HERSHEY, PA — His OHL bio page states his height is 6-foot-5, but he seemed taller than that. Walking into the Hershey Bears’ media room, Ilya Protas towered over me as he introduced himself — though his uncanny resemblance to his older brother Aliaksei made an introduction unnecessary.
Beyond Andrew Cristall, who was the WHL’s top scorer, no other Washington Capitals prospect had a better season in junior than “Little Pro.” A Caps third-round draft pick whom GM Brian MacLellan traded up to get, Ilya went from a player with some promise to arguably one of the biggest steals of the 2024 NHL Draft thus far.
Playing in the USHL during his age-17 season, Ilya — then 6-foot-3 and 184 pounds — scored 14 goals in 61 games with the Des Moines Buccaneers. A year later in the OHL, Ilya filled out and grew more, adding two inches and 17 pounds to his frame. He nearly quadrupled his USHL goal total during a jaw-dropping debut season with the Windsor Spitfires, lighting the lamp 50 times and finishing third in OHL goals. Ilya also posted 124 points (50g, 74a) in 61 games — good for second best in the league. His 2.03 points-per-game average made him one of only two players in the league — Michael Misa was the other (2.06) — who played more than 24 games and averaged two or more points per night.
The 18-year-old forward was awarded the William Hanley Trophy, presented annually to the OHL’s most sportsmanlike player. He was also the league’s Player of the Month in March and named to the 2024-25 OHL Second All-Star Team.
In the OHL playoffs, Ilya chipped in 25 points (5g, 20a) in 12 games as the Spitfires were eliminated in the second round by the Kitchener Rangers. He led the league in playoff points by the time his OHL season ended.
On April 25, the Washington Capitals re-assigned Ilya to the Hershey Bears, where he served as a black ace and practiced with the team for nearly a month.
When he arrived, Ilya was given the number 40, the same number that Aliaksei wore when he lifted the Calder Cup in 2023.
“Yeah, pretty proud of him. The season he had, he did a great job and played really good out there,” Aliaksei told RMNB. “And yeah, he obviously, the [Windsor Spitfires] as a whole, wanted to be more successful in the playoff run. But I think in terms of individually, he had a really good season. And I’m really proud of him and having the chance to compete for maybe spot in the playoffs with Hershey. Not a bad thing for sure, you know? It’s great for him to see the pro players playing.”
Aliaksei’s role in Ilya’s life, and Ilya’s deep desire to play in the NHL alongside his older brother are two outsized factors that could further accelerate the prospect’s development. Ilya’s huge jump in play this season mirrored his older brother’s star turn in the NHL. Aliaksei scored 30 goals while mostly skating on the Capitals’ first line with Alex Ovechkin and was one of the best five-on-five players in the entire league.
“Obviously, we are staying in touch like every day almost,” Aliaksei said. “We have a phone call every day, pretty much. Maybe twice a day sometimes, like at night and during the day. Especially during the season, we really talked a lot. And I try to help him as much as I can in terms of like game and everything. And yeah, just he wants to see my daughter, too. So we just have a phone like pretty much every day.”
When comparing the two Belarusians’ age-18 seasons, Ilya’s production at this point in his career suggests he’s ahead of Aliaksei’s development — at least in terms of being a playmaker and scorer. However, they had different roles on different teams in different leagues.
Protas brothers’ age 18 seasons
While Ilya’s junior season was tremendous, his favorite moment of the year — other than being drafted by the Capitals with his brother celebrating in the stands — was when he suited up with Aliaksei in an NHL preseason game against the Boston Bruins on September 24.
“It’s something we couldn’t even dream of,” Aliaksei said of the moment.
According to NHL stats, the Protas’s would become the fourth pair of brothers in Capitals history to play together in the regular season or playoffs if Ilya can someday graduate to the top league in the world.
That dream inspires Ilya, and if everything goes right, The Pro Bros could be the next super tandem in the NHL.
“I know he knows what he’s doing and he knows the type of player he wants to be,” Aliaksei said. “And he can be. He’s got to stay with it. Listen to the coaches and keep doing his job.”
Below is my full interview with Ilya while he served as a black ace with the Hershey Bears during the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs.
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RMNB Q&A with Ilya Protas
Q: For you, how would you sum up your year in one word?
Ilya Protas: Like how I can describe my season in one word? Special, I think. Yeah, it was a special year for the kind of job I had. I wasn’t expecting that. I didn’t expect it for myself, you know. And, yeah, it was a great season. I mean, not special. Let’s do great.
Q: So, for Capitals fans, your journey has been special to us because we’ve lived through your brother. Even the NHL draft, seeing Aliaksei so excited when you were drafted, can you think back to that moment and walk me through what it was like to be drafted by the Capitals, the same team as your brother?
Ilya Protas: Yeah, this was special for sure. And, I mean, it was about what we were dreaming of, you know, and we both worked hard for that. And I couldn’t really imagine that we were in the same organization, especially. I don’t know, it just was crazy, it was special for us, for me, for my family. And yeah, I was sitting in the draft, and it was around the third round, and New Jersey was on the clock, and the Caps traded pick. And my brother come to me and he said, like, ‘When I got drafted, it was the same thing, New Jersey trade picks with the Caps, and I got drafted.’ And I said, ‘Oh, cool’ and I just came back to my seat and put my head up and I hear from Des Moines, USHL and my name. It was special, before the draft I was thinking about it. I want to try to remember that moment but I couldn’t it was too emotional, too special. And yeah hugging him, my mom, and his wife was special, and unfortunately, dad couldn’t make it. Didn’t make it with his visa. Yeah, but it was awesome.
Q: So your brother yelled out when your name was called. So I just want to give you some background on me. I’m a little brother. My older brother was a sports journalist. I’m a sports journalist now. Me and him love each other, but maybe aren’t as close as you two. Have you two always been this supportive of each other? How has he helped you throughout your life and even this point in your hockey career?
Ilya Protas: I mean, when I was younger, he was kind of like my second mom, if I can say it. Yeah, he was always kind of helping me in the moment where I can’t talk or ask my mom, kind of like, you know, just teenagers and stuff when I grew up. But it was time when we started being closer and I started to grow up, especially last year we became closer and closer and this year especially we started to be closer because kind of like my age, you know. And when I was younger, he couldn’t really talk to me and I couldn’t hang out with him because five years it’s a pretty big gap. Not anymore but through the hockey career he was always my like best coach and the same stage with my dad so he always helped me with that and brother he always was next to me and if I have a question I always ask him and he would always support me if I had a bad game. He called me like, yeah, he would give it to me a little bit, but it’s fine. He wants me to get better and better. Still, there’s days too this year when I had a bad game or something, he called me and said, like, you got to be better and stuff. Yeah, he always supported me and helped me.
Q: What would he harp on you about?
Ilya Protas: His work ethic. It’s special. It’s on a kind of different level for me because this guy’s working really hard, and he always pushed me hard. And every time in the preseason, he pushed me hard, hard, hard, and makes me better. I think he’s a better person than a player, that’s his thing. He always wants the best for everyone and he’s a really good teammate and a really good guy and especially brother and kid. He always would work at it, hockey-wise, but it’s more about in life and relationship between us and in family, how good he is like a person, like a dad, like a husband, like a kid, it’s impressive.
Q: I always had differences with my own brother. Like he was probably more serious, and I was more maybe enthusiastic and have more personality, extroverted. I see similar things here.
Ilya Protas: Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Q: On the ice too, what are your differences from Aliaksei that maybe you think, I have this on him but these things that he does, oh my god?
Ilya Protas: Yeah, I mean, how he improved his skating speed-wise, it’s impressive. I couldn’t skate like him, no doubt. His boots go up on next level, you know. It’s another point – his work ethic gave him this opportunity to skate well because of how he worked out in the preseason. So, but I think he’s the better playmaker than me, I think, and like battle-wise, how he can protect the puck, his stick, and how he’s like good without puck. I mean, yeah, I’m always learning from him, watching his every game, if I have time, if I have time on schedule, yeah. And I mean, what I’m different, I think, I thought pretty similar players. Maybe kind of like, I couldn’t say like, goal-score wise. I just maybe get a little bit lucky sometimes in the kind of crease area and slot opportunities. If you compare my year in juniors and his year, I think I’m kind of get a little bit lucky in the goal scorer area. But we’ll see later.
Q: So you were a third-round pick that put up first-round numbers this year in junior. Is that because people didn’t scout you good enough, or was there a huge jump over the summer when you were training? Like, what happened there?
Ilya Protas: You know, I think it’s a little bit of everything, you know. It’s a great preseason with my brother.
Q: What did you guys do in the preseason?
Ilya Protas: It’s kind of like my brother always said in an interview. He said, like, working in kind of areas around the net, like kind of small touches and goal area spots, shooting from there. I worked a lot in the shooting room, getting our shots better and yeah, kind of like finish opportunities in that area and especially workouts and stuff and physical wise, it was big and I still got to work on it. I don’t know about this guy, he’s 245, can’t say anything. Especially big, big, big, big in my success was Windsor, how they helped me, how they support me. Coaching staff, it was one of the best coaching staff I worked with. And management, group of guys, especially my line mates like Liam Greentree, Noah Morneau, and all these guys helped me a lot. Yeah, I mean, it’s not me, it’s all about them, you know.
Q: I don’t know how aware you are, but Capitals fans are calling you “Little Pro.” How do you like that nickname?
Ilya Protas: I’m fine with that.
Q: But, are you taller than your brother?
Ilya Protas: No, he’s taller. Yeah, I mean, it’s fair. He’s bigger and taller. And yeah, I’m younger, so I think it’s fair. But I like how our coach called me. I would say strength coach. Yeah. He called me “Hammer.” That was my nickname in Des Moines, so yeah, I like it.
Q: I think I saw in a few stories, but your first meeting with Alex Ovechkin and all the other big name Capitals. When was that? What was that like for you?
Ilya Protas: Oh, first time I met Alex, it was last year, and Christmas break came for a little bit, and I met him. It was special, it was unreal, like, I met the best goal scorer ever. Yeah, it’s special, and especially later to be kind of him in the same locker room, be around him and we have the same ice and practice together. Yeah, it’s special. It’s probably what I was thinking about all my life and it’s special. He’s a great person and always like invite me somehow. I was surprised when I, for example, just go for lunch with him and my brother. I didn’t talk a lot, but just being around him sounds special. When I met Tom Wilson, John Carlson, all the players, it’s awesome to be around the guys. It’s special. The best moment I’ll remember from training camp is game against Boston. Be in the room and you go around the room and you see this guy, number 21. You’re like, no way [my big brother] is in the same room with me. We are wearing Caps jersey together. It’s special. I hope one day it will be a regular-season game.
Q: Does that give you even more motivation? I know every player wants to make the NHL, but does that give you 10 times more motivation and also confidence because he’s already there and succeeding?
Ilya Protas: Yeah, I mean, of course, of course. It’s what you would dream up, you know, all your life. It’s your childhood dreams to play in the NHL. Of course, all my life, my dream was playing with my brother. But, you know, when you play in your hometown and you’re, like, 10 years old and you’re, like, 15, playing in Belarus together and you can’t even dream of it. Like, someone will tell us in childhood, “Well, you guys will be in the same organization.” Like, no way, actually? It’s something special for sure. We couldn’t really say it loud, you know, because it’s, like, yeah, it’s special. And I mean, I hope one day it will be dream come true and we’ll play together and we’ll do big things, I hope.
Q: After getting to know Ovi, what was it like to see him break the NHL goals record this year? What was that like from your perspective, even your older brother’s perspective?
Ilya Protas: Yeah, it’s giving you goosebumps. It’s kind of crazy because you kind of think about it. 900 goals in the best league in the world. And you’re like, wow. Especially this year, like 40 goals when you’re 39 years old. It’s unreal. He’s only one in the world and just kind of like thinking about you’re in the same organization with him and you know like especially for my brother being with him on the team and how he worked hard for that and like how tough is that to score that many goals and how good he is as a player and captain. So, it’s awesome. It gave me goosebumps. And me and my family were so happy for that. And unfortunately, I didn’t watch that game. Because, you know, you can’t predict that and we had a team – we were going to a baseball game in Detroit.
Q: Oh, really?
Ilya Protas: Detroit Tigers, yeah. So they booked that ticket like two weeks before. And yeah, if I can, I would stay and watch. But we went all together. And they announced it at the rink, yeah, we were sitting and they showed the goal and I’m like, “No way.” And I started watching the ceremony. So yeah, it was something special. We were sitting and they showed the goal and sat at the rink, like, yeah, Alex Ovechkin beat the record.
Q: I’ve asked this to other guys and the answers are always wildly different and sometimes it’s something simple I take for granted. But what was the hardest thing that you went through or maybe one specific time you were like, ugh, it’s so frustrating being in North America?
Ilya Protas: Yeah, it was the start of my junior career in Des Moines, first two months. It was really hard for me, first month especially, because I came there like end of August, and my brother’s family, my family was still being in Vitebsk, Belarus, and I’m kind of alone in the US, in a new mentality, new language. I couldn’t speak any English. Yeah, I could understand a little bit, but not at all how I can speak now. It was hard because time change zone, I can’t even call them. And you don’t know what to do because you don’t know your billets, you don’t know language. And you’re just sitting in your room. Yeah, it was tough for me, especially because I’m really close with my family and relationship and stuff. And yeah, it was hard. But when brother came down, you know, and you always talk to him, you’re always on the phone with him asking questions, and he always helped you. And it was easier just to be in the same time change zone, you know?
Q: Did that give you confidence in Des Moines after you got through that difficult time period?
Ilya Protas: Oh, yeah. Of course, yeah. Especially, like, it was similar on the ice. My start of the year wasn’t good because I was kind of not on the ice. I was kind of like, you know…
Q: In your own head?
Ilya Protas: Yeah, yeah. I was thinking about home and especially, like, I didn’t play well and I didn’t play a lot. I played, like, three minutes, 13th forward and stuff. And I’m like, maybe I’ll go home, maybe they’ll cut me. These thoughts in my head and, like, family, it was, yeah, it was tough. And after when I got through that, I started feeling confidence. And I started working up in the lineup, like, third, second, middle of the year, started playing in the first line. It gave me confidence and I started to collect points and I started to talk to these NHL teams. It’s give you confidence for sure. And at the end of the year, you look back and you’re like, yeah, it was tough but it’s awesome you got through that.
Q: What do you think you need to work on? What do you think you need to work on moving forward?
Ilya Protas: Physical-wise, and getting bigger and stronger. And especially my skating speed, but it’s kind of all together when I will get bigger and stronger, skating speed will come.
Q: What did it mean for you to get your brother’s old number here, 40, in Hershey?
Ilya Protas: I mean, I just came to the room and I see my stuff and the helmet in my stall, and it was number 40 there. I didn’t really ask. They just give it to me. The equipment manager here, yeah, it’s awesome. I like it.
Q: Who have you become close to while in Hershey?
Ilya Protas: Yeah, of course, it’s Miroshnichenko and Trineyev, the Russian guys. And besides that, I’m really close to everyone, young guys who are hanging out together because, you know we’re kind of spent time a lot together on the ice and off the ice and I think everyone really good group. Really good group and maybe Vincent Iorio I think.
Q: This is more of a silly question, but, when you play NHL 25, which team are you?
Ilya Protas: I’m usually Caps. I’m actually not playing NHL 25 a lot but when I play against guys in the team, I’m always like big Caps and play with number 21 – power play, first line, yeah. He’s playing 25 minutes a night.
