Brian MacLellan Q&A: Capitals GM on Ovechkin Chasing 700, Team’s Recent Struggles and More
ARLINGTON, Va. — On the first day in exactly four months that the Washington Capitals stood somewhere other than atop the Metro Division, general manager Brian MacLellan sat back in his desk chair and crossed his arms. The topic was his team’s February-long malaise, during which the Capitals were tied for last league-wide in standings points (four), dead last in save percentage (.879), third worst in goals allowed (3.71), and next to last in even-strength goal differential (37.1%) through Tuesday, having relinquished their divisional lead to rival Pittsburgh.
“I'm concerned that we're not finding the right way to play at the right time of the year,” MacLellan said. “A lot of teams are trending that way. And we should be too.”
There is plenty of time to correct course, of course; the Capitals have three more cracks at Sidney Crosby & Co. before the playoffs, while otherwise facing one of the NHL’s easiest remaining schedules. Reinforcements are also soon arriving in the form of rental defenseman Brenden Dillon, acquired from San Jose for draft picks this week, marking the sixth straight season in which MacLellan has swung a deal to bolster Washington’s defensive depth.
As the Capitals practiced downstairs from MacLellan’s office on Wednesday morning, he spoke with SI.com about a variety of topics—from Alex Ovechkin’s ongoing scoring drought on the road to 700 career goals to negotiating with the self-represented Nicklas Backstrom on a new contract, new tracking technology to old video games.
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SI: Are you worried Alex is never going to score again?
BM: [laughing] Yeah, no. No. He'll be fine. Everybody wants him to get to 700, and I think everybody wants it to happen right away. He probably does. I don't know. We've just got to play and let it happen organically, versus trying to make it happen.
SI: It seems like once he neared 700, everyone also started talking about him catching Gretzky, too.
BM: I know. I think it's a distraction for him. Up until that point, the puck was following him around and going into the net, and then it got to the media point, and all of a sudden there's focus on it, and it tightens up around our team until he gets it. It's an easy thing to say versus do, to just let it happen, let's just play and it'll happen organically.
SI: As a fan of the game, would you like to see that chase happen? What do you think it'll be like if and when he gets close to Gretzky?
BM: Yeah, I think it'd be awesome. It'd be fun. I don't know if you'll see another player approach, or have the ability to get close, wherever he ends up. I think it'd be great for the fans, great for the organization, great for the player. I think there are so many positives out of what could happen there.
SI: Do you think it can?
BM: Yeah. I think it can. He shoots the puck well. Stays healthy. We continue to have a good team, which I think is the key. We have playmakers, so he should get his shots. It's possible.
SI: So am I sitting where Nick Backstrom sat during his contract negotiations?
BM [nodding to an empty chair]: He was over in that one.
SI: No else one was here?
BM: No.
SI: What struck you most about how he handled that whole process?
BM: The level of engagement by him. He was pretty confident. He'd done his homework and was pretty certain on what he was looking for in a contract. That's the point I took out of it.
SI: How far was the final contract compared to what he wanted?
BM: We talked different terms, different dollar amounts. Then we ended up finding a range that worked for both.
SI: He's a pretty subtle player. Sounds like the opposite as a negotiator.
BM: He's pretty firm on his beliefs. I respect him for it.
SI: What do you like so much about adding defensemen at the deadline?
BM: I think you need a lot of D. I think you need 8-10 D if you're going to go all the way. You've got to prepare yourself for injuries. You've got to have guys who can come in and have NHL experience. Whether it's depth D or sixth D or seventh D, you try to find guys who can play if there's injuries.
SI: You're not trying to keep a streak alive?
BM: No, I'm not. [laughing] I'm always a little paranoid that we don't have enough defensemen, because you just don't bring young guys up so they can play in the playoffs. So I try to add depth every year.
SI: What do you like about Dillon specifically?
BM: Everything. Size, physicality, the way he complements skill players, team attitude, locker room presence. Compete level. Passion for the game. A lot of positives.
SI: Where do you see him slotting in?
BM: Top four somewhere. I'd like to see him with [John] Carlson. You watch him and [Brent] Burns, they're good together. Similar type pairing. Could use him with [left-shot defenseman Dmitri] Orlov too, push Orlov over [to the right side]. I know Dillon's played a little bit on the right, probably more suited on the left. We'll try a few things and see how it works out. Can never really tell for certain where he fits, but we'll try a few things and it'll sort itself out.
SI: How would you diagnose what's going on with the team defensively right now?
BM: I think it's a team issue. It's not defensemen, it's not goaltending. It's a team issue. We're not committed fully to playing the right way. That's forwards and defense. There's a little cheat in our game, and shouldn't be there this time of the year.
SI: What have you seen in John Carlson's game this season?
BM: I think a gradual improvement every year. He's not always been at this level, but he's improved incrementally every year. His game's gotten better, his maturity's gotten better, the way he plays has gotten better. It's been in increments. I think he's worked at his game, and he is where he is because of how hard he works. I don't think it's been there the whole time. I think it's developed.
SI: Give me a little detail in his game this year that wasn't there in the past.
BM: He's always had the ability to join the rush. That's his biggest strength, that he reads it well and he knows when and he times it well. He's very good offensively that way. And he's not always done it. He's picked his spots when it's done it. This year, he's got more confidence when he's done it. His ability to read the play, find forwards with pucks, go to the net—he's a smart player who has a real good sense of where everybody is on the ice.
SI: Anything on your mind for the GM meetings?
BM: No, no, I don't think so. Nothing publicly.
SI: Would you like to see mandatory wrist guards? There've been a couple incidents of guys recently getting cut.
BM: Yeah, I talked to our equipment guy too, the players just don't want to do it. They want the freedom. They want loose, no restrictions around their hands. I asked our guy, and he said they won't. As soon as one [injury in the NHL] happens, you address it with your equipment guys. We make them available. It's their choice. I'm not going to make it mandatory.
SI: What are you look forward to with regards to tracking?
BM: I don't know. It's something that we need to just get a hold of and see how we can use it, see the data, how do you use the data? I think you get presented with stuff, but with any data source, it's how do you best use it, how do you find things that are important to you within that data? It's going to be crazy. I think it'll be experimental. Can we use it for this? Or what does that say? I'd like to think we can come up with a bunch of questions and try to use it, just build on it.
SI: Is there a specific data point, or question, that you hope tracking will be able to answer?
BM: No, I don't. You use the data based on questions you're asking internally. How do you do this better? Can we use the data to help us do that better?
SI: Last one. Did you know that the Caps are running hockey esports tournaments now?
BM: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
SI: What was the last video game you played?
BM: [laughing] Right, right, that's a good one. Video game? Mario Brothers with the girls. I used to play that all the time. Then they grew out of it, and so did I. We used to play it every day almost. We had an old TV that we'd set up, with the thing.
SI: I'm going to press you. Which thing? Sega?
BM: Was it Sega or Nintendo? One of those things.
SI: How would you do at the EA NHL games?
BM: I don't know. I've never even seen it. I'd like to see it. I grew up with pong. You ever see that? Where the thing goes across? That's got to be the first one. That was in the '80s.
[long pause]
I've come a long way.