Snapshots: Ho-Sang, Scheifele, Protas
In a noteworthy ECHL transaction, the Florida Everblades announced today they had signed forward Joshua Ho-Sang to a contract. It will mark the first time since the 2021-22 season that Ho-Sang has suited up professionally in North America.
The former 28th overall selection of the 2014 NHL Draft by the New York Islanders, Ho-Sang was never able to put it all together at the NHL level. In 53 games with the New York Islanders, Ho-Sang was hardly used by the team, scoring seven goals and 24 points while averaging just over 15 minutes of ice time per night.
At the AHL level, Ho-Sang’s professional career has been a completely different story altogether. Playing for the Bridgeport Islanders, San Antonio Rampage, and the Toronto Marlies, Ho-Sang is a veteran of 225 AHL games over five years, scoring 46 goals and 158 points overall.
Other snapshots:
- Before the puck dropped in the team’s game tonight against the Nashville Predators, the Winnipeg Jets announced that center Mark Scheifele would be absent from the game due to an illness. In Scheifele’s stead, utility forward Vladislav Namestnikov slid into the center role on the team’s top line. Since his return from injury on February 6th, Scheifele has been the heart and soul of the Jets’ offense, scoring five goals and 16 points in his last 17 games.
- Turning to the east coast of the United States, Sammi Silber of The Hockey News reports forward Aliaksei Protas of the Washington Capitals will miss tonight’s game with a lower-body injury. Signing a shiny new five-year, $16.875MM extension with the team back in January, Protas has come into his own as a playmaker, tallying 23 assists in 62 games for Washington this season.
Washington Capitals Sign Aliaksei Protas To Five-Year Extension
The Washington Capitals have announced a five-year, $16.875MM contract extension for centerman Aliaksei Protas. The new deal with carry an annual cap hit of $3.375MM. Protas has appeared in all but one of Washington’s 43 games this season, scoring three goals and 18 points. The 23-year-old has served in a bottom-six role, averaging just 13 minutes of ice time on the season, though he’s beginning to sneak into a larger role with an average of over 15 miuntes in his last five games.
Protas is appearing in just his third NHL season and this extension marks the first deal after his entry-level contract. The 23-year-old was selected by the Capitals in the third round of the 2019 NHL Draft. He’s since played in the most games of any player selected outside that year’s top two rounds, managing 133 career games – scoring 42 points throughout. He was drafted from the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders, but made his professional debut overseas in the 2020-21 KHL season, scoring 10 goals and 18 points for the KHL’s Minsk Dynamo. He came over to North American pros at the end of Dynamo’s season and made his NHL debut in 2021-22, scoring nine goals in his first 33 games with the Capitals.
Protas satisfies a menagerie of trivia, standing as one of the league’s 10-tallest players and is one of just two Belarusians playing consistently in the NHL this season. In fact, he became just the ninth Belarusian to play 100 NHL games on January 2nd.
Capitals Assign Clay Stevenson, Recall Aliaksei Protas From AHL
Saturday: With Kuemper back, the Capitals have reversed this transaction, sending Stevenson back to Hershey while recalling Protas.
Friday: The Washington Capitals today recalled netminder Clay Stevenson from the AHL’s Hershey Bears, as starter Darcy Kuemper will miss tonight’s season-opener against the Pittsburgh Penguins after welcoming a son last night. Forward Aliaksei Protas was loaned to Hershey to allow Washington the cap space to recall Stevenson.
Stevenson will backup Charlie Lindgren, who will start opening night for the Caps after recording a .899 save percentage in a career-high 31 games last season. The 24-year-old Stevenson has yet to make his NHL debut after signing with Washington as an undrafted free agent in 2022. In his first pro campaign last season, the former Dartmouth standout assumed the starting role for the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays. He appeared in 36 games there, recording a 2.54 goals-against average, .916 save percentage, three shutouts, and a 19-12-3 record. He also made three appearances for Hershey, going undefeated and posting a sparkling .924 save percentage and 1.96 goals-against average.
In 2023-24, Stevenson will be the primary AHL backup to Hunter Shepard, who broke out for Hershey en route to a Calder Cup win last season and captured the playoff MVP award.
Protas, meanwhile, still does not require waivers to head to the minors and was the odd man out with 2019 first-round pick Connor McMichael locking down a top-six role for opening night. The 22-year-old Belarusian was also a member of the Capitals’ 2019 class and stuck mostly in the NHL last season, notching 15 points in 58 contests. He’ll likely get recalled back to the Capitals’ NHL roster once Kuemper has rejoined the team and Stevenson is returned to Hershey.
Capitals Assign Two, Recall McMichael And Protas
The Washington Capitals have loaned Ivan Miroshnichenko and Riley Sutter to the Hershey Bears of the AHL and recalled Connor McMichael and Aliaksei Protas to the NHL roster. These moves don’t come as a surprise, as Washington needed to first place Max Pacioretty onto long-term injured reserve before they could finalize their opening night roster.
Of note, Hardy Haman Aktell did not get recalled in this transaction; likely a result of Joel Edmundson not being placed on LTIR to start the season. This is a good sign that Edmundson may not be out for much longer, but Washington will be starting the season with 13 forwards and seven defensemen as a result.
These roster moves are headlined by a pair of former First Round picks – McMichael the 25th selection in 2019 and Miroshnichenko the 20th choice in 2022. McMichael joined the Capitals organization a year after his draft day, playing his rookie season in the AHL during the 2020-21 campaign and scoring 27 points in 33 games. Those were impressive enough numbers to earn McMichael a full-time spot on the NHL roster in 2021-22, although he only managed 18 points in 68 games and ultimately earned a demotion to the AHL for last season. On the other hand, Miroshnichenko is brand new to North American pros, coming over from Russia for Washington’s training camp this year. The 19-year-old has been the focus of a lot of scrutiny when it comes to how he was deployed in Russia – finding himself constantly moving back and forth between the country’s second-tier league and their U21 league, the VHL, and MHL respectively, over the last three seasons. His assignment to Hershey will not only represent his first taste of professional hockey overseas, but it should also provide much-needed roster stability. Miroshnichenko was a highly-regarded prospect in his draft year, so attention will undoubtedly be on him as he begins working toward an NHL role.
Snapshots: Ehlers, Arizona, Anaheim, Washington
Winnipeg Jets forward Nikolaj Ehlers will be healthy for the team’s opening game against the Calgary Flames. The star has been dealing with neck spasms and wore a non-contact jersey through part of training camp. Ehlers missed multiple pre-season games, calling into question his availability for opening night, although it seems he’s mounted a recovery in the second half of camp.
Ehlers has had a closer relationship with injured reserve in recent years, spending six weeks on the list with a hernia last season. He scored 38 points in the 45 games he did appear in during the 2022-23 season. This was a 69-point scoring pace, which would have been the most points of Ehlers’ eight-year NHL career. His career totals are up to 523 games, 176 goals, and 396 points. His scoring is an important attribute of Winnipeg’s top-six. The team will hope he’s moved on from his injury bug as he suits up for the start of their 2023-24 campaign.
Other notes from around the league:
- The Arizona Coyotes have shifted some players around as they trim down to a final NHL roster. Michael Kesselring, Victor Soderstrom, Vladislav Kolyachonok, and Zach Sanford have all been assigned to Tuscon in the AHL.
- Anaheim has assigned Andrew Agozzino and Alex Stalock, both NHL veterans, to their AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls.
- The Washington Capitals have made a series of moves, assigning Max Pacioretty to long-term injured reserve, Joel Edmundson to injured reserve, and Hardy Haman Aktell, Aliaksei Protas, and Connor McMichael to Hershey in the AHL. They have also recalled Riley Sutter to the NHL roster.
Capitals Notes: Ovechkin, Milano, Snively
In a recent tweet thread from Roman Stubbs of the Washington Post, he shares that Washington captain Alex Ovechkin will be a game-time decision for the team’s game tonight against the New York Rangers. After recording an assist in their most recent win against the New York Islanders, it was noted that Ovechkin did not participate in the team’s practice the next day for ‘maintenance’. Stubbs shares that Ovechkin appears to be dealing with a lower-body issue, and head coach Peter Laviolette will wait to make a decision on the Russian forward.
Other notes:
- Included in the thread, Stubbs mentions that Capitals’ forward Sonny Milano is confirmed to be out of the lineup tonight, as he is dealing with a ‘non-Covid illness’. Replacing Milano in the lineup is young forward Aliaksei Protas. In 43 games so far this season, Protas has provided the Capitals with three goals and seven assists. Although he does not provide the same level of depth scoring as Milano, the Capitals are in a position this year to give a few more games and minutes to their younger players.
- After being recalled this morning on an emergency basis, Stubbs confirms that Joe Snively will play if Ovechkin is unable to. Becoming one of the best players on their AHL affiliate Hershey Bears over the last couple of seasons, Snively may be able to show what he can do at the NHL level against a very good Rangers team.
Snapshots: Capitals, Marchand, Ferguson
Anything you can do, I can do better. After a report emerged earlier today that the Pittsburgh Penguins have shown interest in Jakob Chychrun, rival Washington Capitals have also now been linked to the Arizona Coyotes defenseman. Darren Dreger of TSN reports that the Capitals are hoping to “rebuild on the fly” and, after yesterday’s trade of Dmitry Orlov and Garnet Hathaway, now have the assets to pull it off if it gets that far.
The Penguins and Capitals are in similar situations, trying to contend as many times as possible while their franchise icons are still on the ice. Neither one is guaranteed to make the playoffs this season, meaning it will be quite the task to retool quickly enough to challenge for the Stanley Cup. In the meantime, the Capitals have recalled Aliaksei Protas from the minor leagues to fill the last vacated roster spot.
- Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand has been issued a fine for the dangerous trip of Seattle Kraken forward Oliver Bjorkstrand. Marchand owes $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for the incident in last night’s game. The Bruins are lucky, as every time Marchand is the focus of the Department of Player Safety, it could end in a suspension given his long history of supplementary discipline.
- With the Belleville Senators dealing with several injuries to their goaltenders, they’ve acquired some extra depth. Dylan Ferguson is on his way over from the Toronto Marlies in exchange for future considerations in a minor league deal. The 24-year-old netminder, perhaps best known for his emergency appearance for the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017, when he was still playing in the WHL, has appeared just five times for the Marlies this year, posting an .888 save percentage.
Nic Dowd To Return For Capitals; Aliaksei Protas Sent Down
After a 10-day stretch since being recalled on February 11th, Washinton Capitals’ forward Aliaksei Protas has been reassigned to AHL affiliate Hershey Bears per a team announcement from Capitals’ General Manager Brian MacLellan. Protas’ assignment to the AHL affiliate paves the way for Nic Dowd‘s return to the lineup. In 43 games this season, Protas has scored 10 points playing predominantly in the Capitals’ bottom six.
As Dowd returns, Protas will now see his third demotion of the season. Combining this season and last, Protas has played in a total of 76 games in the NHL, scoring six goals, and racking up 13 assists for 19 total points. Failing to carve out a permanent role for the Capitals, Protas will continue his development for the Hersey Bears, where he has scored at a much better rate over his career. In 50 games played for the Hershey Bears, Protas has scored 10 goals and 19 assists for 29 total points. For a bottom-six player in the NHL, there would be value in that kind of production.
Luckily for the Capitals, Dowd’s return gives them a valuable addition to their forward core. After scoring a career-high 24 points during the 2021-22 season, Dowd was awarded a 3-year contract from the Capitals last November. In 44 games played this season, averaging just under 13 minutes of ice time a night, Dowd has scored a total of 19 points. If he continues at this pace and plays in the remainder of the Capitals game this season, he will once again be in the range of setting a new career high in points.
As Dowd is reinserted into the lineup, the Capitals will look to end a current four-game losing streak. Recently sliding out of a playoff position due to this mild losing streak, the Capitals continue to have their sights on returning to the playoffs for a ninth consecutive season. As the Capitals await the return of longtime captain Alex Ovechkin from the unfortunate passing of his father, Dowd’s return will be a welcomed sight in a team in need of a rebound.
Washington Capitals Recall Aliaksei Protas
The Washington Capitals have brought forward Aliaksei Protas back to their NHL roster, per a team announcement. His recall from the AHL’s Hershey Bears comes after the team sent him to the AHL to get a few games in during the Capitals’ break.
The Capitals play the Boston Bruins tomorrow, so this recall gives head coach Peter Laviolette an extra forward to work with as he prepares to take on the league leaders. Protas, 22, is a hulking six-foot-six forward who already has 75 games of NHL experience under his belt.
Protas has played most of this season in Washington, and has scored seven goals and ten points in 42 games. Last season, Protas split time between Washington and Hershey, scoring 24 points in 42 AHL games and nine points in 33 NHL games.
Protas has played in a depth role this season, and he averages just under eleven minutes of ice time per game, the least of all Capitals skaters with more than ten games played. He’s making $795k against the cap this season and will have a $789k cap hit next season before becoming eligible for restricted free agency.
Aliaksei Protas Reassigned To AHL
After an overtime win last night, the Washington Capitals are now on break for the next ten days. Aliaksei Protas, however, won’t get quite as much rest. The young forward has been reassigned to the minor leagues, where the Hershey Bears play three games in the next few days.
Protas, 22, has played 42 games for the Capitals this season but only one in the last few weeks as the team started to get back some veteran forwards. With ten points in those games he has surpassed his total from last season but hasn’t taken quite the step some expected after a good rookie showing.
The massive, 6’6″ forward still doesn’t use his frame as effectively as he could and fails to get on the inside of the defense very often. There’s a belief that big power forwards take a little longer to develop, though, so any experience that Protas can get is valuable.
In the minor leagues this season, Protas has three points in five games. He’ll get a chance to score his first AHL goal of the year while the rest of the Capitals enjoy some rest and relaxation.