2005–06 Washington Capitals season
| 2005–06 Washington Capitals | |
|---|---|
| Division | 5th Southeast |
| Conference | 14th Eastern |
| 2005–06 record | 29–41–12 |
| Goals for | 237 |
| Goals against | 306 |
| Team information | |
| General Manager | George McPhee |
| Coach | Glen Hanlon |
| Captain | Jeff Halpern |
| Alternate captains |
Dainius Zubrus Brian Sutherby Brendan Witt |
| Arena | MCI Center |
| Team leaders | |
| Goals | Alexander Ovechkin (52) |
| Assists | Alexander Ovechkin (54) |
| Points | Alexander Ovechkin (106) |
| Penalties in minutes | Brendan Witt (141) |
| Wins | Olaf Kolzig (20) |
| Goals against average | Brent Johnson (3.44) |
The Washington Capitals season involved Alexander Ovechkin's rookie season. Following the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Alexander Ovechkin played his first game with the Washington Capitals on October 5, 2005, scoring two goals in a 3–2 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets. In a shootout against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, Ovechkin scored the game-winning goal in a 5–4 win. The Capitals finished the 2005–06 season in fifth and last place of the Southeast Division with a 29–41–12 campaign, having 12 more points than the 2003–04 season, good for 27th out of the 30 NHL teams. Yet the team played close in every game, playing in 42 one-goal games, although losing two-thirds of those games. A notable first was that Washington area native Jeff Halpern was named captain of the hometown Capitals. At the 2006 trade deadline, March 8, Witt was traded to the Nashville Predators. Several Capitals achieved career highs in several offensive categories, including Matt Pettinger and Dainius Zubrus, who both achieved career highs in all offensive categories. Jeff Halpern set a new career high in assists for the second consecutive season.
Many longtime Capitals had career years, with Dainius Zubrus netting 57 points, Halpern having a career-best 33 assists, Matt Pettinger putting in a career-best 20-goal, 38-point effort and seven others on the relatively young team topping 20 points for the first time. Two notable landmarks were also hit by Capitals, as the team's longest tenured Capital, Olaf Kolzig, won his 250th game in goal and Andrew Cassels became the 204th player to play 1,000 games, although he did not finish out his season with the team.
The Capitals were the most penalized team during the regular season, with 550 power-play opportunities against. They also allowed the most power-play goals, with 116, and the most short-handed goals, with 18.
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