 Mikkelson was exposed again in the 1974 NHL Expansion Draft and this time was claimed by the Washington Capitals.His first season with the expansion Capitals would play out almost identically to his first season with the expansion Islanders, as he emerged as an icetime leader on a struggling team.Despite being assigned to the minors late in the year and appearing in only 59 games, he ended up posting an all-time NHL worst plus/minus rating of -82.