Wednesday morning, the Washington Capitals re-assigned forward Zach Sanford back to AHL affiliate Hershey Bears. The move comes as the NHL’s holiday roster freeze was lifted after the three-day Christmas break. Since his call-up back to Washington, Sanford played in one game and was a healthy scratch a majority of the time.
“He’s on the ice,” Barry Trotz Trotz explained to the Washington Post before the holiday break. “He’s seeing what we’re doing, just taking in that whole process. I think it’s good. Right now, if he was in Hershey, he wouldn’t be skating. He’d be at home, and I think there’s more benefit for him to be here. We feel that if a certain role opens up, that’s where he’ll go in.”
According to the Hershey Bears, Sanford will join the team in Syracuse for their game Wednesday night.
NEWS: Forward @zachsanford21 has been re-assigned to the Bears by the @Capitals and is expected to join the team in Syracuse. #HBH pic.twitter.com/aCHgTpkZVh
— Hershey Bears (@TheHersheyBears) December 28, 2016
More from the Caps:
The Washington Capitals have re-assigned forward Zach Sanford to the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL), senior vice president and general manager Brian MacLellan announced today.
Sanford, 22, earned one assist in 20 games with the Capitals this season. The Salem, Mass., native made his NHL debut on Oct. 13 at Pittsburgh and earned his first NHL point with an assist on Oct. 30 at Calgary. Sanford was drafted by the Capitals in the second round, 61st overall, in the 2013 NHL Draft.
Sanford has registered seven points (4g, 3a) in six games with Hershey this season. The 6’4”, 203-pound forward made his AHL debut on Dec. 2 at Lehigh Valley and earned his first AHL point with a goal on Dec. 4 against Syracuse. Sanford recorded a career-high four points (2g, 2a) on Dec. 11 against Rochester.Sanford registered 39 points (13g, 26a) in 41 games with Boston College (NCAA) in 2015-16. He led the team in assists, ranked third in points and fifth in goals as a sophomore. In addition, he ranked second on the team in plus/minus (27) and tallied 44 penalty minutes during the 2015-16 season. Sanford registered 63 points (22g, 43a) in 79 career games with Boston College.
