3 Members of the Washington Capitals Stanley Cup Team You Probably Forgot About – Hockey Writers – Washington Capitals

2026 marks eight years since the Washington Capitals won their first Stanley Cup. The 2017-18 season was a whirlwind that led to captain and hockey star Alex Ovechkin, his right-hand man Nicklas Backstrom, and many other outstanding players getting the chance to raise the trophy in front of Washington fans.

While the show may feature some notable names, others fly under the radar. These skaters, while part of the team at the time, have been largely forgotten over the years. Where do they go after their names are recorded in history? Let’s take a look at three forgotten players.

Alex Chiasson

Chiasson, a good player, was signed as a free agent in 2017. In the regular season, he had 18 points in 61 games. He played in 16 playoff games, where he scored one goal and dished out an assist. He had a healthy scratch in the Cup Finals against the Vegas Golden Knights, but became a successful member of the Stanley Cup team.

After the season, he signed a one-year contract with the Edmonton Oilers, where he scored a career high of 22 goals and 38 points. At the end of the 2018-19 season, he re-signed with Edmonton on a two-year contract, made two more playoffs, and scored his 100th goal with the Oilers. At the end of his contract, he was not re-signed and continued to play with the Vancouver Canucks.

He only had 22 points for the Canucks and was not re-signed at the end of the season. In 2022-23, Chiasson had an unsuccessful professional tryout (PTO) with the Arizona Coyotes, and spent half of the season without the team. He was later fired on PTO with the Detroit Red Wings’ American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins.

He thrived with the Griffins, scoring 20 points in 29 games and was signed to a two-man contract. At the end of the season, he was released by the Red Wings. Chiasson had one last PTO, this time with the Boston Bruins, but didn’t make it past the preseason. He announced his retirement from professional hockey in 2025.

Brett Connolly

Years before joining the Capitals, right-hander Connolly was heralded as one of the top picks of 2010. He was selected by the Tampa Bay Lightning and played with them and the Bruins before coming to Washington. He was considered a free agent in 2016, and later signed a two-year contract in 2017.

He was successful in the Capitals organization; in his first season, he scored a career-high 15 goals and the following season, he matched that goal and scored a career-best 27 points. Connolly played in all 24 playoff games with the team in 2018, contributing to their victory with six goals and three assists. Notably, he had the first assist on Lars Eller’s Stanley Cup-winning goal in Game 5.

In the final season of his contract, the forward shined brightly, showing his best season and finishing with 46 points (22 goals, 24 assists) in 81 games. After leaving the Capitals as a free agent, he signed a four-year contract with the Florida Panthers. His offensive production declined, and he was sidelined by the team in 2020.

In 2021, the Panthers traded Connolly to the Chicago Blackhawks. After the 2021-22 training camp, he was benched and reassigned to the Rockford IceHogs, the team’s AHL affiliate. He had zero goals in nine games with the Blackhawks, and just 17 points in 37 games with the IceHogs. He was placed on unconditional waivers at the end of the season and was never re-signed to the NHL.

He went on to play for two international teams: HC Lugano and SC Rapperswil-Jona Lakers in Switzerland. With Lugano, he had 38 points in 45 games. Unfortunately, his season with the Lakers was cut short to just nine games after a season-ending hip injury. Connolly has not returned to hockey since 2023-2024.

Christian Djoos

Djoos was a defenseman selected by the Capitals in the seventh round of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, but did not make his major league debut until 2017. In his first game, he made history by becoming the only franchise defenseman to record two points in a start. By the end of the regular season, the confident player had accumulated 14 points in 63 games.

In the playoffs, he played in 22 games, earning one assist. He was given another chance on the Capitals roster the following season, but in 2019-20, he did not make it through training camp and was reassigned to the Hershey Bears of the AHL. He scored 32 points in 42 games that season, but ended up dealing with Daniel Sprong’s Anaheim Ducks following the season.

He played just nine games with the Ducks before being sidelined and picked up by the Red Wings. After finishing the season in Detroit, he signed with Zug EV in Switzerland and scored 63 points in 102 games in two seasons there. He then played with Lausanne HC for a season before signing a five-year contract with Brynas IF of Sweden where he plays.

While these players may not go down in history as some of the Capitals’ most infamous and greatest players, they each contributed to the perfect storm that was the 2018 Stanley Cup winning roster. Their names will be marked forever on the cup itself, and their legacy will remain unmatched for years to come.