Regular Season:
Playoffs:
Key Stat: In only 69 games Lars Eller registered the highest offensive output (39 points) of his NHL career (11 seasons). 31 of those points (79%) were tallied while skating at five aside.
The Good: For the second straight season Eller registered a new career high in time on ice (17:01) because of his value to the organization. Eller rotated between first, second, and third line center seamlessly all season based on injuries and performances. With the additional time Eller was effective, registering more takeaways (44) than giveaways (41) for the first time in his Capitals career. Eller led all Washington skaters in faceoff win percentage (51.9%) and trailed only Nicklas Backstrom in faceoffs taken by fifteen (1033).
The Bad: In Washington’s five game series against the Islanders Eller registered a -5 rating in just four contests. Eller made his series debut in the second game of the series and got rocked by the Islanders. He was on the ice for four of their five goals and as the series continued Washington was unable to overcome the loss of Backstrom. A single assist against the Lightning during the Return-To-Play was the only point Eller registered in the second season.
The Video: While acknowledging his OTGWG against the Sharks this shot against the Penguins deserves your admiration again.
The Charts:
The Discussion: Eller performed perfectly as a third line center with upside during the regular season but when asked to elevate his game in the postseason the results were less than stellar. Was this season Eller’s peak? Can he eclipse 40 points in a season?
Other Eller Season Reviews: Coming soon!
The Vote: Rate Eller below on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential and your expectations for the season – if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.