Protas ‘just scratching the surface’ as power forward for Capitals

ELMONT, N.Y. -- Aliaksei Protas is already starting to prove that last season's 30-goal output wasn't a fluke, and perhaps that number should be the baseline expectation for the towering forward.

The 24-year-old scored his first two goals of this season in the Washington Capitals’ 4-2 win against the New York Islanders at UBS Arena on Saturday. He could have had at least four if not for Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin and the left post.

He has four points (two goals, two assists) in Washington's first two games after scoring 30 goals and getting 66 points in 76 games last season. None of those 30 goals came on the power play; three were short-handed.

It was a massive jump from his six goals and 29 points in 78 games in 2023-24.

"Made in a laboratory," Capitals rookie forward Ryan Leonard said of Protas. "It's crazy. We all say he's the best player in the League. It's special. He's a special player."

Best player in the League might be a stretch, but Protas, who stands 6-foot-6 and weighs 250 pounds, has become one of the NHL's most difficult players to defend and hold in check because of his combination of size, skating and awareness.

The New York Rangers are next up with the task of trying to handle him. They host Washington at Madison Square Garden on Sunday (7 p.m. ET; MNMT, NHLN, MSG, SN1, TVAS).

All eyes will again be on Capitals legend Alex Ovechkin and his chase to become the first in NHL history to score 900 goals. He remains three away after failing to score in Washington's first two games.

But don't be surprised if Protas steals the spotlight.

"I'm telling you, he's just scratching the surface on his career in this league," Capitals coach Spencer Carbery said. "He's such a horse, such a big guy that skates so well that's now going to play on the power play this year."

Carbery and the Capitals needed a performance like Protas gave them Saturday. It came two nights after a disappointing and somewhat ragged 3-1 season-opening loss to the Boston Bruins at home.

Washington outshot Boston 36-22 and Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman made 35 saves, but the Capitals went 0-for-5 on the power play and looked disjointed. Worse yet, a power-play goal from Boston forward David Pastrnak in the third period was the game-winner.

Saturday was different.

"Tonight looked like us from last year," goalie Logan Thompson said. "We were confident, making plays, got a lead and played with it."

Carbery gave Protas much of the credit.

"We just needed someone, for lack of a better term, to shoot it in the back of the net; that's exactly what he did tonight," Carbery said. "He got into a couple great areas and just snapped it right past their goaltender. We needed that.

“I thought we outplayed Boston the other night at home. We only get one on the board, Swayman sort of stymies us a little bit, so we needed some guys in some scoring situations to score to beat a goalie, and he stepped up and scored a couple big goals."

Martin Fehervary scored on a rebound off Alexander Romanov to give Washington a 1-0 lead at 1:50. Protas took over after that, scoring from between the circles with a waste-no-time shot past Sorokin's blocker at 13:51 to make it 2-0.

Protas played the puck out of the corner to help create Ryan Leonard's first goal of the season at 9:50 of the second period that gave Washington a 3-0 lead.

He then scored again to at 15:30, cashing in with a breakaway after Tony DeAngelo fumbled the puck at the Capitals' blue line to extend the lead to 4-0.

"Good breakout," Protas said of his second goal. "I think he fanned on it a little bit. It was wobbling, made a mistake. I mean, it happens to everybody. Good thing to capitalize. Tried to use my speed and capitalize."

Sorokin robbed Protas of his hat trick at 19:57 of the second, darting across the crease to make a right pad save at the right post off a 3-on-1. Protas also hit the left post on a tip-in attempt off an odd-man rush at 15:44 of the third.

He finished with his three points on two goals and an assist, a plus-3 rating and a team-high five shots on goal and eight shot attempts that was bested only by Islanders rookie defenseman Matthew Schaefer, who scored his first NHL goal and had eight shots and 14 attempts in his home debut.

"I mean, it was pretty close," Protas said of his almost hat trick.

It would have been the second of his career. Protas scored three goals in Washington’s 7-4 win at the Anaheim Ducks on March 11.

He’s up to 45 goals in 247 NHL games. If his start to this season is an indication of what's to come, that goal total could double by the end of this season -- especially with time on the power play.

"He's got a bright, bright future," Carbery said. "Not that anybody doesn't know that by now, but after last season I expect him to just continue. Whether the production is the same or not I'm not really worried about that. He'll score. He'll get into the situations that he did tonight and hopefully he finishes at a high rate, but his all-around game and how effective he is night to night is just still going like that [points up]."