ARLINGTON, V.A. — Washington Capitals forward Aliaksei Protas didn’t feel much at first when a skate sliced over his foot, cutting through the laces and top of his boot on April 4.

After all, there was so much adrenaline in that game against the Chicago Blackhawks, where captain Alex Ovechkin tied Wayne Gretzky for the most goals in NHL history.

All Protas knew was that he was in pain. Then, the next morning, he got news of just how serious the injury was, as the blade had cut through the tendons and ligaments in his foot.

“They told me next morning they told me what was going on and how much time,” Protas said. “As soon as (I) progressed, I was trying to get (back) as early as possible but needed to also be careful, it could get more serious. So had to be careful.”

It was a tough loss for the Capitals to suffer before the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and a harder time for the 23-year-old, who was putting the finishing touches on a career season.

“I’m not happy to watch it and be out,” Protas said, adding, “Boys did a great job, see it from the stands, boys how hard they work for each other and how hard those games is.”

It took a bit of time for Protas to start skating again, and then, he had to work his way up to taking contact and getting in the rhythm of game speed. All the while, he had to walk a fine line as to not aggravate the injury.

”There’s some steps you gotta be careful with, especially the tendon and everything. You gotta be careful,” Protas said. “Needed to take a couple more days and needed at least a couple weeks to at least get to the point where the risk is low and from there it’s gonna get better. But you gotta be careful.”

All the while, he travelled with the team and did what he could to support the group.

“It was great. I wanted to be with the boys everywhere, to be around and just be with the boys, support them during the games,” Protas said. “It’s hard to be out, but I wanted to be there to support them. I think we did a great job and gotta keep it rolling.”

Protas returned to the lineup for Game 5 against the Montreal Canadiens and skated on the fourth line while logging time on the penalty kill.

As he continues to get back up to speed, he’s keeping things simple, especially with how fast-paced the playoffs are. And now, going into the second round against the Carolina Hurricanes, he’s looking forward to what’s next.

“I’ll do my best to help the team right now. Just work hard every day and hopefully it’s gonna get even better and we’ll continue to get better as a team during the series and during the playoffs,” Protas said, adding, “We know (Carolina’s) one of the best teams in our conference. We know it’s going to be tough battle, we know what to expect and I think we’re ready for it.”