Ilya Protas

Ilya Protas (, ; born July 18, 2006) is a Belarusian professional ice hockey player who is a centre for the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL). He made his professional debut in 2024 with the Hershey Bears.

Playing career Protas began his junior career in 2023 playing for the Des Moines Buccaneers of the United States Hockey League (USHL). While playing for Des Moines, he was drafted 75th overall in the 2024 NHL entry draft by the Washington Capitals. He played in 61 games for the Buccaneers, scoring 14 goals and assisting on 37, for a total of 51 points.

For the 2024–25 season, Protas joined the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Playing in 61 games, Protas scored 50 goals and assisted on 74, for a total of 124 points. In twelve playoff games, he scored 5 goals and had 20 assists, for a total of 25 points.

Protas began the 2025–26 season playing for the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League. In 66 games, Protas scored 28 goals and 34 assists, for a total 62 points. Protas was called up to the Capitals on April 6, 2026. Protas scored his first NHL point during a 4–0 victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs on April 8, 2026, his debut game. He then scored his first career NHL goal in a 6–3 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on April 11, 2026. He finished the NHL season with one goal and three assists in four games. On April 15, 2026, Protas was loaned back to Hershey. On April 23, 2026, Protas was awarded the Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award, given to the "rookie of the year" in the AHL.

Personal life Protas' older brother, Aliaksei, was drafted by the Capitals in the third round of the 2019 NHL entry draft.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2023–24 Des Moines Buccaneers USHL 61 14 37 61 14 — — — — — 2024–25 Windsor Spitfires OHL 61 50 74 124 34 12 5 20 25 6 2025–26 Hershey Bears AHL 69 29 37 66 40 6 2 4 6 6 2025–26 Washington Capitals NHL 4 1 3 4 2 — — — — —NHL totals 4 1 3 4 2 — — — — —

Awards and honours Award Year RefUSHL USHL All-Rookie Team 2024 OHL OHL All-Star Second team 2025 William Hanley Trophy 2025 AHL AHL All-Star Game 2026 Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award 2026