Ilya Protas
| Ilya Protas | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Protas with the Hershey Bears in 2026 | |||
| Born |
July 18, 2006 | ||
| Height | 6 ft 6 in (198 cm) | ||
| Weight | 225 lb (102 kg; 16 st 1 lb) | ||
| Position | Centre | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| NHL team (P) Cur. team Former teams |
Washington Capitals Hershey Bears (AHL) Des Moines Buccaneers Windsor Spitfires | ||
| National team |
 Belarus | ||
| NHL draft |
75th overall, 2024 Washington Capitals | ||
| Playing career | 2025–present | ||
Ilya Protas (Belarusian: Илья Уладзіміравіч Протас, Russian: Илья Владимирович Протас; born July 18, 2006) is a Belarusian professional ice hockey player who is a centre for the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL). He made his professional debut in 2024 with the Hershey Bears.[1]
Playing career
[edit]Protas began his junior career in 2023 playing for the Des Moines Buccaneers of the United States Hockey League (USHL). While playing for Des Moines, he was drafted 75th overall in the 2024 NHL entry draft by the Washington Capitals. He played in 61 games for the Buccaneers, scoring 14 goals and assisting on 37, for a total of 51 points.
For the 2024–25 season, Protas joined the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Playing in 61 games, Protas scored 50 goals and assisted on 74, for a total of 124 points. In twelve playoff games, he scored 5 goals and had 20 assists, for a total of 25 points.
Protas began the 2025–26 season playing for the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League. In 66 games, Protas scored 28 goals and 34 assists, for a total 62 points. Protas was called up to the Capitals on April 6, 2026.[2] Protas scored his first NHL point during a 4–0 victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs on April 8, 2026, his debut game. He then scored his first career NHL goal in a 6–3 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on April 11, 2026.[3][4] He finished the NHL season with one goal and three assists in four games. On April 15, 2026, Protas was loaned back to Hershey.[5] On April 23, 2026, Protas was awarded the Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award, given to the "rookie of the year" in the AHL.[6][7]
Personal life
[edit]Protas' older brother, Aliaksei, was drafted by the Capitals in the third round of the 2019 NHL entry draft.[8]
Career statistics
[edit]Regular season and playoffs
[edit]| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2023–24 | Des Moines Buccaneers | USHL | 61 | 14 | 37 | 61 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2024–25 | Windsor Spitfires | OHL | 61 | 50 | 74 | 124 | 34 | 12 | 5 | 20 | 25 | 6 | ||
| 2025–26 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 69 | 29 | 37 | 66 | 40 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | ||
| 2025–26 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
Awards and honours
[edit]| Award | Year | Ref |
|---|---|---|
| USHL | ||
| USHL All-Rookie Team | 2024 | [9] |
| OHL | ||
| OHL All-Star Second team | 2025 | [10] |
| William Hanley Trophy | 2025 | [11] |
| AHL | ||
| AHL All-Star Game | 2026 | [7] |
| Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award | 2026 | [6][7] |
References
[edit]- ↑ "Ilya Protas Hockey Stats and Profile at hockeydb.com". hockeydb.com. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
- ↑ "Capitals Recall Ilya Protas from Hershey". hersheybears.com. April 6, 2026. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
- ↑ "Protas Records First NHL Point in Debut, Sets Up Hutson's Empty Netter with Brother". eliteprospects.com. April 9, 2026. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
- ↑ Crosby, Wes (April 11, 2026). "Ilya Protas has 3 points, Capitals defeat Penguins to stay in wild-card hunt". nhl.com. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
- ↑ "Capitals Loan Ivan Miroshnichenko, Ilya Protas and Clay Stevenson to Hershey". nhl.com. April 15, 2026. Retrieved April 18, 2026.
- 1 2 Lichtman, Harry (April 23, 2026). "Capitals' Ilya Protas named AHL Rookie of the Year". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved April 30, 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Bears' Protas wins Dudley (Red) Garrett Award as top rookie". theahl.com. April 23, 2026. Retrieved April 30, 2026.
- ↑ Silber, Sammi (June 29, 2024). "Capitals Move Up In Third Round To Take Ilya Protas, Younger Brother Of Aliaksei". thehockeynews.com. Retrieved June 29, 2024.
- ↑ "USHL All-Rookie Teams Announced for 2023-24". USHL. May 8, 2024. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ↑ "OHL Announces 2024-25 All-Star and All-Rookie Teams". Canadian Hockey League. May 30, 2025. Retrieved April 29, 2026.
- ↑ "Spitfires' Ilya Protas claims William Hanley Trophy as OHL's Most Sportsmanlike Player". Canadian Hockey League. April 15, 2025. Retrieved April 29, 2026.
External links
[edit]- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or ESPN.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database, or TSN.ca