Washington Capitals’ Development Camp gave many of the 31 prospects an opportunity to meet and become close this week. Others went the extra mile when training was over.
“We got some time to bond away from the rink because of Fourth of July and went out for a big meal,” Capitals’ 2025 first round draft pick Lynden Lakovic said. “You know, it’s been great meeting the new guys and kind of hearing their stories. It’s been an awesome week meeting all these guys. We went to The Wharf and then for the fireworks. We went to the [Washington] Monument so that was a good time.”
Lakovic apparently had his choice of doing that or attending another super popular event in the DMV on Friday night. He ultimately turned down an opportunity to see Beyoncé in concert at Northwest Stadium.
“I did get [the invite], I did, I ended up not going honestly,” he said. “Tickets were a little pricey and it was like a 40-minute Uber so I don’t know if I could do that, so, yeah I think The Wharf was a pretty good plan though.”
While Lakovic didn’t jump on the opportunity, fellow prospects Maxim Shafer (2025 third round pick, 93rd overall) and Petr Sikora (2024 sixth round pick, 178th overall) did attend the show. The two were apparently recruiting other players all week, including Milton Gastrin.
“Yeah it was really nice concert, a lot of people, nice crowd,” Shafer told reporters Saturday. “Petr Sikora asked me if I want to go to the concert and yeah, I say, ‘Yes, why not?'”
The festivities capped off a busy, but fun orientation to the Capitals for the youngsters. They’ll now go their separate ways ahead of their respective minor and overseas club seasons, taking valuable experience away from their time with the Caps.
“We have no idea who’s going to be a teammate in the future,” 2024 second-round pick Cole Hutson said. “Just building relationships before hopefully you make it to the things. It’s good to get to know guys, build connections, and hopefully become teammates with them.”
