Capitals defense prospect Bobby Nardella is the latest Caps prospect to be loaned overseas for the upcoming season as he is headed to Djurgardens IF of the Swedish Hockey League.
Nardella, who was signed as a college free agent by the Caps in April of 2019, has played 43 games for the Hershey Bears over the course of the last two seasons. Unlike their other recent loaning of prospects, the Caps did not put any conditional language in their press release on the loaning of Nardella that indicates he will be called back for training camp so we are to believe that this is a full season loan.
NEWS | The Washington Capitals have loaned defenseman Bobby Nardella to Djurgardens IF of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) for the 2020-21 seasonhttps://t.co/ttfDfSS4rp
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) September 30, 2020
Nardella joins Alexander Alexeyev, Damien Riat, Tobias Geisser, Aliaksei Protas, and Axel Jonsson-Fjallby as the group of Caps youngsters headed overseas to continue their development as the start of the 2020-21 season in North America remains uncertain.
It's very much worth noting that Washington is sending Nardella from Hershey to the SHL on a FULL-season loan.#AHL
— PATRICK WILLIAMS (@pwilliamsNHL) September 30, 2020
“Bobby Nardella is a mobile, offensive defender. Bobby will be on loan to us from the Washington Capitals for the remainder of this season,” Djurgårdens general manager Joakim Eriksson said in a press release. “His style of play and strengths as a player are very reminiscent of Olle Alsing and we see that he will help us in our continued development towards building a good game with the puck under control.”
Nardella put up 31 points (4g, 27a) in 41 games last season with the Bears.
Capitals Loan Bobby Nardella to Djurgardens IF (SHL)
ARLINGTON, Va. – The Washington Capitals have loaned defenseman Bobby Nardella to Djurgardens IF of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) for the 2020-21 season, senior vice president and general manager Brian MacLellan announced today.
Nardella, 24, led Hershey defensemen with 31 points (4g, 27a) in 41 games last season and tied for first on the team in assists and power play assists (13). The 5’9”, 180-pound defenseman’s 0.76 points per game tied for fifth among AHL defensemen with at least 30 games played and his 13 power play assists tied for second among AHL rookie defensemen.
The Rosemont, Ill., native recorded 34 points (8g, 26a) in 38 games in the 2018-19 season with the University of Notre Dame, setting a personal collegiate career high in points and a team-high in points and assists. Nardella was named as a Hobey Baker Award nominee and to the NCAA (B1G) First All-Star Team. A two-time winner of the NCAA (B1G) Championship each of his last two seasons at Notre Dame, Nardella averaged 0.54 assists per game during his collegiate career. Additionally, Nardella was named to the NCAA (Hockey East) All-Rookie Team and was named as Notre Dame’s Rookie of the Year during his freshman year (2015-16). In 147 career games with Notre Dame, Nardella recorded 103 points (24g, 79a).
At the international level, Nardella represented Team USA at the 2014-15 World Junior A Challenge, recording two assists en route to a gold medal in Kindersley, Saskatchewan. Additionally, Nardella won a silver medal in the 2013 Ivan Hlinka Tournament held in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. In 2012, as a member of USA Hockey’s U-17 team, Nardella won a gold medal at the Five Nation Tournament held in the Czech Republic.
The Capitals signed Nardella as a free agent on April 5, 2019.
Headline photo: Elizabeth Kong/RMNB
