Protas had 66 points in 69 games with Hershey this season.
The jump to the pros has been more than ideal for Washington Capitals prospect Ilya Protas, and his performance with the Hershey Bears was enough to earn him honors as the AHL's most outstanding rookie.
The AHL announced on Thursday that Protas won the Dudley (Red) Garrett Memorial Award as the AHL's outstanding rookie for 2025-26. He joins Ron Hextall as the second player in Hershey's franchise history to win the award.
Protas led all AHL rookies in scoring with 29 goals and 37 assists for 66 points in 69 games, the fourth-most points by a teenager in AHL history. He also led Hershey in goals, power-play goals, power-play points, shots on goal (147) and plus-minus (17) over the course of the season.
The 19-year-old's play earned him a call-up to Washington at the end of the season, where he had a goal and three assists for four points in four games, where the Capitals also went 4-0 down the stretch.
Protas, who appears likely to make the full-time NHL jump next season, is currently back down with the Bears for the Calder Cup Playoffs. He is centering the first line. He had a goal in the team's Game 1 win over the Bridgeport Islanders.
The award was first presented by the AHL in 1947 and honors the late Dudley (Red) Garrett, a young player who lost his life during World War II while serving in the Royal Canadian Navy. Garrett split his only pro season, 1942-43, between the AHL’s Providence Reds and the NHL’s New York Rangers.