The Washington Capitals are keeping goaltender Hunter Shepard in their organization.
The 28-year-old netminder cleared waivers on Monday after being waived the day prior. Shepard will report to the AHL’s Hershey Bears, where he has been the number-one starter for the past two seasons and won two Calder Cups.
Everyone else clears
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) October 7, 2024
Shepard, the organization’s number three goaltender, was named AHL playoff MVP in 2023 and won AHL Goaltender of the Year last season. He posted a 27-4-3 record with a 1.76 goals-against average, a .929 save percentage, and five shutouts with Hershey last year.
The Minnesota-born goalie played his first four career NHL games last year and is 2-1-1 in those games with a 3.18 goals-against average and a .894 save percentage. Washington’s NHL crease this year will feature the tandem of Charlie Lindgren and Thompson.
Shepard will rejoin Clay Stevenson as the tandem in Hershey. Last season, the two earned the Harry’ Haps’ Holmes Memorial Award, given annually to the goaltending duo in the AHL that allows the fewest goals per game during the regular season. They combined to allow only 2.10 goals per game.
Their 12 combined shutouts also set a franchise record for most single-season shutouts by a tandem, surpassing the previous 2014-15 record set by Phillip Grubauer (6), Phoenix Copley (3), and Justin Peters (1).
#Caps loan goaltender Hunter Shepard to the Hershey Bears (AHL).
— CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR) October 7, 2024
Here’s the release from the Bears:
GOALTENDER HUNTER SHEPARD LOANED TO HERSHEY
Goaltender has led Hershey to back-to-back Calder Cup titles
(Hershey, PA – October 7, 2024) – The Washington Capitals, the National Hockey League affiliate of the Hershey Bears, announced today that goaltender Hunter Shepard has been loaned to Hershey.
Shepard, 28, went 27-4-3 in 34 appearances for Hershey in an exceptional 2023-24 campaign that saw him lead the league with a 1.76 goals-against average – the lowest in club history and fifth-lowest mark in AHL history – and a .929 save percentage while recording five shutouts. He won the Aldege “Baz” Bastien Memorial Award as the AHL’s outstanding goaltender for the 2023-24 season and helped Hershey capture the Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy as the AHL’s regular season champions.
He allowed one goal or fewer in 17 of his 34 starts, and was named to the 2023-24 AHL First All-Star Team and won the Harry “Hap” Holmes Memorial Award along with teammate Clay Stevenson as Hershey surrendered a league-low 2.10 goals per game. Shepard’s .838 win percentage in the regular season established a new single-season record in Bears history, and that mark is the second-highest winning percentage in league history.
In the playoffs, Shepard guided Hershey to a second straight Calder Cup, going 14-6 in the playoffs with a 2.49 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage. In the 2023 postseason, Shepard had an identical record with a 2.27 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage to go along with three shutouts, earning him the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as most valuable player in the Calder Cup Playoffs.
In his AHL career, Shepard is 55-15-8 in 79 games for Hershey with a 1.94 goals-against average, a .925 save percentage, and eight shutouts.
In four career NHL games with the Capitals, Shepard has a record of 2-1-1 with a 3.19 goals-against average and a .894 save percentage.
Hershey opens the 2024-25 regular season, presented by Penn State Health, when they host the Cleveland Monsters on Saturday, Oct. 12 at 7 p.m. at GIANT Center.
