When the Washington Capitals traded two second round picks for Lars Eller at the 2016 NHL Draft, he was supposed to be the missing piece. The third line center. Like Nick Bonino, the one who destroyed them roughly a month earlier in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
A weak 2016 portion of his season made a lot of fans upset. However, Eller rebounded in 2017 to emerge not just as the Caps third line center, but as one of the best third line centers in the NHL. With the Capitals loading up for one more Stanley Cup run, he’s an important piece.