Many members of the 2024-25 Washington Capitals are off to hot starts, but perhaps no player has been more impressive than Aliaksei Protas.
Protas, a Capitals’ third-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, is nearing a new career high in points despite being only a third into the season. After notching 29 points (6g, 23a) in 78 games during the 2023-24 campaign, Protas already has 24 points (9g, 15a) in 27 games this year.
The 23-year-old Belorussian is fourth in scoring on a Capitals team that came into Sunday on top of the NHL standings. The way he has collected those points is even more impressive, though, as none of them have come with Washington on a power play. His 20 five-on-five points lead the team, and they are tied for the fifth most in the entire league.
When you factor in ice time, Protas is outproducing all but one player in the NHL: Alex Ovechkin.
| Player | 5v5 points | 5v5 points per 60 minutes |
|---|---|---|
| Alex Ovechkin (WSH) | 16 | 4.46 |
| Aliaksei Protas (WSH) | 20 | 3.48 |
| Brandon Hagel (TBL) | 21 | 3.48 |
| Will Cuylle (NYR) | 19 | 3.48 |
| Ivan Barbashev (VGK) | 25 | 3.47 |
| Martin Necas (CAR) | 20 | 3.39 |
| Matthew Tkachuk (FLA) | 17 | 3.37 |
| Tyler Seguin (DAL) | 13 | 3.29 |
| Eric Robinson (CAR) | 16 | 3.21 |
| Jack Eichel (VGK) | 22 | 3.20 |
| Kirill Kaprizov (MIN) | 24 | 3.14 |
| Mason Marchment (DAL) | 17 | 3.14 |
| Connor McMichael (WSH) | 18 | 3.05 |
| Dylan Strome (WSH) | 18 | 3.04 |
| Artemi Panarin (NYR) | 20 | 3.02 |
*150-minute time-on-ice minimum
Protas’s overall five-on-five production also tops other superstar names like Nikita Kucherov (19), Connor McDavid (19), Sidney Crosby (18), Leon Draisaitl (17), Nathan MacKinnon (16), Mikko Rantanen (16), Mitch Marner (16) David Pastrnak (16), Brayden Point (15), and Jack Hughes (15) among others.
The big forward is on pace to record 73 points (27g, 46a) over a full 82-game schedule this year. He is set for that mark despite playing just 1:33 of total man-advantage ice time through 27 games of the season.
If Protas were to hit the 70-point mark, he’d be the first Belorussian player to ever do so in NHL history. The current all-time-best mark is held by Calgary Flames forward Yegor Sharangovich, who put up 59 points (31g, 28a) in 82 games last season.
