Stars and Sticks Capitals Player of the Month: December

Which player was a key for the Capitals during the month of December?

Welcome to our newest feature — the Stars and Sticks Player of the Month. At the conclusion of each month we’ll highlight a Washington player who really played an important role for the team.

It was an overall good month for the Washington Capitals. They played 14 total games and pulled out eight wins. Of the six losses, three came in shootouts, so a point was at least picked up.

Several players enjoyed productive months, but only one can be named as the top player of the month. The honor for the month of December goes to forward Justin Williams.

Williams got off to a slow start this season and had just two goals heading into the month. It took him a while to get going and he was on an eight-game goals drought. However, a two-goal performance in the overtime win against Boston on December 7 got him going.

He went through a stretch from December 11-16 where he scored a goal in three straight games. Williams finished the month with seven goals, four assists, and three power-play points. He had three multi-point games, including putting up a goal and an assist against New Jersey on New Year’s Eve.

The veteran recorded points in eight of the 14 games in the month and finished with an even plus-minus rating.

If Washington is going to have success this year, Williams is going to need to play a big role. There was some concern after his slow start, but it seems that he’s turned a corner. Here’s hoping that a fantastic December gives Williams momentum for the rest of the season.