Washington Capitals Assign Braden Holtby to Hershey of the AHL

The Washington Capitals have assigned 21-year-old goaltender Braden Holtby to the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL), vice president and general manager George McPhee announced today.

The move should not be a surprise. Holtby was magnificent in his latest stint with the big club. In fact, Holtby was named the National Hockey League's first star of the week last week.

The 6'2", 205-pouond Lloydminster, Saskatchewan, native posted a 4-0-0 recrd, 1.05 goals-against average, .965 save percentage and one shutout to receive the honor. He recorded his first career shutout on March 9 against the Edmonton Oilers.

Holtby became the sixth goalie in Capitals history to record his first NHL shutout in 10 games or less.

Following last night's shutout win over the New Jersey Devils, Caps head coach Bruce Boudreau hinted that the goaltending situation has not yet been settled for the postseason.

Even with Holtby and Michael Neuvirth playing lights out, Budreau said that Semyon Varlamov, who has been out battling injuries, would also get a shot to shine before the playoffs.

When asked about his goalies following last night's game Boudreau said, “We’ll just keep going on.” “Varly is going to get his chance next week and we’ll see where it goes."

Neuvirth recorded his fourth shutout of the season and his career last night when he made 33 saves against the New Jersey Devils. The Capitals are not going to carry three goaltenders, so it was apparent Holtby would be the odd man out.

Varlamov has battled groin and side issues all season and has not played since Feb. 20 when he made 28 saves defeating the Buffalo Sabres 2-1. Varlamov is 10-8 this season with a save percentage of 2.27 and a .923 GAA.

Holtby has played extremely well this season for Washington. He is 9-2-2 in 13 games with a 1.95 GAA and a .930 save percentage. Aside from recording his first NHL shutout on this trip up with the big club, Holtby also registered his first NHL point.

Holtby assisted on a goal in Tuesdays win over the Montreal Canadiens.

All three have put the Caps into the record books this season. Washington is the first team to have three goalies, aged 22 years or younger, post four or more wins in one season.

The three have combined to go 42-21-10 this season with a GAA of 2.30 and a .920 save percentage. All have posted a shutout with Neuvy leading the way with four, followed by Varly’s two and Holtby’s one.

The following information was provided by hersheybears.com:

Holtby is 14-6-2 in 23 games with the Bears this season. He ranks second in the AHL in save percentage (.930 percent) and third in goals against average (1.98). Last season, in his first year as a pro, Holtby posted a 24-8-2 record with a 2.32 GAA and a .917 save percentage in 37 games with the Bears.

He led the team in wins and was ranked fourth in the AHL, first among rookies, in GAA. He also played in 12 games for South Carolina (ECHL), posting a 7-2-3 record and participating in the ECHL All-Star Game.

Holtby was the Capitals' fourth-round choice, 93rd overall, in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.