There’s a different feel to the 2015 edition of the Washington Capitals compared to previous years.

The Capitals have a chance to close out their series with the New York Rangers Friday and advance to the conference finals for the first time since 1998.

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“I really thought coming in to the playoffs they had as good a chance to represent the Eastern Conference in the Stanley Cup final as any one,” Elliotte Friedman told Dean Blundell & Co. on Sportsnet 590 The Fan this morning. “Last year I thought they weren’t really good on defence and they went out and they got two guys [Matt Niskanen and Brooks Orpik] and that has made an enormous difference.”

Barry Trotz’s squad are a team that can beat you both with speed and physical play, a style that sums up Alex Ovechkin. Since coming into the league in 2005, Ovechkin is fourth in total hits and has 136 more goals than the next closest player during that time period.

“If you take a look at the other five guys in the top six [for hits], those five guys have combined in that time for 482 goals. Ovechkin has 475 by himself,” Friedman explained. “There’s nobody in the NHL like him who is a threat to score and run you over.”

Friedman added that a player recently told him having Ovechkin on your team is “‘like having Cal Clutterbuck with 55 goals.’ There’s nobody like him and the entire team feeds off it. He’s using his powers for good.”