Washington Capitals facts for kids

Washington Capitals
Washington Capitals
Conference	Eastern
Division	Metropolitan
Founded	1974; 46 years ago
History	Washington Capitals; 1974–present
Home arena	Capital One Arena
City	Washington, D.C.
Colors	Red, white, blue;
Media	NBC Sports Washington; WRC (NBC 4); Federal News Radio (1500 AM); The Fan (106.7 FM);
Owner(s)	Monumental Sports & Entertainment; (Ted Leonsis, chairman)
General manager	Brian MacLellan
Head coach	Todd Reirden
Captain	Alexander Ovechkin
Minor league affiliates	Hershey Bears (AHL); South Carolina Stingrays (ECHL);
Stanley Cups	1 (2017–18)
Conference championships	2 (1997–98, 2017–18)
Presidents' Trophies	3 (2009–10, 2015–16, 2016–17)
Division championships	12 (1988–89, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19)

The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference. The Capitals are owned by Monumental Sports & Entertainment, headed by Ted Leonsis. From 1974 to 1997 the Capitals played their home games at the Capital Centre, in Landover, Maryland (a suburb in the Washington metropolitan area). In 1997 the team moved to the arena now called Capital One Arena, their present home arena in Washington, D.C.

The Capitals were founded in 1974 as an expansion franchise, alongside the Kansas City Scouts. Since purchasing the team in 1999, Leonsis revitalized the franchise by drafting star players such as Alexander Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, John Carlson and Braden Holtby. The 2009–10 Capitals won the franchise's first Presidents' Trophy for being the team with the most points at the end of the regular season. They won it a second time in 2015–16, and did so for a third time the following season in 2016–17. In addition to 12 division titles and three Presidents' Trophies, the Capitals have reached the Stanley Cup Finals in 1998 and 2018, winning in the latter.

The Capitals have retired the use of four numbers in honor of four players. In addition, the team holds an association with a number of individuals inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. The Capitals are presently affiliated with two minor league teams, the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League, and the South Carolina Stingrays of the ECHL.

Images for kids

Capitals defenseman Darren Veitch chasing Boston Bruins defenseman Ray Bourque in 1980.
Drafted in 1978, Mike Gartner helped the Capitals become a playoff contender in the 1980s.
The Capitals moved into the now Capital One Arena in 1997.
Dainius Zubrus had a career year with the Capitals during the 2005–06 season, recording 57 points.
Alexander Semin had a breakout year during the 2006–07 season, scoring 38 goals during his second season in the NHL.
Alexander Ovechkin during Capitals practice, a day after signing a 13-year contract extension in January 2008.
The Capitals celebrate after defeating the New York Rangers in the 2009 Stanley Cup playoffs.
Joel Ward scored the overtime series-winning-goal in game seven against a heavily-favored Boston Bruins, in the 2012 playoffs.
The Capitals hosted the Chicago Blackhawks for the 2015 NHL Winter Classic at Nationals Park.
Ovechkin during the 2016–17 season. In January 2017, he became the 84th NHL player to reach the 1,000-point milestone in the NHL.
Barry Trotz at the Capitals practice at Kettler Capitals Iceplex. Trotz guided the Capitals to their first Stanley Cup championship.
The Capitals honor the retired numbers of Rod Langway, Yvon Labre, Mike Gartner and Dale Hunter with banners in the Capital One Arena.
Nicklas Backstrom is the franchise's all-time assist leader for the regular season. As of the end of the 2018–19 season, he has recorded 642 assists in 895 games.