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Washington Capitals: Analyzing John Carlson’s case for the Norris Trophy

By Naftali Clinton

WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 15: John Carlson #74 of the Washington Capitals and T.J. Oshie #77 of the Washington Capitals look on against the Montreal Canadiens during the first period at Capital One Arena on November 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 15: John Carlson #74 of the Washington Capitals and T.J. Oshie #77 of the Washington Capitals look on against the Montreal Canadiens during the first period at Capital One Arena on November 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /
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Washington Capitals defenseman John Carlson is having one of the best seasons we’ve ever seen from a defenseman. What are his chances of winning the Norris Trophy?

After winning the Stanley Cup just two seasons ago, one might think the Washington Capitals might go a bit downhill after that. But the opposite happened, they are actually enjoying much success. One of the main reasons for this success is John Carlson.

He started off the season red-hot and hasn’t looked back. He now has 11 goals and an astounding 31 assists, in only 30 games.

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A big reason why he has so many assists is that the Capitals have for a long time been an offensive dynamo, so they generate a lot of scoring opportunities. They have a lot of players stepping up to the plate this year in terms of offensive numbers, including Jakub Vrana, Tom Wilson, and T.J. Oshie putting up impressive numbers.

Another huge statistic for Carlson’s season is that he’s currently a +21 in plus/minus, which ranks first in the league in that category.

It seems at this point he’s a full head and shoulders ahead of any other defencemen in the league.

Somehow, he is already 14 points ahead of Dougie Hamilton, who is having a career year in his own right. He also sits among the league leaders in points and points per game, as he is 6th in points and 7th in points per game.

He is of course tied for second in power-play points, as the Capitals power play is rumbling on with a 24.2% which ranks 5th in the NHL.

The Caps are so good at making a system and keeping to it. This was started by Barry Trotz and continued by Todd Reirden. One of the main reasons big stars like Ovechkin, Kuznetsov and Carlson have all had career years in the past few seasons is because of a very well-made system by the coaching staff.

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As of now, there isn’t anyone in the league who can catch Carlson is his play. There’s no way he doesn’t win the Norris if it were given now.

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