The Hershey Bears saw two of their rookies reach milestones on the same play against the Springfield Thunderbirds, Saturday.
Patrick Thomas scored his first AHL goal in his first professional game after being set up by Ilya Protas with 43 seconds remaining in the first period. The primary assist also marked Protas’s first AHL point.
“Who keeps the puck?” the Bears asked on social media.
The goal was made possible due to some hustle by Protas on the forecheck. As Thunderbirds defenseman Theo Lindstein looked to break out of the zone, Protas’s pressure forced him to make a poor pass, chunking his feed off the netting of Springfield’s goal.
Protas then picked up the loose biscuit and fed Thomas, who beat goaltender Georgi Romanov with a shot from between the circles.
For Protas, the milestone point comes in his third career AHL game with the Bears, while Thomas, a 2023 fourth-round pick of the Capitals, was suiting up as Ethen Frank got called up to the Capitals and Ivan Miroshnichenko suffered an injury during the morning skate. According to the voice of the Bears, Zack Fisch, the Caps’ 2022 first-round pick, crashed into the boards during the skate and is out day-to-day.
The 21-year-old Thomas is playing in his first professional season after signing a three-year, entry-level contract with the Capitals in April. During his final year in junior, Thomas notched 104 points (27g, 77a) in 66 games while serving as captain of the OHL’s Brantford Bulldogs. He has served as a playoff black ace in Hershey the past two seasons.
The goal would stand up as the game-winner in Hershey’s 5-1 victory. Protas would add his first AHL goal on an empty netter in the third period.
