“[Washington is] somewhere where I really want to be”, said DSP after the contract was finalized. “I had a couple other offers…but I just thought it wasn’t really worth it.”

Devante proved to be a very popular play for the Caps, both on and off the ice.

Players loved his effort and intensity. The coaching staff always loves it when a player raises his game when the stakes are at their highest. And fans were clearly rooting for the team’s only African-American player in a city where much of the population shares his same heritage.

AT HIS BEST WHEN THE CAPITALS NEEDED HIM

Most people would probably assume that Alex Ovechkin would have scored the most goals in the Stanley Cup Final against the Vegas Golden Knights. Actually, he had company. Smith-Pelly put the biscuit in the basket in each one of the series’ last three games, including the game-tying goal in the Capitals Cup-winning game fifth game.

DSP scores a playoff goal vs Sergei Bobrovsky 

Washington signed Smith-Pelly to another one-year deal on July 3, 2017 after the New Jersey Devils bought out the final year of his contract, which at the time made him an unrestricted free agent.

Even though he is still a very young player, DSP has already earned the title of journeyman. He has previously played with the Anaheim Ducks, Montreal Canadiens and New Jersey Devils.

Speaking of the Ducks: Smith-Pelly started his career at the tender age of 19 out in Anaheim, and there was an eerie similarity to his play there as it relates to his 2018 playoff goal streak. In the 2015 playoffs, he scored five goals in twelve playoff games for the Ducks.

Hopefully he can continue his career in Washington and write new chapters of playoff glory.