After the IIHF re-affirmed that no players under NHL contract can play in the Beijing Olympics, nations are filling their rosters from the rest of the world’s best leagues.
Thursday, the Czech Republic announced their Olympics roster which includes former Capitals defensemen Jakub Jerabek and Tomas Kundratek.
By Chris Cerullo 2 years ago
Early Monday, the Czech Republic announced their roster for the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
While hockey legend Jaromir Jagr was not extended an invite, the Czech Republic national team will feature several players with NHL experience, including two who used to play for the Capitals.
Former Caps forward Martin Erat will captain the Czechs while former Capitals and Hershey Bears stalwart Tomáš Kundrátek was named one of eight defensemen to the team.
Other notables include Michal Jordan, who played 78 games for the Carolina Hurricanes over three NHL seasons, and Roman Cervenka (39 games for the Calgary Flames in 2013).
Photo: @Kundrc84
Washington Capitals defense prospect Tomas Kundratek has always been active on social media. A few years ago, to encourage more Movember donations, he offered to take his most generous fan out to for a free meal at Houlihan’s. Yes. Houlihan’s.
While in Arlington last week for Caps training camp, Kundtratek challenged some of his 8,000-plus followers to a game of NHL15 along with 18-year-old goaltender Vitek Vanecek.
Two young Caps fans, Stuart Penninger and his brother Lee, played a surreal game of virtual hockey against two pros from their favorite team. It was a birthday treat.
Andre Burakovsky is the best Caps prospect yet to play a game with the big club (Photo: Elsa/Getty Images).
With rookie camp upon us, RMNB presents the new edition of its semiannual prospect rankings.
Prospect rankings factor in a player’s potential, his probability to reach his ceiling (including an assessment of that player’s adaptation to NHL’s style of play), and physical and mental maturity.
The Caps prospect pool is considered top-heavy, with four Caps prospects ranked in top-50 league-wide by both Corey Pronman and NHL.com. However, there’s believed to be a significant drop-off in talent after that. While Capitals management has tried to make their prospect pool deeper, they’ve still got work to do. The Caps are considered thin at center in particular, underlined by auditioning their two top wingers for a center slot.
By 9 years ago
Chandler Stephenson has been one of the most impressive Caps prospects this season (Photo: Derek Leung/Getty Images)
The first half of the 2013-14 season has been mostly positive for Washington Capitals prospects. Unknowns like Andre Burakovsky and Chandler Stephenson have shown real NHL potential, while the elder statesmen of the pool like Nate Schmidt and Patrick Wey, both coming off tremendous college careers, have made steps up the Caps’ depth chart.
However, top two Caps prospects will wish their first half was better: Evgeny Kuznetsov‘s injuries have limited his action and Tom Wilson has had a hard time gaining a meaningful role with the big club.
The feel-good story of the season so far has been Stephenson, who had been bugged by injuries in the past, but is now thriving in a veteran role as an offensive go-to guy for his team. I’ve got more on these stories and our full top-20 ranking below. (more…)
By 10 years ago
Photo credit: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images
Washington Capitals prospect Garrett Mitchell is expected to miss four to six months as he recovers from shoulder surgery. According to Tim Leone of The Patriot-News, the surgery is scheduled for Thursday in Washington.
Mitchell has a torn labrum in his right shoulder. He said he’s had shoulder problems for most of the season, but the ailment was aggravated on Nov. 24 during a game against the Binghamton Senators.
By 10 years ago
Washington Capitals defensive prospect Dmitry Orlov set his AHL high with four points (one goal, three assists) in the Hershey Bears’ 4-0 away victory over the St. John’s IceCaps on Saturday. Philipp Grubauer‘s shutout gave the Bears their first win of the season (1-2-1).
Orlov missed an NHL recall opportunity this week as a case of pink eye kept him from filling in for John Erskine. Orlov was healthy-scratched out of Friday’s Bears game as well, but after a 5-1 loss the night before, Bears coach Mike Haviland made two changes to the lineup, one of which was putting Orlov in for Tomas Kundratek.
By 10 years ago
Jack Hillen and Steve Oleksy are frontrunners for defensive spots on the Caps opening night roster. (Photo credit: Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
With days to go before the start of the regular season, a few questions regarding the Washington Capitals’ opening day roster remain unanswered. First among them is this: who will be the Caps bottom-pairing D-men?
By 10 years ago
Tom Wilson and Madison Bowey during Caps Development Camp in July. (Photo credit: Chris Gordon)
[Editor’s Note: Fedor has reported on Washington Capitals prospects for RMNB for the last three years. This year we’re proud to introduce his prospect rankings. The rankings will be updated three times during the season– with the goal of updating you on how prospects are or not progressing. The first edition of the rankings come on the second day of Rookie Camp, as Caps prospects jockey for position within the organization.]
The Washington Capitals have re-stocked their prospect pipeline over the past two NHL drafts, giving fans a wealth of new players to get excited about in addition to a few solid free-agent prospects signings.
The 2012 Draft is turning out be a sterling spot on George McPhee’s resume. After picking Filip Forsberg and Tom Wilson in the first round, GMGM made a few strong picks in the latter rounds with Thomas DiPauli, Connor Carrick, Riley Barber, and Christian Djoos– all of whom have been invited to their junior national team camps and left good impressions.
Depth on defense is an area of strength for this crop of talent, with more than a few prospects ready to compete for roster spots as soon as they open.
Below, check out inaugural edition of the RMNB prospect rankings.
By 10 years ago
Photo credit: Greg Fiume
The Washington Capitals have announced that Czech defenseman Tomas Kundratek has signed a two-year contract worth $1.1 million. Kundratek played 49 games with the AHL’s Hershey Bears last season, scoring 16 goals and tallying 31 points. His surprising breakthrough resulted in an extended look in the NHL, where Kundratek played in 25 games, netting one goal and seven points.
This new deal with the 23-year-old blueliner is another example of George McPhee’s crafty management.
By 10 years ago
