I’m not going out on a limb when I say I’ve never seen anyone celebrate winning a Stanley Cup quite like the Washington Capitals. Don’t get me wrong, every team that has won the Cup as had their little traditions and fun with it. It’s just that the Washington Capitals have turned it into the traveling a Frat House. To a certain extent, it’s understandable for an organization that you could put the ‘long suffering’ tag on and a city starved for a winner. Don’t believe me? Revisit all the photos from the parade/celebration and tell me Washington DC and the surrounding areas didn’t feel like the boulder had been finally taken off its back.
But now comes the hard part. Repeating. The Washington Capitals weren’t hastily set up. There was a brilliant plan set in place that allowed the organization to keep it’s entire core under the, sometimes unforgiving, NHL salary cap. In other words, the Capitals should be able to stand up to the second level of high stakes pressure: going back to back.
Winning one Stanley Cup is as hard as winning a title in any other professional sport. That’s why the Caps are in a beautiful situation. They didn’t have to sell off players nor were they a team of rentals. They have what some would argue is the most gifted scorer (Alex Ovechkin) we’ve seen in a generation and a bevy of young stars. The organization was set up so well, letting Stanley Cup winning coach, Barry Trotz, didn’t cause anyone to blink an eye.
When you look at all the greats, especially in hockey, being a dynasty has been the goal. Whether its the 80’s New York Islanders and Edmonton Oilers, Mario Lemieux’s Pittsburgh Penguins, Detroit Red Wings, Sidney Crosby’s Pittsburgh Penguin’s etc., one hasn’t been enough.
This is the challenge the Washington Caps should want to take on. So put down the beer and shelve the frat house behavior. Become a dynasty. Dare to truly be great…. or is that who you want to be?
