Capitals Can Bully Their Way to a Metropolitan Division Title in 2026-27

There was a clear focus on adding players with size and strength to the Washington Capitals’ roster this offseason. With the addition of Alex Tuch this summer, the Capitals are expected to feature seven players measuring at least 6-foot-4 and 200+ pounds.

For context, the average NHL skater during the 2024-25 season checked in between 6-foot-1 and 6-foot-2 and approximately 200 pounds, per analysis from The Athletic’s James Mirtle (from ‘Sizing up the NHL: Analyzing 2024-25 teams by age, height, weight and nationality,’ The Athletic, Oct. 17, 2024).

Most NHL teams will have to face the Capitals only a few times in the new 84-game schedule. However, teams in the Metropolitan Division face a stark challenge against a beefy team next fall. Here is a look at Washington’s roster and how it stacks up physically against the seven other teams in the division. 

Capitals Feature Heaviest Group in the Metropolitan Division

Using the team’s roster from NHL.com, the average weight of the 14 Capitals forwards listed is 208 pounds. Aliaksei Protas, a 6-foot-6, 250-pound giant, continues to improve as his ice time increases. Meanwhile, his carbon copy of a younger sibling (Ilya Protas) got his first glimpse of NHL life at the end of the 2025-26 season. “Little Pro” adds another 6-foot-6, 225-pound force into the bottom of the Capitals lineup after scoring at nearly a point-per-game level with 66 points in 69 games for the Hershey Bears (AHL) last season. 

Alex Ovechkin might not be the human wrecking ball he once was at 6-foot-3, 238 pounds, but he can still be a physical menace when he wants to be. Meanwhile, Tom Wilson still plays like there is a fire raging under his helmet at 6-foot-4, 225 pounds. Both players reached the 30-goal plateau last season. The new Capitals should help to take some of the offensive load off the shoulders of Washington’s All-Star duo.

Finally, centers Dylan Strome and Pierre-Luc Dubois, both skating at 6-foot-4, bring strength down the middle. Boone Jenner (6-foot-2) could play a critical support role inside the middle-six as a utility winger, much like he did during his time with the Columbus Blue Jackets. 

The defensive crew features three skaters slightly above average in height at 6-foot-2 and 215+ pounds: Jakob Chychrun, Martin Fehervary, and Matt Roy. Meanwhile, 6-foot-7 free agent acquisition Vincent Desharnais adds additional size and sandpaper on the backend. 

According to Elite Prospects, Washington is tied with three teams (the Dallas Stars, the Toronto Maple Leafs, and the Boston Bruins) as the heaviest team in the NHL entering 2026-27, with an average of 205 pounds, including defensemen and goalies. The Capitals’ official roster currently features a few differences, including the absence of Jonny Brodzinski. The 25-man roster on NHL.com weighs in at an average of 207.8 pounds. Both sites showcase a team that will be tough to push around next season.

4 Additional Metro Teams Weigh in at the Top Half of the NHL

Washington fans are in for a rude awakening if they thought it was going to be as simple as bullying their way through the regular season and clinching Ovechkin’s 17th postseason appearance. The division features four teams tied for ninth place in the league at 201 pounds: the New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Philadelphia Flyers. 

New York’s roster is certainly aided by 6-foot-9 wrecking ball Matt Rempe among the forward group alongside Will Cuylle, Noah Laba, and Jaroslav Chmelar. The defensive unit features Vincent Iorio, Matthew Robertson, and newcomer Marcus Pettersson meeting the 6-foot-3+ threshold. 

New Jersey has the strongest chance to match up with the Capitals forward group with five players skating above our benchmark. Nick Bjugstad, Anthony Mantha, and Cody Glass lead the charge for the forward group, but the Devils are in the details with a massive blue line featuring Dougie Hamilton, Anton Silayev, Johnathan Kovacevic, Brenden Dillon, and Brett Pesce.

Columbus checks in next with seven skaters above the 6-foot-3 height ceiling for this article. Dmitri Voronkov, Valeri Nichushkin, and Charlie Coyle headline the forward group, which still features 6-foot-3 Kirill Marchenko despite rumors of the winger’s availability on the trade block. On the back end, Erik Gudbranson, Caleb McDonald, and Charlie Elick are the sizeable defenseman on the Blue Jackets roster. 

Philadelphia clocks in as the final team in the Metro Division listed at 201 pounds behind forwards Sean Couturier, Porter Martone, and Jacob Gaucher. Rasmus Ristolainen, Travis Sanheim, Simon Benoit, and David Jiricek patrol the blue line in Philly. 

Despite each of these teams featuring at least nine skaters at or above 6-foot-3, no team in the Metro can compete against seven Capitals forwards in the starting group. New Jersey is the closest with five of these forwards, but the majority of their heft comes from a big-and-tall group on the blue line. The Rangers and the Blue Jackets each have four players at the minimum, while the Flyers will lean on a rookie (Martone) to lead the way. 

Carolina Proved Height Isn’t Everything

The reigning Stanley Cup Champion Carolina Hurricanes check in as the sixth-heaviest team in the division based on the available information on Elite Prospects. 2026 Conn Smythe winner Jordan Staal and Andrei Svechnikov are among the tallest skaters in Carolina’s forward group, while K’Andre Miller and Jaccob Slavin patrol the back end. Still, head coach Rod Brind’Amour’s group provided an effective game plan that can control the game if implemented properly. It took a few years for the veteran bench boss to figure out the formula, but now it’s just a matter of fine-tuning the details as the squad prepares for a repeat bid next spring. 

The New York Islanders are up next, featuring seven skaters above the 6-foot-2 benchmark behind forward Matt Luff with Scott Mayfield and Adam Pelech skating in front of the netminders in the Big Apple. A recent 2025 draft pick, Daniil Prokhorov, would be an important addition on Long Island if he can make the team out of training camp, but the skater is likely bound for the AHL’s newly relocated team (Hamilton Hammers) for his first pro season in North American hockey.

Finally, the Pittsburgh Penguins check in as the smallest team in the division, tied with a trio of teams in the Western Conference (Calgary, Chicago, and Colorado) with averages under 6-foot-1 and 195 pounds. Evgeni Malkin, Elmer Soderblom, and Justin Breazeu are the notable forwards above the height requirement for this article, while Kaeden Korczak and Trevor van Riemsdyk added some much-needed sandpaper for the defensive group. 

On paper, everything is looking rosy for Washington as the squad attempts to make a return to the postseason promised land. The Capitals are icing an incredibly heavy lineup that most teams should struggle to contend with over 60 minutes of action on the frozen floor. At least, that’s how it’s drawn up in the offseason. Now, hockey fans just get to watch how the action unfolds in the Metropolitan Division over the next few months.