Hershey Bears captain Aaron Ness joins That's DC Hockey to discuss representing Team USA in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, his time with the Capitals, the hockey scene in Arizona, his return to Hershey, if the Bears actually visit Hersheypark, Hunter Shepard's lettuce and more. The Washington Capitals got quite a showing from two of their top forward prospects on Friday, as Ryan Leonard and Ivan Miroshnichenko had star-studded nights with their respective teams. Leonard posted a hat trick for Boston College against the UMass Lowell River Hawks, picking up a goal just over three minutes into the game to make it 1-0. He later added back-to-back goals in a six-minute span in the third period to secure his second three-goal game of the season. The 19-year-old now has 22 goals through 24 games in his sophomore season for the Eagles. Leonard, who went eighth overall in the 2023 NHL Draft, is expected to go pro and sign his entry-level contract to join the NHL ranks after the NCAA season comes to an end in the spring, though he'll look to win a championship before putting pen to paper. Minutes after Leonard's hat trick in Massachusetts, Miroshnichenko scored his third goal of the night with the Hershey Bears in their showdown with the Bridgeport Islanders. The Russian struck just seconds into regulation, marking the fastest goal for Hershey to open a game this season (18 seconds). He added goals in the second and third to help Hershey rally from a 3-2 deficit to take the eventual lead. All of Miroshnichenko's goals came from within close proximity to the net, as he got to the right areas and tracked the play well in order to capitalize. The 20-year-old, who went 20th overall in 2022, now has 11 goals and 21 points through 25 games with Hershey this season. He appeared in 18 games for Washington earlier in the season, picking up a goal and three assists before returning to the AHL for more development.
