The Washington Capitals announced Saturday night that rookie forwards Ivan Miroshnichenko and Hendrix Lapierre have been sent down to the AHL’s Hershey Bears. Both players were recalled on Tuesday, December 19, and played three games for the Capitals before the three-day holiday break.
Per section 16.5(d)(ii) of the NHL CBA, the Capitals had until 11:59 Saturday night to send down waivers-exempt players (such as Miroshnichenko and Lapierre) before the holiday roster freeze prevented them from doing so. Both forwards played Saturday night against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the team’s 2-1 shootout loss.
For Miroshnichenko, his first call-up saw him make his NHL debut Wednesday against the New York Islanders. He spent all three games on the Capitals’ second line with Evgeny Kuznetsov, playing a total of 28:38 minutes.
“Similar to what we saw in the preseason, there’s, you could see the offensive instincts from him in the first couple games,” head coach Spencer Carbery said of Miroshnichenko’s play Saturday morning, later adding, ““Does he have a long way to go? Absolutely. This is a really young player playing in the best league in the world. There’s a lot of little things inside of his game from just a simple growing, maturity, strength standpoint, but positive signs in the first two games.”
Lapierre, meanwhile, has dressed for a total of 13 games so far this season for Washington. He recorded a two-point night against the New York Islanders on Tuesday, scoring the game-opening goal in the Capitals’ 3-2 OT win.
After the holiday break, Miroshnichenko and Lapierre will return to the AHL-leading Hershey Bears, who will face the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins on December 27.
Here’s the full release from the Capitals.
Capitals Loan Ivan Miroshnichenko and Hendrix Lapierre to Hershey
The Washington Capitals have loaned forwards Ivan Miroshnichenko and Hendrix Lapierre to the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL), president and general manager Brian MacLellan announced today.
Miroshnichenko, the Capitals’ first-round pick (20th overall) in the 2022 NHL Draft, made his NHL debut on Dec. 20 vs. the New York Islanders, logging 10:14 of ice time. Miroshnichenko has appeared in three games with Washington this season and has averaged 9:33 of ice time.
The 6’0”, 192-pound forward has recorded 15 points (8g, 7a) in 27 games in his first season with Hershey. Miroshnichenko leads Bears rookies in goals, assists and points and ranks tied for eighth among AHL rookies in goals. Miroshnichenko ranks tied for third among all Hershey skaters in goals, but his seven even-strength goals are the second most on the team.
The Ussuriysk, Russia native recorded four points (3g, 1a) in 23 games with Avangard Omsk of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) last season, where he averaged 8:27 of ice time per game. Miroshnichenko also recorded three assists in four games with Omskie Krylia of the Supreme Hockey League (Russia-2) and 14 points (10g, 4a) in 12 games with Omskie Yastreby of the Junior Hockey League (Russia-Jr.) in 2022-23.
Miroshnichenko tallied seven points (2g, 5a) in 16 playoffs games with Omskie Yastreby, which ranked tied for eighth on the team.
Miroshnichenko spent the 2021-22 season with Omskie Krylia and recorded 16 points (10g, 6a) in 31 games. In addition, Miroshnichenko captained Russia to the gold medal at the 2021 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, where he recorded nine points (4g, 5a) in five games. Miroshnichenko’s nine points during the tournament ranked tied for fourth among all skaters and his +7 plus/minus rating ranked tied for second.
Miroshnichenko also represented Russia at the 2021 4 Nations Tournament, where he recorded two points (1g, 1a) in three games.
Miroshnichenko was ranked third among European left wings and 11th among all European forwards by NHL Central Scouting ahead of the 2022 NHL Draft.
Lapierre, 21, has recorded five points (2g, 3a) in 14 games with the Capitals this season. The 6’0”, 188-pound forward recorded his second multi-point game (1g, 1a) of the season on Nov. 20 vs. the New York Islanders, which followed a three-point effort (1g, 2a) on Nov. 18 vs. the Columbus Blue Jackets. In eleven games with Hershey this season, Lapierre has registered eight points (2g, 6a).
Lapierre, the Capitals’ first-round choice (22nd overall) in the 2020 NHL Draft, recorded 30 points (15g, 15a) in 60 games during his first professional season with Hershey in 2022-23. Lapierre ranked second among Hershey rookies in goals, points, power-play points (10) and shots (114). In addition, Lapierre ranked third on the Bears in power-play goals (5).
Lapierre added six points (3g, 3a) in 20 playoff games, including the game-tying goal in Game 7 of the Calder Cup Finals.
The Gatineau, Quebec native appeared in six games with the Capitals during the 2021-22 season. Lapierre made his NHL debut and scored his first career goal versus the New York Rangers on Oct. 13, 2021, becoming the first Capitals rookie since 2014-15 to make his NHL debut at the age of 19 and the fifth-youngest player in franchise history to score in his debut. In 20 career games with Washington, Lapierre has recorded six points (3g, 3a).