It could have gone one of two ways, as it typically does for a kid who is sent down from the NHL to the AHL. A player can easily dwell on the negatives and struggle to focus on what’s important, or a player can use the demotion as motivation to get back to the NHL, and work to improve their game.
Connor McMichael was officially loaned from the Capitals to the Hershey Bears on November 20. To his credit, he rolled up his sleeves and got to work. He’s made great use of his time in chocolate town.
“He plays penalty kill, power play. Gets a lot of ice time. He deserves it, because he’s playing good hockey,” said Bears head coach Todd Nelson. “The biggest thing moving forward is just having him be consistent the rest of the year. He’s taken some major steps, and that’s good to see.”
McMichael has indeed found consistency down the stretch for the Bears. He’s even stepped up his game. He has three goals and seven assists in his last 11 games, including points in his last eight games.
“He’s a pretty well rounded player, right now. He’s playing his best hockey this time of year, and that’s great to see. We obviously want him to work on his 200 foot game, playing good with the puck and without the puck,” said Nelson.
And while McMichael has hit his scoring stride in 2023, he knows there is always work to do. There are always plenty of game elements to work on.
“There’s a lot of little things. For me, being a centerman, it’s always faceoffs, that’s such a key thing. Especially this time of the year, going into playoffs, every single faceoff matters. So that’s something I’ve been working on,” McMichael recently told Todd Sadowski of Fox 43.
McMichael also knows the AHL grind can take its toll on a young player, and that preparation is just as important as his play on the ice. As a result, he takes his preparation and recuperation very seriously.
“I think that at this time of the year there’s is a fine line. You gotta listen to your body and make sure you are taking care of it before and after games,” McMichael told Fox 43. “With playoffs approaching, we’re playing a lot of hockey, you don’t want to be too sore going into games. I think we’ve been on top of that and we’re rolling now.”
McMichael and the Bears are winding down their regular season, which concludes on April 15. They’ve already punched their ticket to the postseason, so McMichael could conceivably see a return to the Capitals in the final few games of the Capitals season, prior to the start of the Bears postseason run.
By Jon Sorensen