3:15 PM: The Capitals have officially announced the contract.
12:35 PM: A day after signing their first-round pick, the Capitals have signed another one of their 2024 draft picks. Dan Milstein, the agent for Ilya Protas, announced (Twitter link) that Washington has signed the forward to a three-year, entry-level contract. Financial terms were not disclosed but PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that the deal carries a cap hit of $889K and an AAV of $975K if he reaches his games played bonuses each season.
The 17-year-old was the 75th pick last month, going in the third round. Protas spent 2022-23 in the Belarusian junior system before coming to North America last season, suiting up with USHL Des Moines. He had a solid first season with them, collecting 14 goals and 37 assists in 61 games which helped get him on the draft radar.
Protas is the younger brother of Capitals center Aliaksei Protas, who is coming off his best season, one that earned him a five-year deal along the way. However, it will be a while before the two have a chance to play together.
By signing his entry-level contract, Protas will no longer be able to go the NCAA route. Accordingly, his two most likely options for next season are to remain with Des Moines or to go to the CHL. In this week’s Import Draft, Protas was the first player to be picked by an OHL team, going third overall to Windsor. By picking him that early, the Spitfires are likely quite confident that they’ll be able to get Protas onto their roster for next season.
As long as Protas doesn’t play in more than nine NHL games next season (a likely scenario at this point), his contract will eventually slide and will still have three years remaining on it heading into the 2025-26 campaign.
Until we get some youth and some of these great at one time players gone. This team will still finish out of the playoffs. Love them to death but the fact of the matter… they are old and slow and it shows!
I hope Protas doesn’t mean “can’t score” in Belarussan….