Washington Capitals‘ goaltending prospect Ilya Samsonov debuted his new goalie mask, his first as an NHL goalie, on Friday. The 21-year old will play his first season in North America this upcoming season and will likely start with the AHL’s Hershey Bears.
Samsonov, who was selected 22nd overall in 2015, went 12-9-1 with a 2.31 goals-against average and a .926 save percentage with Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the KHL. He signed his entry-level contract with the Capitals on May 4.
The helmet features the Capitals’ eagle logo, the Capitol Building, and his No. 30.
It wouldn’t be a shock to see the young goaltender get called up at some point this season if Pheonix Copley, who is expected to start the season as Braden Holtby‘s backup, struggles and Samsonov catches fire in Hershey.
Samsonov is expected to be the Capitals’ future in net and could see some time in net soon as 2020 when Holtby can become an unrestricted free agent. However, in order to do that, Samsonov must play strong in Hershey and Washington to take the reigns sooner rather than later.
By Harrison Brown