How Are The Capitals' Regular Scratches Faring Without Playing Time? Dylan McIlrath Offers Insight
ARLINGTON, V.A. — Dylan McIlrath wasn't oblivious to his role when he made the full-time jump up to the NHL this season, knowing that his games with the Washington Capitals would be few and far between as a seventh defenseman.
That doesn't make the life of a regular healthy scratch any easier, though.
"I think the hardest part is not being in the locker room on game day, getting the juices flowing with the teammates," McIlrath said. "Having that camraderie on the ice and in the room, that's what I miss the most."
McIlrath has appeared in just 11 games for Washington this season, spending most of his time watching from the press box with the blue line having been mostly healthy over the course of the regular season. He last played back on Dec. 23 against the Boston Bruins, skating just 1:45 minutes as the team dressed 11 forwards and seven defensemen. His last legitimate game was on Nov. 3 against the Carolina Hurricanes; even then, he logged just 10:47 minutes of ice itme.
"Luckily I got in games early to get my feet wet early. This would be tough if I hadn't had a game yet," McIlrath said. "I can lean on knowing that i can play at this level, just with having ome success early and feeling comfortable, so taht gives me confidence if and when my time comes."
McIlrath, who captained the AHL's Hershey Bears to back-to-back Calder Cups the last two seasons, has regularly been an extra, along with Alex Alexeyev and Jakub Vrana, who finally made his return to the lineup on Thursday with Tom Wilson ill.
McIlrath has been scratched for 25 straight games, and Alexeyev has had the longest stretch of scratches, having not played since Nov. 8 (46 games).
Going through those long periods of time between playing, McIlrath said he and his fellow scratches have been able to lean on one another to make the experience easier.
"There's good days and bad days during these stretches, but we just try to keep our spirits up. We try to have fun with each other, making sure there's a balance of having fun but staying competitive on the ice with each other and pushing each other," McIlrath said, adding, "We're trying to just mentally be there for each other, and it's been good. We've gotten a lot closer."
With 23 games left in the regular season, McIlrath said that he's okay with where things stand regarding his role, and appreciates coach Spencer Carbery for remaining honest and transparent in the process. That said, he's doing what he can to make sure he is ready when his number is called.
"It's just the situation; I'm at peace with it. It doesn't make it easy, but it's something that I know I just got to focus on myself. I've been at it long enough to be a pro, and I know I got to be ready when my time (comes)," McIlrath said, adding, "So (I'm) really taking advantage of a full team practice and making sure I'm keeping that pace as the other guys and treating it as if it were a game."
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Montreal had some of the most ELC help in the NHL thanks to Lane Hutson's Calder Trophy season and Kaiden Guhle's reliable top-four play, not to mention Emil Heineman and Jayden Struble chipping in as quality depth pieces on their first contracts. This exercise doesn't include goaltenders either, otherwise Sam Montembeault ($3.15 million cap hit) would have been on this list as significantly outperforming his contract. The last management regime also handed out bloated, inefficient contracts to several veterans such as Josh Anderson, Brendan Gallagher and Christian Dvorak. Among non-ELC players, Nick Suzuki and Jake Evans' contracts stood out. Suzuki scored a career-high 89 points — he's officially arrived as premier No. 1 center and is locked up long-term under $8 million annually. Evans thrived as a speedy middle-six center with high-end defensive acumen while also scoring 36 points at a team-friendly $1.7 million AAV. 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He accomplished all of that while making only $6.5 million against the cap. His center, Anthony Cirelli, found a new offensive gear this season, too, scoring 27 goals and 59 points. Advertisement Nikita Kucherov and Victor Hedman are still bona fide stars at team-friendly rates. Best contract in 2024-25: Jake McCabe Jake McCabe and Chris Tanev were lights out together as the Leafs' de facto top pair. They absorbed very difficult matchups against top lines and tons of defensive zone starts, but still decisively won their minutes. The Leafs generated more scoring chances than they surrendered and outscored opponents by 12 goals during the McCabe/Tanev pair's five-on-five shifts, thanks to an incredible 1.83 goals-against-per-60 rate. Both defensemen were excellent value for their contracts, but McCabe's tiny $2 million cap hit (which was reduced because the Blackhawks retained half of his cap hit when traded) netted a bit more surplus value. Bobby McMann's 20 goals were a nice bonus for the Leafs at $1.35 million, although his scoring completely dried up in the playoffs. Pontus Holmberg and Steven Lorentz were useful, defensively oriented depth contributors at dirt-cheap prices. Best contract in 2024-25: Michael Kesselring Utah's right-side defense was hammered in the first half by injuries to Sean Durzi and John Marino. That forced sophomore defenseman Michael Kesselring into an elevated top-four role. Kesselring excelled, with the Mammoth controlling 54 percent of scoring chances and 56 percent of goals during his five-on-five shifts this season. He struggled at times in the second half defensively, but he displayed clear top-four potential for most of the year, which is highly valuable at a $1.4 million cap hit. Barrett Hayton scored a career-high 20 goals and 46 points, in addition to boasting very good defensive metrics, at a bargain $2.65 million AAV. Clayton Keller exploded for 90 points but isn't paid like a bona fide superstar. Advertisement Best contract in 2024-25: Quinn Hughes Quinn Hughes was a one-man show, carrying a weak supporting cast all season. Hughes led the Canucks in scoring by a whopping 26 points as a defenseman, despite missing 14 games because of injuries. Hughes is a bona fide superstar making less than $8 million against the cap for two more seasons. Pius Suter scored 25 goals and 46 points as a key middle-six center. He also defended at an above-average level and was a first-unit fixture on Vancouver's elite penalty kill. He provided that all-around value for just a $1.6 million AAV — he may triple that cap hit in free agency this summer. Kiefer Sherwood broke out with 19 goals and 40 points. Nearly all of that production was at even strength, with Sherwood leading all Vancouver forwards in five-on-five points. He was also a wrecking ball on the forecheck, breaking the NHL's record for most hits in a single season. He was worth more than double the $1.5 million cap hit he carried this season. In the final year of his $1.1 million contract, Nils Höglander still managed to deliver surplus value despite an up-and-down campaign. Höglander had a nightmare first half but was one of Vancouver's best wingers from January onward, especially from a play-driving perspective. Tyler Myers has his flaws, but he was mostly solid again in a second-pair role, outperforming the modest $3 million cap hit he's on. Best contract in 2024-25: Brayden McNabb Brayden McNabb was one of the league's best shutdown defensemen in the regular season at only a $2.85 million cap hit. McNabb impressively suppressed opponents' ability to generate shots and scoring chances despite playing difficult matchup minutes, with the Golden Knights surrendering just 1.79 goals against per 60 during his five-on-five shifts. Advertisement Victor Olofsson injected crucial secondary scoring (15 goals in 56 games) at a dirt-cheap $1.075 million rate. Shea Theodore is a star — he scored a career-high 57 points in 67 games in the final year of a sweetheart contract that cost $5.2 million against the cap. Ivan Barbashev is streaky and didn't produce enough in the playoffs, but he scored a 27-goal, 60-point pace in the regular season. He was a mostly effective top-line winger for Jack Eichel, making a reasonable $5 million. Brett Howden broke out with 23 goals for $1.9 million. Best contract in 2024-25: Aliaksei Protas Aliaksei Protas and Connor McMichael's breakouts helped revitalize the Capitals' top-six forward group. Protas went from not even cracking 10 goals in 2023-24 to scoring 30 in 76 games this season. He also significantly boosted the Caps' ability to control two-way play. With another four years left at a $3.375 million cap hit, Protas is on one of the best contracts in the NHL. McMichael, meanwhile, was a game-breaking offensive driver with his speed and skill. He piled up 26 goals and 57 points despite not even playing on the Caps' top power-play unit, at a steal of a $2.1 million AAV. Tom Wilson turned back the clock, scoring 33 goals and 65 points while also driving strong defensive results in a tough matchups role. Nic Dowd is one of the most underrated bottom-six centers in the NHL. He's elite defensively and on the penalty kill and chipped in with 14 goals. Jakob Chychrun also narrowly missed the cut for this list. He was a home-run acquisition, scoring 20 goals from the blue line at a bargain $4.6 million cap hit. Best contract in 2024-25: Dylan Samberg The Jets had a near-endless supply of surplus value contracts. Dylan Samberg led the way; he broke out as a top-four star on Winnipeg's blue line. He drove elite defensive results, crushed it on the penalty kill and displayed enough puck-moving and secondary offensive skill to profile like a legitimate No. 2 defenseman on a contending team. Samberg accomplished all of that for just $1.4 million against the cap. Advertisement Josh Morrissey finished fourth in Norris Trophy voting. He still has three years left at a bargain $6.25 million AAV. Up front, Kyle Connor, Gabriel Vilardi and Nikolaj Ehlers represented a trio of terrific contracts in Winnipeg's top six. Connor, in particular, stood out by scoring 97 points at a hair over $7.1 million. (Top photo of Aliaksei Protas and Jordan Martinook: Patrick Smith / Getty Images)
