Capitals up two men. He was promptly rewarded with a seat on the bench in favor ofJohn Carlson, restoring the same five-man power-play unit that has been horrendous all season, which the team made a point to go away from literally two days ago. I was utterly baffled by the logic there. Carlson immediately tried to solo zone entry against the three defenders and turned the puck over. On the final entry attempt, Chychrun, the other defenseman on the unit, did the same exact thing. I hope that’s the last we see of that.
Dan Quinn Gives Final Answer on Commanders Resting Healthy Jayden Daniels
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Dan Quinn gave a clear answer about the Washington Commanders' plans to rest QB Jayden Daniels once he's healthy.
The Washington Commanders are preparing for Jayden Daniels to return after dislocating his elbow in Week 9, but those preparations don’t include head coach Dan Quinn talking about any plans to rest the second-year quarterback once he’s healthy.
Daniels is getting closer to returning to health, based on the latest positive injury update. The Commanders will have their franchise signal-caller back at practice, but Quinn says Daniels is still “unlikely to play (Sunday)” against the Denver Broncos in Week 13 because he’s “not yet been cleared for contact,” according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
That makes sense, and a return date against the Minnesota Vikings on December 7 is identified by ESPN’s John Keim as “the likely target. But nothing is certain at this point. Much more to learn first.”
Daniels suiting up against the Vikings would put to rest any idea of the Commanders not risking him for the final portion of what’s been a gruelling campaign. The debate about shutting down last season’s NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year has been raging for a while, but Quinn isn’t getting involved.
Instead, Quinn revealed, “That’s not something we really discussed, internally,” per The Washington Post’s Tom Schad.
Dan Quinn was asked if the #Commanders ever considered resting a healthy Jayden Daniels.
“That’s not something we really discussed, internally,” he said. Focus was just on getting Jayden healthy.
It sounds as though Quinn would be content to put Daniels back onto the field before this season is in the books. Some will see it as an unnecessary risk when the team is 3-8, but Daniels is still a young player who needs to hone his craft, and the Commanders need to engender some goodwill before a planned raising of ticket prices.
Commanders Still Need Jayden Daniels in 2025
It’s the longest of long shots, but the 2025 Commanders still aren’t officially eliminated from playoff contention. So there’s still some value to getting Daniels back into the lineup as soon as possible.
He still represents the best chance for the Commanders to win football games, even if signs of a sophomore slump have been impossible to ignore. Daniels has regressed in a few key areas, most notably when it comes to being accurate and efficient with the football.
The 24-year-old has completed 62.5 percent of his passes, down from 69 a year ago, per Pro Football Reference. Daniels has also averaged under 200 yards through the air per game across eight starts.
Those numbers show Daniels still has work to do, work he can do best on the field. Even against a Vikings defense posting the highest blitz percentage in football, sending extra rushers after quarterbacks 41 percent of the time.
His talent remains undeniable, but the Commanders need to do more to surround Daniels with playmakers on both sides of the ball.
Commanders Must Put More Talent Around Their QB
Daniels will get value from additional playing time this season, but he’ll benefit more from a stronger supporting cast. That will mean adding a competent and dynamic third wide receiver, putting a bluechip workhorse into the backfield and bolstering a defense threadbare in every area.
The onus is on general manager Adam Peters to acquire a marquee defensive end, a more athletic linebacker and a rangy safety. It’s a pretty lengthy to-do list, but every one of those moves is necessary for ensuring Daniels doesn’t have to carry a structurally unsound team.
More of that kind of pressure will not only make the Commanders a losing product at a time when Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic reports the franchise is “raising 2026 season ticket prices by an average of just under 10 percent.” It would also lead to Daniels taking more risks with his dual-threat skills and increasing the chances of future injuries.
