Most Likely to Succeed: Washington Capitals

Most likely to Succeed is our newest series which points out one player from every team and explains why that player is poised to increase their point totals. While some teams may have more than one player likely to breakout and some none, we will focus on the ones who actually should improve with a full healthy season. File this article under a sleeper-type but sleepers would not be called that if people saw them coming.

A young talented Russian on an offensive powerhouse seems to be a match made in heaven.  When you consider this season to be Alexander Semin’s walk year, acquiring him gets even smarter.

Let us list the three reasons why his year could be even bigger than last season’s impressive 40-44-84 season.

1. His goals have increased in three straight seasons.  A pretty tell-tale sign of a superstar as he has the tools to succeed.  Before those three seasons he potted a healthy 28, his average over those three seasons is 33.
2. Walk year simply cannot be ignored.  Semin will be playing for a contract and has the chance to be pursued by any team.  Would he leave the team for a Kovalchuk-type deal?  Who knows, but a strong season could give him a good shot.
3. Powerhouse.  The President’s Trophy winning Capitals can score with him or score without him.  If he can manage to stay healthy, something he seems to be getting better at, he will reap the benefits of a good team once again.  He also really helped shoulder the load when key players went down with injuries; although Brooks Laich did the same when Semin missed some time.  Powerhouses hold an endless set of possibilities when it comes to scoring.