The NHLPA has had a busy week, hosting both the NHLPA Rookie Showcase in partnership with Upper Deck and the NHL/NHLPA Rookie Orientation Program.
Ninety young players from around the NHL attended the orientation, including three familiar faces from the Washington Capitals. Ryan Leonard, fresh off his appearance at the NHLPA Rookie Showcase, was joined by fellow Caps draft picks Ryan Chesley and Ilya Protas.
According to the NHLPA website, the program is a joint venture between the union and the league, resulting from the collective bargaining agreement reached in 2013. The program’s purpose is to educate players early on in their careers on how to enhance life skills, “both generally and as they relate to life in the NHL.”
Over the course of three training days each summer, players nearing NHL opportunities receive learning material on a wide variety of topics, ranging from “finance to personal branding to sensitivity training.”
Leonard, 20, is headed into his first full season as a pro after playing 17 regular-season and playoff games combined for the Capitals during the 2024-25 campaign. The 2023 first-round draft pick recorded 49 points (30g, 19a) in 37 games for Boston College before signing his entry-level contract with the Capitals last spring.
The Massachusetts native scored his first NHL goal in the same game that Alex Ovechkin tied Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goals record. He is expected to make the Capitals out of training camp and earn a regular spot in the team’s top-nine forward group.
Chesley, 21, also made his pro debut last season, but in the AHL with the Hershey Bears. The 2022 second-round draft pick recorded three points (1g, 2a) in four games for the Bears.
The right-handed defender signed his entry-level contract with the Capitals after finishing his junior season at the University of Minnesota. He posted 20 points (8g, 12a) in 40 games for the Golden Gophers in his final college campaign.
Protas, 19, had an offensive explosion in the OHL for the Windsor Spitfires during the 2024-25 season, recording 124 points (50g, 74a) in 61 games. The 2024 third-round draft pick finished second in the league in scoring and then chipped in an additional 25 points (5g, 20a) in 12 playoff games.
The younger brother of Capitals forward Aliaksei Protas was drafted out of the USHL, so he is not subject to the still temporarily intact NHL-CHL transfer agreement, which bars teenage-aged prospects from leaving their CHL teams for the AHL. He will likely make his pro debut in the AHL for the Bears if he doesn’t make the Caps this fall.
All three players will likely be at the Capitals’ rookie camp at the end of next week and then attend the club’s main training camp.
