# 2010–11 Washington Capitals season

The 2010–11 Washington Capitals season is the 37th season for the Washington Capitals in the National Hockey League (NHL). Despite the Capitals' first round exit in the 2010 Playoffs, ticket prices for this season were increased between 13 and 50 percent.

## Regular season

The Capitals finished the regular season having been shut out a league-high 11 times, tied with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

### Divisional standings

Southeast Division :
| | vte | GP | W | L | OTL | ROW | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | z-Washington Capitals | 82 | 48 | 23 | 11 | 43 | 224 | 197 | 107 |
| 2 | Tampa Bay Lightning | 82 | 46 | 25 | 11 | 40 | 247 | 240 | 103 |
| 3 | Carolina Hurricanes | 82 | 40 | 31 | 11 | 35 | 236 | 239 | 91 |
| 4 | Atlanta Thrashers | 82 | 34 | 36 | 12 | 29 | 223 | 269 | 80 |
| 5 | Florida Panthers | 82 | 30 | 40 | 12 | 26 | 195 | 229 | 72 |

### Conference standings

Eastern Conference :
| R | vte | Div | GP | W | L | OTL | ROW | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | z – Washington Capitals | SE | 82 | 48 | 23 | 11 | 43 | 224 | 197 | 107 |
| 2 | y – Philadelphia Flyers | AT | 82 | 47 | 23 | 12 | 44 | 259 | 223 | 106 |
| 3 | y – Boston Bruins | NE | 82 | 46 | 25 | 11 | 44 | 246 | 195 | 103 |
| 4 | Pittsburgh Penguins | AT | 82 | 49 | 25 | 8 | 39 | 238 | 199 | 106 |
| 5 | Tampa Bay Lightning | SE | 82 | 46 | 25 | 11 | 40 | 247 | 240 | 103 |
| 6 | Montreal Canadiens | NE | 82 | 44 | 30 | 8 | 41 | 216 | 209 | 96 |
| 7 | Buffalo Sabres | NE | 82 | 43 | 29 | 10 | 38 | 245 | 229 | 96 |
| 8 | New York Rangers | AT | 82 | 44 | 33 | 5 | 35 | 233 | 198 | 93 |
| 8.5 |||||||||||
| 9 | Carolina Hurricanes | SE | 82 | 40 | 31 | 11 | 35 | 236 | 239 | 91 |
| 10 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NE | 82 | 37 | 34 | 11 | 32 | 218 | 251 | 85 |
| 11 | New Jersey Devils | AT | 82 | 38 | 39 | 5 | 35 | 174 | 209 | 81 |
| 12 | Atlanta Thrashers | SE | 82 | 34 | 36 | 12 | 29 | 223 | 269 | 80 |
| 13 | Ottawa Senators | NE | 82 | 32 | 40 | 10 | 30 | 192 | 250 | 74 |
| 14 | New York Islanders | AT | 82 | 30 | 39 | 13 | 26 | 229 | 264 | 73 |
| 15 | Florida Panthers | SE | 82 | 30 | 40 | 12 | 26 | 195 | 229 | 72 |
bold – qualified for playoffs; y – Won division; z – Placed first in conference (and division)
AT – Atlantic Division, NE – Northeast Division, SE – Southeast Division

## Playoffs

The Capitals won the Southeast Division title for the fourth consecutive season. The Capitals also clinched as the Eastern Conference regular season champions. The Capitals played the New York Rangers in the opening round and won 4–1, but were swept by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Key: Win Loss Clinch Playoff Series Eliminated from playoffs
2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs :

## Player statistics
### Skaters

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/− = Plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes
Regular season :
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM |
| Alexander Ovechkin | 79 | 32 | 53 | 85 | 24 | 41 |
| Nicklas Backstrom | 77 | 18 | 47 | 65 | 24 | 40 |
| Alexander Semin | 65 | 28 | 26 | 54 | 22 | 71 |
| Brooks Laich | 82 | 16 | 32 | 48 | 14 | 46 |
| Mike Knuble | 79 | 24 | 16 | 40 | 10 | 36 |
| John Carlson | 82 | 7 | 30 | 37 | 21 | 44 |
| Marcus Johansson | 69 | 13 | 14 | 27 | 2 | 10 |
| Jason Chimera | 81 | 10 | 16 | 26 | -10 | 64 |
| Mike Green | 49 | 8 | 16 | 24 | 6 | 48 |
| Matt Hendricks | 77 | 9 | 16 | 25 | -2 | 110 |
| Eric Fehr | 52 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 0 | 16 |
| Mathieu Perreault | 35 | 7 | 7 | 14 | -3 | 20 |
| Karl Alzner | 82 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 24 |
| David Steckel$^‡$ | 57 | 5 | 6 | 11 | -3 | 24 |
| Matt Bradley | 61 | 4 | 7 | 11 | -3 | 68 |
| John Erskine | 73 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 1 | 94 |
| Tomas Fleischmann$^‡$ | 23 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 10 |
| Jeff Schultz | 72 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 6 | 12 |
| Boyd Gordon | 60 | 3 | 6 | 9 | -5 | 16 |
| Tom Poti | 21 | 2 | 5 | 7 | -4 | 8 |
| Jason Arnott$^†$ | 11 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 8 |
| Dennis Wideman$^†$ | 14 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6 |
| Tyler Sloan | 33 | 1 | 5 | 6 | -6 | 14 |
| Marco Sturm$^†$ | 18 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 6 |
| Scott Hannan$^†$ | 55 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 28 |
| Jay Beagle | 31 | 2 | 1 | 3 | -2 | 8 |
| Andrew Gordon | 9 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -2 | 0 |
| D. J. King | 16 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -3 | 30 |
| Sean Collins | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Brian Willsie | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Brian Fahey | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -1 | 2 |
| Keith Aucoin | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Playoffs :
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM |
| Alexander Ovechkin | 9 | 5 | 5 | 10 | -1 | 10 |
| Brooks Laich | 9 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 2 |
| Jason Arnott | 9 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 2 |
| Alexander Semin | 9 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 8 |
| Mike Green | 8 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 8 |
| Marcus Johansson | 9 | 2 | 4 | 6 | -2 | 0 |
| Jason Chimera | 9 | 2 | 2 | 4 | -3 | 2 |
| Marco Sturm | 9 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| John Carlson | 9 | 2 | 1 | 3 | -2 | 4 |
| Mike Knuble | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| John Erskine | 9 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| Nicklas Backstrom | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Scott Hannan | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Eric Fehr | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| Karl Alzner | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -4 | 0 |
| Matt Bradley | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -3 | 4 |
| Matt Hendricks | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 4 |
| Boyd Gordon | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 6 |
| Jeff Schultz | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Sean Collins | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

### Goaltenders

Note: GP = Games played; Min = Time on ice (minutes); W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime losses; GA = Goals against; GAA= Goals against average; SA= Shots against; SV= Saves; Sv% = Save percentage; SO= Shutouts
Regular season :
| Player | GP | Min | W | L | OT | GA | GAA | SA | Sv% | SO | G | A | PIM |
| Michal Neuvirth | 48 | 2,689 | 27 | 12 | 4 | 110 | 2.45 | 1,283 | .914 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Semyon Varlamov | 27 | 1,560 | 11 | 9 | 5 | 58 | 2.23 | 759 | .924 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Braden Holtby | 14 | 736 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 22 | 1.79 | 332 | .934 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Playoffs :
| Player | GP | Min | W | L | GA | GAA | SA | Sv% | SO | G | A | PIM |
| Michal Neuvirth | 9 | 590 | 4 | 5 | 23 | 2.34 | 261 | .912 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
$^†$Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Capitals. Stats reflect time with the Capitals only. $^‡$Traded mid-season Bold/italics denotes franchise record

## Awards and records
### Awards

Regular Season :
| Player | Award | Awarded |
| Michal Neuvirth | NHL Rookie of the Month | October 2010 |
| Alexander Semin | NHL Third Star of the Week | November 15, 2010 |
| Semyon Varlamov | NHL First Star of the Week | January 3, 2011 |
| Braden Holtby | NHL First Star of the Week | March 14, 2011 |

### Milestones

Regular Season :
| Player | Milestone | Reached |
| Marcus Johansson | 1st Career NHL Game | October 8, 2010 |
| Alexander Ovechkin | 400th Career NHL Game | October 13, 2010 |
| Brian Fahey | 1st Career NHL Game | October 16, 2010 |
| Marcus Johansson | 1st Career NHL Goal 1st Career NHL Point | October 19, 2010 |
| Brooks Laich | 400th Career NHL Game | October 21, 2010 |
| Michal Neuvirth | 1st Career NHL Shutout | October 27, 2010 |
| Mike Knuble | 900th Career NHL Game | October 30, 2010 |
| Braden Holtby | 1st Career NHL Game 1st Career NHL Win | November 5, 2010 |
| Brooks Laich | 200th Career NHL Point | November 9, 2010 |
| Nicklas Backstrom | 200th Career NHL Assist | November 11, 2010 |
| Eric Fehr | 200th Career NHL Game | November 24, 2010 |
| Brian Fahey | 1st Career NHL Assist 1st Career NHL Point | November 26, 2010 |
| Marcus Johansson | 1st Career NHL Assist | November 26, 2010 |
| Tom Poti | 800th Career NHL Game | December 12, 2010 |
| Jason Chimera | 200th Career NHL Point | December 21, 2010 |
| Andrew Gordon | 1st Career NHL Goal 1st Career NHL Assist 1st Career NHL Point | December 21, 2010 |
| Mike Knuble | 500th Career NHL Point | January 8, 2011 |
| Matt Hendricks | 100th Career NHL Game | January 11, 2011 |
| Nicklas Backstrom | 300th Career NHL Point | January 18, 2011 |
| Karl Alzner | 100th Career NHL Game | January 22, 2011 |
| Scott Hannan | 800th Career NHL Game | January 26, 2011 |
| Matt Bradley | 600th Career NHL Game | February 1, 2011 |
| Nicklas Backstrom | 300th Career NHL Game | February 6, 2011 |
| Jeff Schultz | 300th Career NHL Game | February 25, 2011 |
| Alexander Ovechkin | 300th Career NHL Assist | March 1, 2011 |
| Jason Arnott | 900th Career NHL Point | March 9, 2011 |
| Alexander Ovechkin | 600th Career NHL Point | March 9, 2011 |
| Dennis Wideman | 200th Career NHL Point | March 9, 2011 |
| Braden Holtby | 1st Career NHL Shutout | March 9, 2011 |
| Brooks Laich | 100th Career NHL Goal | March 15, 2011 |
| John Carlson | 100th Career NHL Game | March 31, 2011 |
| Jason Arnott | 400th Career NHL Goal | April 2, 2011 |
| Alexander Ovechkin | 300th Career NHL Goal | April 5, 2011 |

### Milestones

Playoffs :
| Player | Milestone | Reached |
| Marcus Johansson | 1st Career NHL Playoff Game | April 13, 2011 |
| Michal Neuvirth | 1st Career NHL Playoff Game 1st Career NHL Playoff Win | April 13, 2011 |
| Marcus Johansson | 1st Career NHL Playoff Assist 1st Career NHL Playoff Point | April 15, 2011 |
| Michal Neuvirth | 1st Career NHL Playoff Shutout | April 15, 2011 |
| Karl Alzner | 1st Career NHL Playoff Assist 1st Career NHL Playoff Point | April 20, 2011 |
| Marcus Johansson | 1st Career NHL Playoff Goal | April 20, 2011 |
| Sean Collins | 1st Career NHL Playoff Game | May 4, 2011 |
| John Erskine | 1st Career NHL Playoff Goal | May 4, 2011 |

## Transactions

The Capitals have been involved in the following transactions during the 2010–11 season.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details |
| June 26, 2010 | To Toronto Maple Leafs4th-round pick (116th overall) in 2010 – Petter Granberg 5th-round pick in 2010 – Daniel Brodin | To Washington Capitals4th-round pick (112th overall) in 2010 – Philipp Grubauer |
| July 28, 2010 | To St. Louis BluesStefan Della Rovere | To Washington CapitalsD. J. King |
| November 30, 2010 | To Colorado AvalancheTomas Fleischmann | To Washington CapitalsScott Hannan |
| February 28, 2011 | To Florida PanthersJake Hauswirth 3rd-round pick in 2011 – Jonathan Racine | To Washington CapitalsDennis Wideman |
| February 28, 2011 | To New Jersey DevilsDave Steckel 2nd-round pick in 2012 – Raphael Bussieres | To Washington CapitalsJason Arnott |
Player signings
PlayerContract terms
Nicklas Backstrom10 years, $67 million
Marcus Johansson3 years, $2.7 million entry-level contract
Boyd Gordon1 year, $800,000
Jeff Schultz4 years, $11 million
Eric Fehr2 years, $4.4 million
Andrew Gordon1 year, $500,000
Andrew Joudrey1 year, $500,000
Patrick McNeill1 year, $500,000
Zach Miskovic1 year, $500,000
Jay Beagle2 years, $1.025 million
Tomas Fleischmann1 year, $2.6 million
Tom Poti2 years, $5.75 million contract extension
Michal Neuvirth2 years, $2.3 million contract extension
Philipp Grubauer3 years, $1.835 million entry-level contract
Brett Flemming3 years, $1.7 million entry-level contract
John Erskine2 years, $3 million contract extension
Alexander Semin1 year, $6.7 million contract extension
Matt Hendricks2 years, $1.6 million contract extension
Dmitri Orlov3 years, $2.13 million entry-level contract
Mike Knuble1 year, $2 million contract extension :

## Draft picks

Washington's picks at the 2010 NHL Entry Draft in Los Angeles, California.
| Round | # | Player | Position | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 26 | Evgeny Kuznetsov | C | Russia | Traktor Chelyabinsk (KHL) |
| 3 | 86 | Stanislav Galiev | RW | Russia | Saint John Sea Dogs (QMJHL) |
| 4 | 112 (from Phoenix via Toronto) | Philipp Grubauer | G | Germany | Windsor Spitfires (OHL) |
| 5 | 142 (from Phoenix) | Caleb Herbert | C | United States | Bloomington Jefferson High School (USHS-MN) |
| 6 | 176 | Samuel Carrier | RW | Canada | Lewiston Maineiacs (QMJHL) |

## Farm teams
### Hershey Bears

The Capitals' American Hockey League affiliate will remain to be the Hershey Bears in the 2010–11 season.

### South Carolina Stingrays

The South Carolina Stingrays remain Washington's ECHL affiliate for the 2010–11 season.