Dubois given clean slate with Capitals

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This article was published 28/03/2025 (194 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A weekly lap around the NHL by Free Press hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe

Spencer Carbery wasn’t about to be bogged down by what happened in the past with Pierre-Luc Dubois.

Of course, the head coach of the Washington Capitals had interest in learning about why things had gone sideways in three other organizations for the talented centre.

After the former Winnipeg Jets pivot was acquired by the Capitals in an off-season deal with the Los Angeles Kings for goalie Darcy Kuemper, Carbery let it be known he not only believed in Dubois but would be counting on him to deliver in a variety of important situations.

“I didn’t really focus on what had happened, we hardly talked about Winnipeg, L.A. or Columbus,” Carbery said earlier this week before the Capitals faced the Jets in an entertaining matchup between the top two teams in the NHL.

“I want to learn about what happened and I wanted him to share his experiences there because that makes you who you are as a player, but it was very much so — a clean slate is sort of an easy way of putting it.

“We knew he had a great skillset. He’s a big centreman, he’s had success in this league and we felt he could be a big part of the future in our organization. He was going to get an opportunity and we needed him to do this, this and this. We think this is going to be a great fit. We got on the same page really early, he fit in with our group and he felt like he was being given responsibility and opportunity to thrive with what he does well. And then you just roll with it.”

That’s precisely what Dubois has been doing, quickly leaving the disappointment of last season in the rear-view mirror.

Clearly, things didn’t work out the way Dubois had envisioned with the Kings, who acquired him from the Jets after he had agreed to an eight-year extension worth US$68 million and carries an AAV of US$8.5 million.

Dubois’ production dropped to 16 goals and 40 points in 82 games with the Kings, but it was his lower engagement level that set off alarm bells for many observers.

“We knew he had a great skillset. He’s a big centreman, he’s had success in this league and we felt he could be a big part of the future in our organization.”–Head coach Spencer Carbery

That the Kings were ready to give up on Dubois one year into his long-term extension spoke volumes about how things needed to change for the talented but sometimes enigmatic player.

Carbery might not be taking any credit for helping to unlock the potential that made Dubois the third overall pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, but he deserves some.

Ultimately, the player must perform on the ice and implement the game plan, but it’s obvious Carbery put him in a position to succeed.

He’s also been blown away by his ability to recall plays and self-assess in video sessions.

“He’s such a coachable (guy) and such a smart hockey player,” said Carbery. “He’s the type of player that when you talk to him and go through film with him and his individual clips, he knows exactly every single thing that happened on that previous night. Every spot on the ice, every player he went up against, every puck touch that he had. He can recite it for you before you even see it.

“You might think that’s nothing, but as a coach, it tells you how intuitive he is and how much he cares about everything he does on the ice. I want to coach people like that all day long because he cares and he wants to be in the right spot. He wants to put pucks to good areas and he wants to get better. I think he’ll continue to grow.”

Often skating alongside Tom Wilson, Dubois is back to playing with a high motor. He’s agitating opponents and using his strength for puck protection and winning battles all over the ice.

“He’s such a coachable (guy) and such a smart hockey player.”–Head coach Spencer Carbery

It hasn’t hindered his offensive game either, as Dubois is already at 18 goals (including four game-winners) and 61 points — which leaves him two points shy of the career high he set with the Jets during the 2022-23 season.

“We’ve got a lot of guys that you could argue would be our MVPs, but he’s right up there,” said Carbery. “He’s been instrumental in our success. He’s able to play against other teams’ top lines and chipping in offensively and doing a great job. He’s been an every-situation player for us. He’s played at a high level all year long. It’s been consistent from Game 1 to where we are. It hasn’t really dipped.

“I’ve deployed him and given him the toughest matchups I possibly can every single night and he thrives in them and appreciates them and wants it. I don’t know another way to describe it. He’s been instrumental to our success this year.”

Credit also goes to the Capitals scouting staff, as they also had success bringing in Dylan Strome as an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2022 on a one-year, show-me contract.

Strome has since signed a five-year extension worth US$25 million and he certainly appreciates what Dubois has brought to the organization.

“He’s been incredible,” said Strome, noting Dubois has probably been the Capitals’ most consistent player this season. “The way that he holds onto the puck, wins faceoffs, plays on the power play, four-on-four and in all situations. I don’t think our management or our coaches could have asked for anything more from him this year.

“He’s hard to play against and those are the guys that you win with in the playoffs. He’s a huge part of the reason why we’ve had success this year.”

 

AROUND THE GLASS

Classy move by Ovechkin and the Capitals to meet at centre ice Thursday night in St. Paul to shake the hand of future Hall of Famer Marc-Andre Fleury in what could be the final meeting of his career.

With Fleury set to retire at the end of the season, Ovechkin felt it was important to show the guy affectionately known as Flower the type of respect that his career warrants.

Despite some heated battles with Fleury over the years when he was a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins, this was another great example of the type of bonds that are created through competition.

Fleury is universally loved and he would be a natural to stay involved in the game if that’s something he wants to do, whether that’s as a coach, broadcaster or executive, given his passion for the game and outgoing personality.

 

PRAISE FOR HISCHIER

It’s almost the time of year when ballots will be going out to members of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association to vote on a number of NHL awards, which also means that it’s a good time to get some insight from players, coaches and executives on certain players you don’t see all that often in the Eastern Conference.

With that in mind, former Jets defenceman Brenden Dillon made a case Friday for New Jersey Devils captain Nico Hischier to be a candidate for the Selke Trophy as the best defensive forward.

“A guy that doesn’t get enough credit for how complete a player that he is,” said Dillon, whose club was in town to take on the Jets.

“Being in the Western Conference for most of my career, he’s a guy that you see the highlight-reel goals and you see that he’s a captain at a young age and all of this, but you kind of get to know the person. You see the practice habits, you see how he takes a million faceoffs and plays against other team’s top lines. He’s a guy you want on the ice at six-on-five and five-on-six. One of those guys that is only growing and only getting better.

“You kind of forget that he’s as young (26) as he is. A fantastic player, for sure.”

 

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

X and Bluesky: @WiebesWorld

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

X and Bluesky: @mikemcintyrewpg