ARLINGTON, VA -– When Beck Malenstyn hit the ice for Capitals Training Camp this fall, he did so after only a three-month offseason. Like many of the Caps’ young prospects, Malenstyn played long into June as the AHL’s Hershey Bears captured their 12th Calder Cup. The 25-year-old forward provided valuable two-way play during the team’s championship run, combining an eight-point (4g, 4a) performance with top-notch defensive play and physicality. The Bears’ fourth line, which Malenstyn was a part of, was arguably the team’s best line during the postseason.
Now, Malenstyn has set his sights on the NHL. Though he’s served as a call up for the Caps in three of the last four seasons, this time he’s aiming for a more permanent spot.
“I’ve had the taste of it before, and all the work in the offseason was to be here full-time,” he said. “That’s the goal.”
Malenstyn is one of multiple forward prospects competing for an Opening Night roster spot in the bottom-six, including offseason acquisition Matthew Phillips as well as Bears teammates Aliaksei Protas and Joe Snively. All four remained in Training Camp following a round of cuts on Sunday.
Even amidst the growing competition, Malenstyn feels confident in his abilities.
“I think this is probably the best starting block I’ve had coming into camp,” he said. “So I’m super excited for that opportunity and just trying to make the most of every day.”
After starting the 2022-23 campaign in Hershey, Malenstyn joined the Capitals as a call up in late October. He would play only five games with Washington before a fractured finger cut his NHL stint short. Malenstyn missed nearly two months as he stayed in DC recovering from the injury. Once healthy, he returned to Hershey, remaining there until another brief call up in April.
“Every injury annoys me,” he said, “but that one was really tough. I felt really confident in those handful of games that I was able to call up for. Felt like I was playing my brand of hockey and really had a good chance to earn myself a role here.”
Still, he noted the benefits of an extended stint in Washington, even one spent recovering.
“Yeah, the broken finger was a pain in the butt, but it gave me the opportunity to still be around here a lot, learn from a lot of guys, go through that rehab process,” he said. “And then the opportunity that I got going down to Hershey and playing an important role on a team that was going to make a deep run and coming out with a championship is huge.”
Malenstyn played a significant role in that Bears run. His eight points in the playoffs was nearly equal to his 10-point performance in the regular season. He also brought significant physicality to the team — at one point laying a hit hard enough to break the glass in Game Four against the Charlotte Checkers in the Atlantic Division Semifinals. The experience helped Malenstyn develop into an even better player.
“You play a ton of high-pressure, intense hockey,” Malenstyn said. “There’s a lot of situations where a little mistake can be a game. So I think just pulling all that experience is huge coming into training camp, being able to execute under those pressured situations and having confidence.”
After the Bears’ victory, Malenstyn pivoted into his preparations for the season ahead. His regular summer plans required modifications with far less time to train.
“I think I had to learn to really balance time off and time in the gym,” he said. “You’re used to having those three-month windows where you can kind of get in there, get into your routine, really hammer it home and feel good leaving. And this time it was a little more of, ‘okay, we’re going to work for a week. Then we need to take a couple of days and we’re going to work for a week.’”
When he arrived in Washington, he reunited with a familiar face in new head coach Spencer Carbery. Malenstyn previously played under both Carbery and Capitals assistant coach Scott Allen during their respective tenures as Bears head coaches.
“I’m in a really fortunate position where I have relationships with these coaches from the past,” he said. “They’ve seen my game as I’ve kind of grown through pro.”
Of Carbery, he later added, “As far as his coaching style, it’s very similar to what I saw my first two years pro having him in Hershey. So coming into the rink I know what to expect every single day and I know what he expects out of me, which is really helpful.”
Fellow fourth-liner Nic Dowd has taken Malenstyn under his wing in Washington and had nothing but praise for the young forward.
“Beck’s a really really good person,” he said. “I think to make it in the NHL that’s a prerequisite. Not lot of guys figure that out early.” He later added, “I like playing with him. Me and him seem to be on the same page. I think we played really well together last year. So I think we’re going try and continue that this year.”
Dowd also praised Malenstyn’s willingness to prove himself in a bottom-six spot.
“He’s also a guy who understands if he is going to get his original shot to get get his foot in the door, it’s going to require a certain type of play. Not a lot of guys understand that early in their careers.
“I think guys have to get into the league and then showcase themselves to stay in the league and then you can get those opportunities, but no one’s going to come up and take a first or second line center spot or a first or second line left wing spot immediately. That’s not going to happen, right? So you need to bide your time and learn how you can get and stay in the NHL in order to get that opportunity to get up in the lineup and I think Beck’s one of the few guys as a young guy that does understand that.”
The Capitals have three remaining preseason games before the puck drops on Opening Night. With less than two weeks left to prove himself, Malenstyn identified consistency as his top priority.
“It’s just being able to go out there and execute in all those situations. Taking care of the puck, smart plays on the wall, things like that. PKing as well, and then those details, right? So it’s those little aspects of my game that, if I can just nail those down all the time, I think I give myself a good chance.”
Headline photo: Alan Dobbins/RMNB
