WASHINGTON — Two of Pierre-Luc Dubois’ four goals this season came without a goaltender in the net. The Washington Capitals center has 15 assists and a total of 19 points in 27 games, a 57-point pace over an 82-game schedule. Players who make $8.5 million per year are expected to produce more than that.

And yet Dubois has been one of Washington’s most impactful players, night in and night out. Capitals coach Spencer Carbery said Saturday afternoon, before Washington faced the Montreal Canadiens, that he wished the hockey world could look beyond Dubois’ stat line and understand everything Dubois does for the Capitals.

Then Dubois, a Quebec native, went out and had a goal and an assist in Washington’s come-from-behind victory.

“If you’re not watching the games and you’re not diving into his shifts, you might say, ‘Oh, he’s doing okay,’” Carbery said before Saturday’s game. “He’s had a fantastic start to the year and been a huge part of why we’ve been successful. … The other thing that goes unnoticed about him is he’s so smart. He’s just a very intuitive player out on the ice. I rarely have to correct him with any of his positioning stuff. It’s just seamless for him. Such a smart player.”

When Dubois arrived in Washington over the summer, his reputation had taken a beating. After asking for a trade from the Columbus Blue Jackets, making it clear he wouldn’t sign a long-term contract in Winnipeg and having a subpar season in the first year of an eight-year deal with the Los Angeles Kings, Dubois landed with the Capitals in need of rehabilitation.

The 6-foot-4, 225-pound center’s abilities on the ice were not in doubt.

What was in doubt, though, was Dubois’ commitment to playing at his peak on a nightly basis — and whether Carbery could crack the code on getting the best out of Dubois.

In training camp, the Capitals gave Dubois a simple message.

“I just have to be myself,” Dubois told The Washington Post in late September. “Since I’ve been here, the staff and the players have been so helpful and welcomed me with open arms. Made me feel at home. Made me feel like I can just be myself. They haven’t asked me to do more or less. They just ask me to show up every day and be you.”

That approach has worked for Dubois. His two-point night Saturday against the Canadiens was an offensive high point, but the night before in Toronto, he was matched up against Maple Leafs stars William Nylander and Auston Matthews for most of the game — and didn’t allow them much breathing room.

According to Natural Stat Trick, when Dubois was on the ice, the Capitals generated six high-danger scoring chances and allowed Toronto just three. His line produced a goal, Connor McMichael’s game-winner, and controlled play throughout the night.

“Dubois, phenomenal,” Carbery said Friday night. “Dubie, trying to get him up against Matthews as much as we could. He gets the one apple, or the one assist, but I thought he was one of our best players tonight. Anytime — Auston gets a couple good looks, and they have a few sequences, but if you can keep them as quiet as we did, and Dubie handled the majority of those minutes, you had a very, very good night.”