The 2015–16

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The Capitals compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NH ...

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

was the 42nd season for the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

franchise that was established on June 11, 1974. The season began its regular games on October 10, 2015, against the

New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The club w ...

. This was the first of five consecutive Metropolitan Division titles for the Capitals. The 2015-2016 Capitals team was the second one in franchise history to win the Presidents' Trophy, after the 2009-2010 Capitals team. The 2015-2016 Capitals defeated the Philadelphia Flyers in the first round of NHL playoffs. However, the Capitals were ousted in the second round of NHL playoffs, two games to four, against the eventual Stanley Cup champions Pittsburgh Penguins.

Standings

Schedule and results

Pre-season

Regular season

Playoffs

Player statistics

Final stats ;Skaters ;Goaltenders ^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Capitals. Stats reflect time with the Capitals only.
^‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Capitals only.
Bold/italics denotes franchise record.

Player suspensions/fines

Notable achievements

Awards

Milestones

Transactions

The Capitals have been involved in the following transactions during the 2015–16 season.

Trades

;Notes * Buffalo to retain 50% ($1.67 million) of salary as part of trade.

Free agents acquired

Free agents lost

Claimed via waivers

Lost via waivers

Lost via retirement

Player signings

Draft picks

Below are the Washington Capitals' selections at the 2015 NHL entry draft, to be held on June 26–27, 2015 at the BB&T Center in

Sunrise, Florida Sunrise is a city in central-western Broward County, Florida, Broward County, Florida, United States, and is a principal city of the Miami metropolitan area. The population was 97,335 at the time of the 2020 census. History Early history In ...

. ;Draft notes * The

' second-round pick will go to the

Calgary Flames The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The ...

as the result of a trade on March 1, 2015, that sent Curtis Glencross to Washington in exchange for a third-round pick in 2015 and this pick. * The

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens (), officially ' ( Canadian Hockey Club) and colloquially known as the Habs, are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal. The Canadiens compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic D ...

' second-round pick went to the

as the result of a trade on June 27, 2015, that sent Buffalo's third-round pick in 2015 (62nd overall) and a fourth-round pick in 2015 (113th overall) to New York in exchange for this pick. The Rangers previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on June 27, 2015, that sent Cam Talbot and a seventh-round pick in 2015 (209th overall) to Edmonton in exchange for Ottawa's third-round pick in 2015 (79th overall), a seventh-round pick in 2015 (184th overall) and this pick. * The

' third-round pick will go to the

as the result of a trade on March 1, 2015, that sent Curtis Glencross to Washington in exchange for a second-round pick in 2015 and this pick. * The

' fourth-round pick went to the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. The Rangers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team plays ...

as the result of a trade on June 27, 2015, that sent Montreal's second-round pick in 2015 (57th overall) to Washington in exchange for and Buffalo's third-round pick in 2015 (62nd overall) and this pick. * The

' seventh-round pick will go to the

Winnipeg Jets The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. The Jets compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The te ...

as the result of a trade on June 28, 2014, that sent

Edward Pasquale Edward Robert Nito Pasquale (born November 20, 1990) is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender currently playing for HC Pustertal Wölfe of the ICE Hockey League. He most recently played for Barys Astana in the Kontinental Hockey League ( ...

and a sixth-round pick in

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

to Washington in exchange for a sixth-round pick in 2014, Nashville's seventh-round pick in 2014 and this pick.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2015-16 Washington Capitals Season Washington Capitals seasons Washington Capitals season, 2015-16 Presidents' Trophy seasons