Are Washington Capitals On Their Way To Their Best Season Ever?

Fact Checked by Jim Tomlin

What was supposed to be a rebuilding season in the Nation’s Capital has suddenly become one to remember for fans of the Washington Capitals. The Caps enter Thursday atop the Eastern Conference with 77 points, nine points ahead of the next closest East team (the Metropolitan Division rival Carolina Hurricanes, at 68 points).

Despite the team’s form, oddsmakers from DraftKings Virginia Sportsbook have Washington down as a +1400 longshot to win the club’s second Stanley Cup this spring. That ties the Colorado Avalanche and league-leading Winnipeg Jets for eighth in the 32-team league, well behind the Edmonton Oilers (+600), Hurricanes (+650) and defending champion Florida Panthers (+800).

How does this Washington Capitals team stack up in franchise history? BetVirginia.com, where the best Virginia sports betting promos reside, compared the 2024-25 Washington Capitals to the best teams in franchise history. These seasons are in order by points percentage.

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Best Seasons in Capitals History

Season

Points, Point %

Playoff result

2009-10

121 (82 games), .738

Lost first round

2015-16

120 (82 games), .732

Lost second round

2024-25*

77 (53 games), .726

TBD

2016-17

118 (82 games), .720

Lost second round

2020-21

77 (56 games), .688

Lost first round

1985-86

107 (80 games), .669

Lost second round

2008-09

108 (82 games), .659

Lost second round

2019-20

90 (69 games), .652

Lost first round

2010-11

107 (82 games), .652

Lost second round

2017-18

105 (82 games), .640

Won Stanley Cup

*Statistics through Feb. 6

This story is part of the Virginia sports betting coverage at BetVirginia.

So far, Washington’s .726 points percentage is on pace to be the third-best figure in the club’s half-century run in D.C., ranking behind the 2009-10 (.738) and 2015-16 (.732) teams that flamed out in the NHL playoffs. This season’s Caps are on pace for 119 points.

Note that a couple of the seasons on this list were shortened because of COVID-19 restrictions. The NHL adopted an 82-game regular-season schedule in the 1995-96 season.

Where This Year’s Capitals Team Ranks

So far, the Capitals’ season-long point total of 77 points through 53 games is on track to put the team third all-time in terms of points percentage (points earned out of the maximum possible).

Oddsmakers did not see this resurgence coming; just before the season, BetMGM Sportsbook Virginia had +6600 odds on coach Spencer Carbery’s team to win the Stanley Cup.

This season’s pace is just ahead of the 2016-17 squad that had a .720 percentage before flaming out in the second round of the postseason.

Washington’s lone Stanley Cup championship team in 2017-18 finished with 105 points, posting a year-end points percentage of .640 to rank 10th in franchise history. But they’re the ones that finally brought the big trophy to D.C., speaking to the randomness of the sport’s postseason through the years.

For now, Washington will look to pick up another two points when the Capitals head to Philadelphia to play the Flyers tonight. Caesars Virginia Sportsbook lists the Caps at +625 odds to win the East and advance to the Stanley Cup final. That's tied for fourth behind the Hurricanes (+340), Panthers (+425)  and New Jersey Devils (+575) and tied with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

USA Today photo by Geoff Burke

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Author

Christopher Boan

Christopher Boan has been covering sports and sports betting for more than seven years, including stops at ArizonaSports.com, the Tucson Weekly and the Green Valley News.

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