ARLINGTON, V.A. — Washington Capitals forward Aliaksei Protas seemed to do it all this season. The 24-year-old was a force to be reckoned with at both ends of the ice, impressing as a defensive forward while adding plenty of offense. After putting up just 43 points in his first 169 NHL games, Protas busted out onto the scene this season with a career-high 30 goals and 36 assists for 66 points in 76 regular-season games, while ranking third league-wide with a plus/minus rating of plus-40. "It started from the good summer. I was proud of the work I did the last offseason, and obviously, like teammates, all together, I think we've done a great job being on the same page," Protas said of his success, adding, "I just gotta keep working like every detail of the game." A skate cut late in the season resulted in some missed time and struggles catching up in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but overall, Protas was one of the team's MVPs throughout the year. Management was also impressed with Protas' development, and when it comes to his role, is expecting him to continue to thrive as a top-6 winger despite first seeing him as a possible center option. "We've always, from the hockey ops side, always viewed him as a guy that would be interesting as a center in the NHL. I think it's gotten to a point in his career where it may be harder to make that transition, just not having done it a lot at the NHL level or a ton at the AHL level as well," general manager Chris Patrick said. "Another thing, for Carbs especially, having that size on the walls -- in that last series, I think he thought as much of it as we could get, we needed. I feel like the coaching staff really views him as a winger as the best use for him. He's a big, smart player, so never say never, I guess." Going into next season, Protas is eager to continue building on his skill-set, while also showing the organization that his production wasn't a fluke. "Just do my best. Do what I've been doing for a while... gotta prove it wasn't just an accident and gotta stay consistent," Protas said. "That's, in my opinion, maybe the hardest thing in the NHL, to stay consistent and keep doing it and keep developing. So, got to focus on that."
