The Washington Capitals have one of the most unstoppable weapons in all of the NHL: Alexander Ovechkin on the powerplay.
Ovi has been in the NHL for 13 seasons, and in that time, he has rarely moved from one spot on the powerplay. Everyone knows about Ovechkins spot in the left faceoff circle, where he waits for one-times and frequently hammers them home. It’s a not-so-secret weapon in the NHL, because everyone knows where it’s going but no one has been able to stop it.
If you’re curious just how much the Capitals lean on this part of their powerplay, it’s an overwhelming amount. This heatmap of the Caps’ PP shooting tendencies from Micah Blake McCurdy shows exactly how much.
It’s not as if it doesn’t help out the other players on the team either. TJ Oshie is actually tied with Ovechkin for the team lead in powerplay goals, largely because he is often overlooked as teams try to stop Ovechkin from doing what he does best.
Good luck.
