“Win, Win, Win, Win” – Is Ivan Miroshnichenko the Next Great Capitals Prospect?
Caps Prospects Have A Long History of Impacting Calder Cup Runs
I have been a Hershey Bears fan for as long as I can remember. In fact, it’s fair to say I’ve been a fan as long as I’ve been alive, even attending a few games as an infant at the Old Barn in the 2001-02 season. And throughout my life, I have gotten the chance to watch some incredible prospects come through Chocolatetown and make huge impacts on Calder Cup runs.
Since the team’s affiliation with the Washington Capitals began in 2005, the Bears have appeared in six Calder Cup Finals, winning four of them. In each of those runs to the finals, a prospect, or multiple prospects, have taken huge roles for the Bears.
In 2006 and 2007, we saw future Caps like Dave Steckel, Tomas Fleischmann, Mike Green, Eric Fehr, Brooks Laich and Boyd Gordon all be key contributors to one or both runs to the Finals. Who can forget Fehr’s Game 7 OT goal against Portland in 2006 that sent the Bears to the finals, or Fleischmann’s 53 points in 39 games between those two runs. While only the 2006 run saw the Bears win a title, the experience would be crucial for all of those guys, who would end up having key roles during the Caps “Young Guns” era.
Then in 2009, the first of two straight playoff runs that ended in cup wins, saw the top prospect come from the net. Michal Neuvirth, the Czech sensation in net that year. Not only did he have to take a permanent role as starter in the Bears net after Semyon Varlomov won a full-time role in DC, but he then had not just a historic run for the Bears, but a historic run among goalies in the AHL all time in 2009. Neuvirth put up a 1.92 GAA with a .932 SV% to lead the Bears to the title and get him Playoff MVP.
Neuvirth was once again crucial in 2010, and this time was joined by fellow future Caps in Mathieu Perreault, John Carlson, Karl Alzner, Jay Beagle and Braden Holtby. Perreault in particular put up 19 points in 21 games during that run, which saw the Bears complete the greatest season in AHL history with back-to-back Calder Cups (While this year’s team is a pretty close number 2, to me this is still the best team in Bears history. 60 wins, 123 points, 342 goals scored while only letting up 198. Domination doesn’t even describe what that team did to the league.)
Then 2016, there were future Stanley Cup Champions in Jakub Vrana, Chandler Stephenson and Christian Djoos who all played key parts in the Bears run to the finals.Vrana was one of the teams top point getters, finishing only behind Carter Camper and Djoos was the top scoring defenseman during that run. And while that run ended in disappointment, all three became key parts of the Capitals Stanley Cup winning team in 2018.
Then last year, it was Connor McMichael, Aliaksei Protas and Hendrix Lapierre who played the role of the prospects stepping up, with Protas leading the way in the playoffs between the trio with 13 points. McMichael and Protas became full time contributors this year for Washington, and while Lapierre is back for this playoff run, his role in the Caps playoff push this year almost certainly guarantees him a spot with the big club next season.
This year though, the prospect that makes the biggest mark may be Ivan Miroshnichenko. After a slow start, Miro has earned the love of Bears Nation, as he’s put up five goals in his last three games, including two in the series clinching win over Lehigh Valley a week and a half ago, and two goals against Hartford in game two, with his second of the night being a highlight reel goal, that earned well deserved comparisons to Capitals legend and his idol, Alex Ovechkin.
He was humble when discussing his second goal after the game. “I just play hockey, I tried to make pass, didn’t work, I made a move and I score,” said Miroshnichenko after the game. “I so happy. We go cup. Win, win, win, win.” It’s that type of mentality that will not only carry Miro far in these playoffs, but in his career as well.
“Wow. The first goal was a nice goal, a sharp angle shot on the power play, but his (Miroshnichenko) second goal was a great individual effort. Two great goals,” said Head Coach Todd Nelson. “More importantly, I stuck him out there when it was 4-1 with their goalie pulled to try and get him his hat trick. But he was very unselfish, he did a 30 second shift and came off the ice. That’s a sign of maturity and I’m proud of him.”
It is not always easy to get praise out of Todd Nelson, and it shows to Miro’s growth as a player and as a person this entire season, whether here in Hershey or up in Washington, that he’s getting that praise in some of the most crucial moments of the season. If he can continue this play, he will write his name into the books as another Bear who translates success in the Calder Cup Playoffs into a long NHL career.
