# 1988–89 Washington Capitals season

The 1988–89 Washington Capitals season saw the team became the first team other than the Philadelphia Flyers or the New York Islanders to finish in first place in the Patrick Division with a 41–29–10 record for 92 points. However, they lost their first-round playoff match-up to the Philadelphia Flyers, four games to two. This was the first time the Capitals won their division in the regular season and did not do so again until 2000.

## Regular season

The Capitals tied the St. Louis Blues for most shutouts in the league, with 6.

### Final standings

Patrick Division :
| | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| Washington Capitals | 80 | 41 | 29 | 10 | 305 | 259 | 92 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | 80 | 40 | 33 | 7 | 347 | 349 | 87 |
| New York Rangers | 80 | 37 | 35 | 8 | 310 | 307 | 82 |
| Philadelphia Flyers | 80 | 36 | 36 | 8 | 307 | 285 | 80 |
| New Jersey Devils | 80 | 27 | 41 | 12 | 281 | 325 | 66 |
| New York Islanders | 80 | 28 | 47 | 5 | 265 | 325 | 61 |
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

### Record vs. opponents
#### Vs. Wales Conference

1988–89 NHL records :
| Team | NJD | NYI | NYR | PHI | PIT | WSH | Total |
| New Jersey | — | 1–4–2 | 4–3 | 2–5 | 1–4–2 | 4–3 | 12–19–4 |
| N.Y. Islanders | 4–1–2 | — | 2–5 | 1–5–1 | 2–4–1 | 3–4 | 12–19–4 |
| N.Y. Rangers | 3–4 | 5–2 | — | 3–3–1 | 3–3–1 | 3–2–2 | 17–14–4 |
| Philadelphia | 5–2 | 5–1–1 | 3–3–1 | — | 3–4 | 3–4 | 19–14–2 |
| Pittsburgh | 4–1–2 | 4–2–1 | 3–3–1 | 4–3 | — | 4–3 | 19–12–4 |
| Washington | 3–4 | 4–3 | 2–3–2 | 4–3 | 3–4 | — | 16–17–2 |
1988–89 NHL records :
| Team | BOS | BUF | HFD | MTL | QUE | Total |
| New Jersey | 0–2–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 3–11–1 |
| N.Y. Islanders | 1–2 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 6–9–0 |
| N.Y. Rangers | 0–1–2 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 3–10–2 |
| Philadelphia | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–1–1 | 0–1–2 | 2–1 | 6–6–3 |
| Pittsburgh | 1–1–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 5–9–1 |
| Washington | 1–1–1 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 1–1–1 | 2–0–1 | 10–2–3 |

#### Vs. Campbell Conference

1988–89 NHL records :
| Team | CHI | DET | MIN | STL | TOR | Total |
| New Jersey | 2–1 | 2–0–1 | 1–1–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 9–4–2 |
| N.Y. Islanders | 0–3 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 4–11–0 |
| N.Y. Rangers | 2–0–1 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 1–1–1 | 8–5–2 |
| Philadelphia | 3–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 8–7–0 |
| Pittsburgh | 3–0 | 2–0–1 | 1–2 | 1–1–1 | 2–1 | 9–4–2 |
| Washington | 2–1 | 1–1–1 | 1–1–1 | 2–0–1 | 2–1 | 8–4–3 |
1988–89 NHL records :
| Team | CGY | EDM | LAK | VAN | WIN | Total |
| New Jersey | 0–3 | 2–1 | 0–1–2 | 1–1–1 | 0–1–2 | 3–7–5 |
| N.Y. Islanders | 0–2–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 6–8–1 |
| N.Y. Rangers | 1–2 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 9–6–0 |
| Philadelphia | 0–3 | 0–1–2 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 2–0–1 | 3–9–3 |
| Pittsburgh | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 7–8–0 |
| Washington | 0–2–1 | 2–1 | 1–1–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 7–6–2 |

## Schedule and results

| No. | R | Date | Score | Opponent | Record |
| 1 | L | October 7, 1988 | 4–6 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89) | 0–1–0 |
| 2 | W | October 8, 1988 | 6–2 | Buffalo Sabres (1988–89) | 1–1–0 |
| 3 | L | October 11, 1988 | 7–8 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89) | 1–2–0 |
| 4 | L | October 14, 1988 | 1–3 | Toronto Maple Leafs (1988–89) | 1–3–0 |
| 5 | W | October 15, 1988 | 8–5 | New Jersey Devils (1988–89) | 2–3–0 |
| 6 | L | October 19, 1988 | 1–5 | @ New York Rangers (1988–89) | 2–4–0 |
| 7 | L | October 21, 1988 | 1–4 | New York Rangers (1988–89) | 2–5–0 |
| 8 | L | October 23, 1988 | 2–3 | @ Winnipeg Jets (1988–89) | 2–6–0 |
| 9 | W | October 25, 1988 | 4–3 OT | @ Vancouver Canucks (1988–89) | 3–6–0 |
| 10 | T | October 28, 1988 | 2–2 OT | @ Calgary Flames (1988–89) | 3–6–1 |
| 11 | L | October 29, 1988 | 3–4 OT | @ Edmonton Oilers (1988–89) | 3–7–1 |
| 12 | T | November 1, 1988 | 3–3 OT | @ Detroit Red Wings (1988–89) | 3–7–2 |
| 13 | W | November 4, 1988 | 4–2 | New York Islanders (1988–89) | 4–7–2 |
| 14 | L | November 5, 1988 | 3–4 OT | @ New York Islanders (1988–89) | 4–8–2 |
| 15 | W | November 10, 1988 | 4–1 | Quebec Nordiques (1988–89) | 5–8–2 |
| 16 | L | November 12, 1988 | 3–6 | New Jersey Devils (1988–89) | 5–9–2 |
| 17 | W | November 15, 1988 | 4–2 | Minnesota North Stars (1988–89) | 6–9–2 |
| 18 | W | November 18, 1988 | 3–2 | Hartford Whalers (1988–89) | 7–9–2 |
| 19 | W | November 19, 1988 | 3–2 | @ New Jersey Devils (1988–89) | 8–9–2 |
| 20 | W | November 22, 1988 | 4–2 | @ New York Islanders (1988–89) | 9–9–2 |
| 21 | W | November 23, 1988 | 7–6 | New York Islanders (1988–89) | 10–9–2 |
| 22 | L | November 25, 1988 | 3–5 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89) | 10–10–2 |
| 23 | W | November 27, 1988 | 4–3 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1988–89) | 11–10–2 |
| 24 | W | November 29, 1988 | 4–3 | St. Louis Blues (1988–89) | 12–10–2 |
| 25 | L | November 30, 1988 | 4–6 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89) | 12–11–2 |
| 26 | T | December 3, 1988 | 1–1 OT | Boston Bruins (1988–89) | 12–11–3 |
| 27 | W | December 6, 1988 | 4–3 | Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89) | 13–11–3 |
| 28 | L | December 7, 1988 | 1–5 | @ New Jersey Devils (1988–89) | 13–12–3 |
| 29 | T | December 10, 1988 | 0–0 OT | @ Montreal Canadiens (1988–89) | 13–12–4 |
| 30 | W | December 11, 1988 | 6–4 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1988–89) | 14–12–4 |
| 31 | W | December 13, 1988 | 4–1 | @ Quebec Nordiques (1988–89) | 15–12–4 |
| 32 | L | December 15, 1988 | 1–4 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89) | 15–13–4 |
| 33 | W | December 17, 1988 | 6–3 | Winnipeg Jets (1988–89) | 16–13–4 |
| 34 | L | December 19, 1988 | 1–3 | @ New York Rangers (1988–89) | 16–14–4 |
| 35 | W | December 21, 1988 | 4–3 | @ Chicago Blackhawks (1988–89) | 17–14–4 |
| 36 | T | December 23, 1988 | 2–2 OT | New York Rangers (1988–89) | 17–14–5 |
| 37 | W | December 27, 1988 | 4–3 | Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89) | 18–14–5 |
| 38 | W | December 30, 1988 | 5–3 | Buffalo Sabres (1988–89) | 19–14–5 |
| 39 | L | December 31, 1988 | 4–6 | @ New York Islanders (1988–89) | 19–15–5 |
| 40 | W | January 2, 1989 | 8–0 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89) | 20–15–5 |
| 41 | T | January 4, 1989 | 3–3 OT | @ New York Rangers (1988–89) | 20–15–6 |
| 42 | W | January 6, 1989 | 3–0 | Toronto Maple Leafs (1988–89) | 21–15–6 |
| 43 | W | January 7, 1989 | 6–3 | Chicago Blackhawks (1988–89) | 22–15–6 |
| 44 | T | January 10, 1989 | 4–4 OT | @ Quebec Nordiques (1988–89) | 22–15–7 |
| 45 | W | January 11, 1989 | 3–2 | @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1988–89) | 23–15–7 |
| 46 | W | January 13, 1989 | 5–3 | Edmonton Oilers (1988–89) | 24–15–7 |
| 47 | L | January 15, 1989 | 3–4 | Boston Bruins (1988–89) | 24–16–7 |
| 48 | L | January 20, 1989 | 5–6 OT | New Jersey Devils (1988–89) | 24–17–7 |
| 49 | L | January 22, 1989 | 3–4 | Detroit Red Wings (1988–89) | 24–18–7 |
| 50 | T | January 24, 1989 | 4–4 OT | Los Angeles Kings (1988–89) | 24–18–8 |
| 51 | W | January 26, 1989 | 1–0 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89) | 25–18–8 |
| 52 | T | January 28, 1989 | 4–4 OT | @ St. Louis Blues (1988–89) | 25–18–9 |
| 53 | T | January 30, 1989 | 4–4 OT | @ Minnesota North Stars (1988–89) | 25–18–10 |
| 54 | W | February 1, 1989 | 4–3 OT | @ New York Rangers (1988–89) | 26–18–10 |
| 55 | W | February 3, 1989 | 1–0 | Hartford Whalers (1988–89) | 27–18–10 |
| 56 | L | February 5, 1989 | 1–3 | Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89) | 27–19–10 |
| 57 | L | February 10, 1989 | 6–7 OT | Los Angeles Kings (1988–89) | 27–20–10 |
| 58 | L | February 11, 1989 | 1–2 | Calgary Flames (1988–89) | 27–21–10 |
| 59 | W | February 14, 1989 | 5–3 | @ St. Louis Blues (1988–89) | 28–21–10 |
| 60 | L | February 15, 1989 | 4–7 | @ Chicago Blackhawks (1988–89) | 28–22–10 |
| 61 | W | February 17, 1989 | 8–2 | @ Edmonton Oilers (1988–89) | 29–22–10 |
| 62 | L | February 19, 1989 | 2–3 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1988–89) | 29–23–10 |
| 63 | L | February 20, 1989 | 2–6 | @ Calgary Flames (1988–89) | 29–24–10 |
| 64 | W | February 22, 1989 | 7–2 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1988–89) | 30–24–10 |
| 65 | L | February 28, 1989 | 3–4 | Minnesota North Stars (1988–89) | 30–25–10 |
| 66 | W | March 3, 1989 | 4–2 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89) | 31–25–10 |
| 67 | W | March 5, 1989 | 3–0 | Vancouver Canucks (1988–89) | 32–25–10 |
| 68 | L | March 8, 1989 | 2–3 | @ Montreal Canadiens (1988–89) | 32–26–10 |
| 69 | W | March 9, 1989 | 7–2 | @ Boston Bruins (1988–89) | 33–26–10 |
| 70 | W | March 11, 1989 | 4–2 | New York Rangers (1988–89) | 34–26–10 |
| 71 | W | March 14, 1989 | 6–3 | Winnipeg Jets (1988–89) | 35–26–10 |
| 72 | W | March 17, 1989 | 4–1 | Montreal Canadiens (1988–89) | 36–26–10 |
| 73 | W | March 18, 1989 | 8–2 | @ Hartford Whalers (1988–89) | 37–26–10 |
| 74 | W | March 22, 1989 | 5–4 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89) | 38–26–10 |
| 75 | W | March 24, 1989 | 6–1 | Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89) | 39–26–10 |
| 76 | W | March 26, 1989 | 3–2 | New York Islanders (1988–89) | 40–26–10 |
| 77 | L | March 28, 1989 | 4–5 | @ New York Islanders (1988–89) | 40–27–10 |
| 78 | L | March 30, 1989 | 4–5 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89) | 40–28–10 |
| 79 | W | April 1, 1989 | 6–4 | New Jersey Devils (1988–89) | 41–28–10 |
| 80 | L | April 2, 1989 | 4–7 | @ New Jersey Devils (1988–89) | 41–29–10 |

## Playoffs
### Round 1: (P1) Washington Capitals vs. (P4) Philadelphia Flyers

* Philadelphia won series 4–2

## Player statistics
### Regular season
#### Scoring

| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | PPG | SHG | GWG |
| Mike Ridley | C | 80 | 41 | 48 | 89 | 49 | 17 | 16 | 0 | 9 |
| Geoff Courtnall | LW | 79 | 42 | 38 | 80 | 112 | 11 | 16 | 0 | 6 |
| Bengt-Ake Gustafsson | RW | 72 | 18 | 51 | 69 | 18 | 13 | 5 | 4 | 6 |
| Scott Stevens | D | 80 | 7 | 61 | 68 | 225 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 3 |
| Dave Christian | RW | 80 | 34 | 31 | 65 | 12 | 2 | 16 | 1 | 1 |
| Dale Hunter | C | 80 | 20 | 37 | 57 | 219 | -3 | 9 | 0 | 3 |
| Mike Gartner | RW | 56 | 26 | 29 | 55 | 71 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 1 |
| Kelly Miller | LW | 78 | 19 | 21 | 40 | 45 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Kevin Hatcher | D | 62 | 13 | 27 | 40 | 101 | 19 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| Larry Murphy | D | 65 | 7 | 29 | 36 | 70 | -5 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Stephen Leach | RW | 74 | 11 | 19 | 30 | 94 | -4 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Michal Pivonka | C | 52 | 8 | 19 | 27 | 30 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Rod Langway | D | 76 | 2 | 19 | 21 | 65 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bobby Gould | RW | 75 | 5 | 13 | 18 | 65 | -2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Lou Franceschetti | RW | 63 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 123 | -4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dino Ciccarelli | RW | 11 | 12 | 3 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| John Druce | RW | 48 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 62 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Grant Ledyard | D | 61 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 43 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Mike Millar | RW | 18 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 4 | -4 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| Calle Johansson | D | 12 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Felix | D | 21 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Neil Sheehy | D | 72 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 179 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Doug Wickenheiser | C | 16 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Peter Sundstrom | LW | 35 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 12 | -5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Yvon Corriveau | LW | 33 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 62 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bill Houlder | D | 8 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jim Thomson | RW | 14 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 53 | -3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bob Rouse | D | 13 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 36 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kent Carlson | D | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Scot Kleinendorst | D | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Clint Malarchuk | G | 42 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Pete Peeters | G | 35 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Don Beaupre | G | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shawn Cronin | D | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

#### Goaltending

| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SO | SA | SV | SV% |
| Pete Peeters | 1854 | 33 | 20 | 7 | 3 | 88 | 2.85 | 4 | 790 | 702 | .889 |
| Clint Malarchuk | 2428 | 42 | 16 | 18 | 7 | 141 | 3.48 | 1 | 1145 | 1004 | .877 |
| Don Beaupre | 578 | 11 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 28 | 2.91 | 1 | 269 | 241 | .896 |
| Team: | 4860 | 80 | 41 | 29 | 10 | 257 | 3.17 | 6 | 2204 | 1947 | .883 |

### Playoffs
#### Scoring

| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | PPG | SHG | GWG |
| Geoff Courtnall | LW | 6 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Dino Ciccarelli | RW | 6 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Bengt-Ake Gustafsson | RW | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Kevin Hatcher | D | 6 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Scott Stevens | D | 6 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Ridley | C | 6 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Michal Pivonka | C | 6 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Dale Hunter | C | 6 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Calle Johansson | D | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Bob Rouse | D | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dave Christian | RW | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Bobby Gould | RW | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lou Franceschetti | RW | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Stephen Leach | RW | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Kelly Miller | LW | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Chris Felix | D | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Yvon Corriveau | LW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| John Druce | RW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rod Langway | D | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Pete Peeters | G | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Neil Sheehy | D | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Doug Wickenheiser | C | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

#### Goaltending

| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | GA | GAA | SO | SA | SV | SV% |
| Pete Peeters | 359 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 24 | 4.01 | 0 | 164 | 140 | .854 |
| Team: | 359 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 24 | 4.01 | 0 | 164 | 140 | .854 |
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = Plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG=Power-play goals; SHG=Short-handed goals; GWG=Game-winning goals  MIN=Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; SO = Shutouts; SA=Shots against; SV=Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

## Draft picks

Washington's draft picks at the 1988 NHL Entry Draft held at the Montreal Forum in Montreal.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 15 | Reggie Savage | Canada | Victoriaville Tigres (QMJHL) |
| 2 | 36 | Tim Taylor | Canada | London Knights (OHL) |
| 2 | 41 | Wade Bartley | Canada | Dauphin Kings (MJHL) |
| 3 | 57 | Duane Derksen | Canada | Winkler Flyers (MJHL) |
| 4 | 78 | Rob Krauss | Canada | Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL) |
| 6 | 120 | Dmitri Khristich | Soviet Union | Sokil Kyiv (USSR) |
| 7 | 141 | Keith Jones | Canada | Niagara Falls Canucks (NDJBHL) |
| 7 | 144 | Brad Schlegel | Canada | London Knights (WHL) |
| 8 | 162 | Todd Hilditch | Canada | Penticton Knights (BCJHL) |
| 9 | 183 | Petr Pavlas | Czechoslovakia | Dukla Trenčín (Czechoslovakia) |
| 10 | 192 | Mark Sorensen | Canada | University of Michigan (CCHA) |
| 10 | 204 | Claudio Scremin | Canada | University of Maine (Hockey East) |
| 11 | 225 | Chris Venkus | United States | Western Michigan University (CCHA) |
| 12 | 246 | Ron Pascucci | United States | Belmont Hill School (USHS-MA) |
| S | 20 | Harry Mews | Canada | Northeastern University (Hockey East) |