ARLINGTON, VA — The Washington Capitals could soon get a major weapon back in their arsenal. Aliaksei Protas, who suffered a skate-cut injury on April 4, is nearing his return to the lineup after missing the first four games of Round 1 against the Montreal Canadiens.
Head coach Spencer Carbery offered an update on Protas on Monday. While he didn’t confirm Protas would be well enough to play Game 5, he was optimistic about his status.
“He’s right there,” Carbery said. “I mean, he’s full practice. He’s ready to roll. We’ll see if he gets into Game 5.”
After starting to skate on his own shortly before the playoffs, Protas has been a full participant in Capitals practices since Friday and looked like he could be back for Game 4 on Sunday, though he ultimately was not able to play.
Protas was a major factor in Washington’s success this season as arguably the NHL’s most improved player in 2024-25. With 30 goals and 36 assists in 76 regular-season games, Protas not only set new career highs in both categories but also more than doubled his career scoring total, all without significant time on the Capitals’ power play.
Beyond just his scoring, the Caps have felt Protas’ absence on the penalty kill, where he ranked forth among forwards for the team lead in ice time and scored three shorthanded goals. The Capitals’ penalty kill has struggled with both him and Martin Fehervary out of the lineup, allowing five goals from Montreal’s power play on 13 opportunities.
Carbery cited Protas’ versatility, both in lineup placement and in situational play, as a major benefit he’ll bring to the Caps upon his return.
“He’s a great player, a big part of our team,” Carbery said. “He plays 5-on-5. He eats up a lot of minutes 5-on-5. Can play multiple functioning roles, meaning he can play on our top line, which you’re looking for a little bit more offensive production there, but also then can play in the bottom six. And we’ve got a lot of different options with Pro, and he’s a big part of our penalty kill as well, which will help significantly.”
If Protas is healthy enough to play in Game 5 on Wednesday, he’ll have an opportunity to help end Montreal’s season now that the Capitals have a 3-1 series lead. Though that lead could offer the Caps some wiggle room to give Protas more time to recover, Carbery said that the state of the series wouldn’t impact his recovery timeline.
“I would say that it does not come into play, where the series is at,” Carbery said. “He’ll play when he’s ready.”
Protas’ return will also have ripple effects elsewhere in the lineup, with Carbery forced to remove another player in his stead. Carbery indicated Monday that he and his coaching staff were still debating who to sit, though he didn’t take the decision lightly.
“A lot of different things (go into the choice),” Carbery said. “We talked as a staff, and we’ll just look at role, hands, line, what we feel like potentially could help us against our opponent. Matchup stuff. There’s a lot of different things that go into play of how we’ll work our lineup, and so there won’t be a stone that isn’t turned over to make sure that we’re making the correct decision. And we’re doing our best to make the correct decision on where he goes and who he plays with.”
A two-day break after Game 4 will give Protas some extra time to recover. After a day off Monday, the Capitals will have a full practice on Tuesday before playing Game 5 at home on Wednesday night for a chance to close out the series.
