The Capitals will see another NHL debut on Wednesday in Toronto.
ARLINGTON, V.A. — There will be two Protas in the mix when the Washington Capitals visit the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday, as Ilya Protas is officially set to make his NHL debut.
Protas will star as the center on the team's third line alongside older brother, Aliaksei, and Tom Wilson.
"Basically trying to make (Ilya) as comfortable as possible and give us some balance... gives us kind of three lines that potentially could do some things offensively for us 5-on-5," coach Spencer Carbery explained. "The insulation of him being able to communicate with his brother and his brother helping him through and then also Wilson, he's a really easy player to player with."
Protas is coming off an impressive start to his pro career with the AHL's Hershey Bears, where his 62 points in 66 games lead all AHL rookies. For Washington, he's done enough at the minor league level to earn a call-up, and the team is sure that he can also provide a spark amid one final push for the playoffs.
"We're still fighting and hanging on to stay in this race, and I think him coming into this moment could potentially give us a jolt of energy," Carbery added.
For Protas, it's a moment that still feels surreal.
"It's just unbelievable," Protas said. "I couldn't believe for a second. I was shaky for a bit. Special for sure, can't describe it. Can't wait for tomorrow."
As for brother Aliaksei, he'll do everything he can to help guide his brother along the way.
"He should be fine. He'll ask me, for sure, I'll help him with different details, but i think he'll be fine," Aliaksei said.
Alex Ovechkin, who took a maintenance day, and Charlie Lindgren, who is a bit banged up, did not practice. Here were the full lines:
Ethen Frank-Dylan Strome-Anthony Beauvillier
Connor McMichael-Pierre-Luc Dubois-Ryan Leonard
Aliaksei Protas-Ilya Protas-Tom Wilson
Brandon Duhaime-Justin Sourdif-Ivan Miroshnichenko
David Kampf, Hendrix Lapierre
Martin Fehervary-Rasmus Sandin
Jakob Chychrun-Trevor van Riemsdyk
Cole Hutson-Matt Roy
Declan Chisholm-Timothy Liljegren
Dylan McIlrath
Logan Thompson