Ilya Protas added another major accolade from the AHL after a tremendously successful rookie campaign.
Protas was one of six players named to the 2025-26 AHL Top Prospects Team on Wednesday. The team, determined by the league’s hockey operations department in conjunction with AHL general managers, is made up of three forwards, two defensemen, and one goaltender projected to be the best future NHL players.
The 19-year-old center is the first Hershey Bear to earn the honor since the league first instituted the AHL Top Prospects Team for the 2022-23 season.
Protas, who was named the AHL’s Rookie of the Year, led the league’s rookies in scoring with 66 points (29g, 37a) in 69 games and tied for sixth in the league in scoring among all players. Among just rookies, Protas also finished second in goals and assists, second in power-play goals (11), and first in points per game among players with at least 48 games played (0.96).
The Washington Capitals prospect also became just the sixth Hershey Bears player ever to be named to the AHL All-Rookie Team. He was also named the AHL’s Rookie of the Month for April, took home four regular-season awards from the Bears, including Team MVP, and was the club’s lone representative at the 2026 AHL All-Star Classic in February.
2025-26 AHL Top Prospects Team
Goaltender – Sergei Murashov, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
Defenseman – Adam Engström, Laval Rocket
Defenseman – Carter Yakemchuk, Belleville Senators
Forward – Michael Brandsegg-NygĂ¥rd, Grand Rapids Griffins
Forward – Konsta Helenius, Rochester Americans
Forward – Ilya Protas, Hershey Bears
According to the Bears, Protas’ 66 points were the most by a Bears rookie since Craig Fisher (79, 1990-91), and were the fourth-most by a teenager in AHL history. He is just the fifth rookie in team history to lead or tie for the team lead in scoring, joining Phil Maloney (79, 1948-49), Paul Guay (53, 1984-85), Fisher, and Connor McMichael (27, 2020-21). His 29 goals were the most in a single season by a teenage player for the Bears, breaking the previous mark of 20 established by Réal Chevrefils in 1951-52.
Protas made his NHL debut for the Capitals against the Toronto Maple Leafs on April 8, recording his first career point on a Cole Hutson empty-net goal. He eventually returned to the Bears for their AHL postseason run, notching six points (2g, 4a) in six games.
