Photo: Hockey Gods Blog
With the Washington Capitals celebrating their 50th anniversary, NoVa Caps is summarizing each of the previous seasons of the team, from earliest to most recent, in the lead-up to the start of the season. The 1985-86 season was the 12th NHL season for the Washington Capitals.
The Capitals record was 50-23-7 in 80 games for 107 points, which was second in the Patrick Division and the third-best regular season in the NHL. They ranked 10th out of 21st for goals scored and 2nd out of 21st for goals given up.
The Capitals lost their first three games of the season and were only 4-4-2 at the end of October, but started a three-game winning streak at the end of the month. On the strength of winning streaks of four games and five games, they were 21-10-4 on December 31, which was better than every team except the Edmonton Oilers and their division rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers.
In late February through March 11, they ran off an eight-game winning streak, setting a franchise record. They finished second in the Patrick Division during a season that was their best in franchise history, so far.
They swept the New York Islanders in the first round of the playoffs but unfortunately were upset in the second round in six games by the New York Rangers, who finished fourth in the Patrick Division and Vezina Trophy winner, John Vanbiesbrouck.
Notable Capitals Draftees in 1985 NHL Draft
- Yvon Corriveau (1st round — #19 overall)
- John Druce (2nd round — #40 overall)
- Rob Murray (3rd round — #59 overall)
- Bill Houlder (4th round — #82 overall)
- Dallas Eakins (10th round — #208 overall) – Never played with Capitals; future NHL head coach
General Manager: David Poile
Head Coach: Bryan Murray
Captain: Rod Langway
Photo: Third String Goalie Blog
Leaders
Goals: Dave Christian (41), Mike Gartner (35), Alan Haworth (34)
Assists: Bengt Gustafsson (52), Craig Laughlin (45), Larry Murphy (44)
Points: Dave Christian (83), Bengt Gustafsson (75), Craig Laughlin (75), Mike Gartner (75)
Penalty Minutes: Scott Stevens (165), Greg Adams (152)
Notable Trades
- October 31, 1985 – Traded Bryan Erickson to the Los Angeles Kings for Bruce Shoebottom
- November 14, 1985 – Traded Pete Peeters for Pat Riggin
- December 6, 1985 – Traded Doug Jarvis for Jorgen Pettersson
- March 10, 1986 – Traded Darren Veitch for John Barrett and Greg Smith
Previous Summaries
1974-75 Season
1975-76 Season
1976-77 Season
1977-78 Season
1978-79 Season
1979-80 Season
1980-81 Season
1981-82 Season
1982-83 Season
1983-84 Season
1984-85 Season
By Diane Doyle
