The Washington Capitals removed goaltender Charlie Lindgren from injured reserve, Tuesday afternoon. To make room for Lindgren back on their 23-man roster, Hunter Shepard was sent back down to the AHL’s Hershey Bears.
Lindgren has not dressed for the club as starter or backup since getting hurt early in a December 29 loss to the New York Islanders. Shepard was recalled after Lindgren’s injury and made two starts in his stead. He has backed up Darcy Kuemper in the Capitals’ last two outings.
NEWS | The Capitals have loaned goaltender Hunter Shepard to the Hershey Bears. In addition, the Capitals have activated goaltender Charlie Lindgren from injured reserve (IR). https://t.co/jcPQUSLEYm
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) January 9, 2024
Head coach Spencer Carbery revealed post practice that he expected Lindgren to be back ahead of Thursday night’s contest against the Seattle Kraken.
“Looks like Charlie, as long as I get clearance that he was good through practice today, should be ready and available,” Carbery said.
Lindgren has arguably been the Capitals’ early-season MVP, posting a 7-3-3 record with a 2.27 goals-against average, a .928 save percentage, and two shutouts. Per MoneyPuck, his 12.3 goals saved above expected ranks fourth in the entire NHL.
Shepard has made the first four starts of his NHL career this season. He has amassed a 2-1-1 record with a 3.19 goals-against average and a .894 save percentage. He’ll return to a Hershey club that is still atop the AHL and 11 points better than the second place Cleveland Monsters.
Shepard’s understudy with the Bears, Clay Stevenson, was recently named AHL Goaltender of the Month after winning six of seven games in December. Shepard has a stellar 14-2 record this season for the Bears.
Here’s the full press release from the Capitals:
Capitals Loan Hunter Shepard to Hershey
ARLINGTON, Va. – The Washington Capitals have loaned goaltender Hunter Shepard to the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL), president and general manager Brian MacLellan announced today. In addition, the Capitals have activated goaltender Charlie Lindgren from injured reserve (IR).
Shepard, 28, has a record of 2-1-1 with a 3.19 goals-against average and a .894 save percentage in four games with the Capitals this season. Shepard made his NHL debut and earned his first career win on Oct. 25 at New Jersey. On Nov. 11 against the New York Islanders, Shepard stopped 36 of 37 shots and was named the game’s First Star in a 4-1 Washington win. In 16 games with Hershey this season, Shepard has posted a record of 14-2-0 with a 2.28 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage. Shepard ranks fourth in the AHL in winsand sixth in goals-against average.
Shepard appeared in 33 games with Hershey last season, posting a record of 20-8-5 with a 2.18 goals-against average, a .916 save percentage and one shutout. The 6’0″, 219-pound goaltender ranked second among AHL goaltenders in goals-against average and tied for sixth in save percentage. Shepard, who was awarded the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as the MVP of the Calder Cup Playoffs, started all 20 playoff games for the Bears,posting a 14-6 record with a 2.27 goals-against average, a .914 save percentage and three shutouts en route to the franchise’s league-record 12th championship. In 61 career AHL games with Hershey, Shepard has a record of 42-13-5 with a 2.13 goals-against average, a .918 save percentage and four shutouts.
A native of Cohasset, Minnesota, Shepard won back-to-back NCAA Championships with Minnesota-Duluth in 2018 and 2019. In addition, he was twice named the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) Goaltender of the Year (2019 and 2020) and earned First-Team All-American honors in 2019 and Second-Team All-American honors in 2020. With Minnesota-Duluth, Shepard started an NCAA-record 115 straight games from Oct. 21, 2017 to March 7, 2020. Shepard finished his NCAA career as a three-time Mike Richter Award Finalist – given to the NCAA’s top goaltender – and a three-time All-NCHC selection.
Headline photo: Alan Dobbins/RMNB
