Bogdan Trineyev went from being sometimes healthy-scratched early during the 2023-24 season to a pivotal member of the Hershey Bears’ Calder Cup championship team.
Now the fourth-line forward may have the inside track on a roster spot next season in Washington.
Saturday, during Day 2 of the NHL Draft, the Washington Capitals traded Beck Malenstyn to the Buffalo Sabres for a second-round pick. The team used the selection to pick high-scoring defenseman Cole Hutson out of the US National Development Team Program.
Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan spoke to the media and said the team could fill Malenstyn’s vacant spot internally from Hershey.
“Trineyev could be one (option),” MacLellan said. “We’ll see what kind of camp everyone has. We’ll have options there.”
MacLellan would not ruling out signing someone, too. NHL free agency will begin on Monday, July 1.
“We might go outside, too,” he said.
According to MacLellan, the Capitals were not necessarily looking deal Malenstyn off the roster, but the opportunity the Sabres presented them was too hard to pass up. Malenstyn, 26, was a former fifth-round pick of the team.
“We didn’t want to move Beck,” MacLellan said. “We like what he’s done. We drafted him. He’s been a big part of our organization, success in Hershey. Had a good year last year. But I just think the opportunity for that pick that we could use to to hopefully get a D — and we ended up getting a D — that was our hope in making that play.”
Restocking the defense prospect cupboard has become vitally important for the Capitals as John Carlson enters the twilight of his career. The team has only two serious defense prospects — Vincent Iorio and Ryan Chesley — in the system. So while moving on from a popular and highly respected checking-line forward was painful, Capitals’ brass found it worth it.
Malenstyn, who made $762.5k last season, is also a restricted free agent with arbitration rights and will likely command a substantial raise over last season. MacLellan, however, denied money being a factor.
“That had nothing to do with our decision at all,” MacLellan said. “We were perfectly content on signing Beck and moving forward with him. I think it was more about the future and finding a defenseman.”
The Capitals fourth line over the last few seasons has been used in a heavily-defensive role and featured Nic Dowd as the team’s centerman. MacLellan already revealed the team was planning to move on from Nicolas Aube-Kubel suggesting the trio could have a much different look next season.
Trineyev, a power forward and right wing, was one of the Bears’ best players in the postseason despite only registering four points in 20 postseason games — all assists. The Russian forward was the first player to jump over the boards for the penalty kill. At five-on-five, Trineyev threw the body consistently and displayed a heavy shot that frequently caused chaos for other teams.
During the regular season, Trineyev finished with the same number of goals (9) as his close friend Ivan Miroshnichenko. Three of those tallies came shorthanded. In total, Trineyev recorded 16 points in 63 games played. The 2023-24 season was Trineyev’s rookie season in the AHL. The year before, he was mentored by Aliaksei Protas during the 2023 postseason as a black ace.
