After ranking the top 100 NHL prospects for 2015-16, and ranking each team by organizational depth, ESPN Insider Corey Pronman ranks the top 10 prospects for each NHL team. Here is his entry for the Washington Capitals. Extended write-ups on prospects ranked in the top 100 can be accessed here.
The Capitals' system saw graduations from elite prospects Evgeny Kuznetsov and Andre Burakovsky in 2014-15. While they have some top-end names remaining, the system is not very deep in terms of quality prospects.
Jonas Siegenthaler is very physically mature already -- 6-foot-3, 220 pounds -- and is a great skater for a player his size. He moves the puck well and displays decent-to-solid offensive skill with fine vision on outlets and on the power play. Siegenthaler is solid defensively due to his feet and physical play. His reads in both ends could use some work. Philipp Grubauer has impressed so much as a pro the past few years; he might not be the biggest goaltender, but he moves very well, has great reflexes and makes above-average reads.
Ilya Samsonov screams "upside" as a bigger netminder who moves like he's 5-10. Samsonov can make some very acrobatic saves, exhibits quick feet out of his butterfly and has a solid glove hand. He challenges shooters high in his crease, though he can get caught scrambling a little due to that aggressiveness. Overall, he squares up a lot of pucks and exhibits good effort. He also didn't play a ton this past season, so sample size is a bit of an issue in his evaluation.
Christian Djoos is a mobile defenseman who can move the puck very well, but isn't the biggest or bulkiest. He's smart defensively, but won't intimidate any bigger forwards in board battles. He's played very well versus men for the past few years, standing out as one of his SHL team's top players this past season.
Vitek Vanecek showed good flashes when I saw him this season, and is a highly athletic goalie who can get to pucks in tough situations. His frame isn't too developed though, and given that his positioning and reads are a bit of a work in progress, he can get in trouble when he isn't completely squared up to the puck, because he doesn't absorb pucks too well. Chris Brown isn't a high-upside type of prospect, but he's a great skater who works very hard, and features an above-average shot. His game is very north-south, and he won't be a primary playmaker on any NHL line.
Noteworthy prospect
Stanislav Galiev has had a very up-and-down prospect career. He struggled mightily when he first turned pro, getting lengthy stints in the ECHL. He's highly skilled with the puck, has good speed, and when he gets offensive opportunities with space, he can be a great playmaker. His off-puck game -- especially his physical game -- has been a hindrance for him, but he seems to be progressing in those areas.
2015-16 impact
Grubauer is NHL-ready, whether he makes the team out of camp or is picked up on waivers by another team. Riley Barber and Jakub Vrana could be potential midseason call-ups if their seasons are going well, but out of camp, look for either Brown or Galiev to push for a roster spot.