Coronavirus Suspends Play, Ends Season for Other Prospects: Week 26 Capitals Prospect Report

Posted on March 16, 2020 by Jon Sorensen

Welcome to the week 26 Washington Capitals Prospect Report. The following includes a summary of news for Capitals prospects that occurred between March 9th and March 15th, 2020. (Reminder: you can always access all of our prospect news and analysis in the top menu under the “Prospects” tab. You can also follow the latest Capitals prospect news on Twitter under the #CapsProspect hashtag.

2019-2020 Top-20 Prospects Mid-Year Rankings

PREVIOUS WEEKLY REPORTS

MONTHLY PROSPECT REPORTS

Obviously not much to report for week 26, as all leagues came to a screeching halt due to concerns related to the coronavirus. As a result, the season has been put on hold for many Capitals prospects, while the season has officially concluded for others. As of Sunday, Capitals prospects who’s season has ended include:

  • Mitchell Gibson
  • Benton Maass
  • Damien Riat
  • Tobias Geisser
  • Kraitian Roykas-Marthensen
  • Sebastian Walfridsson
  • Kris Bindulis

We will begin our “annual review and forecast” for each of the Capitals prospects in the coming days and weeks, beginning with the players whose season has already been completed.

Here’s the latest status for each prospect league:

AHL/HERSHEY BEARS

The American Hockey League suspended play on Thursday.

Sportnet’s Chris Johnson is reporting that the AHL’s potential return to action won’t mirror what transpires with the NHL. “Word around the American Hockey League is that a potential return won’t mirror what happens with the NHL,” wrote Johnston on Saturday. “Too many different variables, including travel and revenue. They’re facing a big challenge.”

CHL (OHL/WHL)

The CHL season remains officially “paused”, as announced by the league on Thursday.

Connor McMichael – his last game was last Sunday (3/8). For the season he has 47 goals, 55 assists in 52 games played (1.96 points/game). He’s a +32 and recorded 283 shots for a season shooting percentage of 16.6%. He’s 3rd in the league in points and 3rd in goals on the season.

Martin Hugo Has – The 6’-4” defenseman has had a crazy year, playing for five teams in three leagues, not including the Czech Republic for the World Juniors. His time in Guelph has been riddled with minor injuries, including illness and an eye infection that led to scratches. He has no goals and six assists in 21 games played with the Storm.

Aliaksei Protas – his last game was also last Sunday (3/8). For the season, Protas has 31 goals and 49 assists in 58 games played (1.38 points/game). He’s recorded 211 shots for a season shooting percentage of 14.7%.

Eric Florchuk – Florchuk and the Vancouver Giants last game was Saturday (3/7). For the season, Florchuk has 21 goals and 36 assists in 58 games played (0.73 points/game). He’s recorded 119 shots for a season shooting percentage of 17.6%. The 20-year-old has four seasons in the WHL, and remains unsigned by the Capitals.

Alex Kannok-Leipert – the 19-year-old has one more season of eligibility in the CHL. He also remains unsigned by the Capitals. Offensively, the defenseman has three goals and 19 assists in 62 games played for the Giants.

EUROPE

Damien Riat – The Swiss League officially ended it’s season on Thursday. Riat signed a contract with the Capitals just prior to the hockey shutdown on March 5th, so it’s assumed Riat’s next move is to somehow make it to Hershey when the time is appropriate. He finished the season with 11 goals and 11 assists in just 36 games played.

Tobias Geisser – his season has also come to a close. Geisser and EV Zug finished the regular season with a second place finish, securing home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. The defenseman ended the season with a total of two points in 25 games, in what was quite a tough season. The Swiss blueliner has another two years on his deal with the Capitals, and even if things progress, it seems as though Geisser has a long way to the NHL.

Kristian Roykas-Marthensen – The Swedish Hockey League (SHL) officially announced the end of their season on Sunday. Roykas-Martinsen finished the season with seven goals and five assists in 40 games played for HC Dalen.

Sebastian Walfridsson – his season has also come to a close. The defenseman had a pair of goals and six assists in 52 games played for Sodertalje in the Allsvenskan league.

ECHL

Kris Bindulis – The ECHL officially cancelled the remainder of the season on Saturday. Obviously it’s unclear what happens to the players, are they still eligible for callups to AHL, etc.

NCAA

Mitchell Gibson – Harvard withdrew from the second round of the ECHL tournament on Wednesday, thus ending their season. Props to the Crimson for making the first move as eventually the tournament was scrapped in its entirety. Gibson ended his Freshman season with a record of 11-8-3, a 2.61 GAA (43rd in NCAA) and a .916 save percentage (29th in the NCAA).

Benton Maass – UNH’s season came to an end in the Hockey East tournament on March 7. The Wildcats concluded the season with a record of 15-15-4 overall (9-12-3 HEA). As for Maass, he led UNH with a Plus/Minus rating of plus-7.  His 34 blocked shots in 32 games are second-most on the team and his 59 shots on goal was fifth on the team and second among UNH defensemen.  He has contributed three goals and seven assists.

By Jon Sorensen

About Jon Sorensen

Jon has been a Caps fan since day one, attending his first game at the Capital Centre in 1974. His interest in the Caps has grown over the decades and included time as a season ticket holder. He has been a journalist covering the team for 10+ years, primarily focusing on analysis, analytics and prospect development.
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