The Capitals bright future in Ryan Leonard and Andrew Cristall
[Music] your locked on capitals your daily podcast on the Washington Capitals part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day get to going here talking about Ryan Leonard and I haven’t seen this amount of excitement for a capitals player future capitals player in quite some time there was some Buzz that he would join the team as the capitals made their push for the playoffs but then the word came in that he wanted to play his sophomore season back at Boston College uh and he did have one heck of a career for or I should say last season for the Eagles and if if you’re not familiar with Ryan Leonard for whatever reason Leonard is a 19-year-old forward from Amherst uh who was selected by the capitals as the eighth overall pick in the 2023 NHL draft although primarily listed as a center has displayed his versatility by playing all three four positions with the US national u18 squad his partnership with Gabe perau and Will Smith has been formidable and the tri will continue to show the case their skills at Boston College next season as well maybe uh there has been talk that Will Smith uh might take his next step and potentially uh that there is a possibility that the capitals will you know give the full court press to to Ryan Leonard is there the possibility that somehow someway he joins the capitals it remains to be seen talking about Leonard here in his string of success with the u8 team and how he was big in the team success winning gold at the u8 World Championships Leonard’s performance was remarkable with 94 points in 57 games with the u8 and 20 points in 17 games in the USL he was instrumental in leading Team USA to a gold medal in the u8 world championship he has been clutch on pretty much every stop that he’s made along the way uh we have seen a little bit diminished numbers from him most recently in the world championships but all things considered he has been as advertised Leonard’s success at Boston College in his freshman year in World Junior Championships we know what he did for Boston College uh just lit it up uh one of the best players to go through that uh uh University and that I think is ultimately why capitals fans are excited about seeing him in a capitals Jersey the 23 24 season started slowly for Leonard but he later embarked on a remarkable goalscoring streak in November finishing the season with 31 goals 29 assists and 168 shot on goal in 41 games as well as accumulating 38 penalty minutes what are some of the things we know about R Ryan leard is that he is sort of a Tom Wilson 2.0 he’s got the size he’s got the skill set and I ultimately think that at some point he will actually even be a better player than Tom Wilson is it just remains to be seen taking a look at him October saw Leonard making a strong start to the season contributing one goal and four assists in six games his impressive form continued in November where he scored eight goals and recorded three assists in eight games earning himself the title of Hockey East player of the week in the subsequent months Leonard continue to make significant contributions including his participation in the 2024 World Junior Championships where he helped Team USA secure the gold medal again he is the guy that knocks it out of the park wherever he stops and I think that ultimately that is why capitals fans are in such a wor to see him on the big team if in any way he is at least a portion of that playing in the NHL I think the capitals will be markedly better uh than they have been in previous years and you take a look at it this team is transitioning from an older team to a younger team and I think that players like Ryan Leonard will be the players to lead the charge in that direction along with the likes of Andrew Crystal Ivan mirish nenko HRI SLO here Conor McMichael that I think things will change a lot in the future and Ryan Leonard figures to be a big part of that so what’s the forecast if we take a look at next season where will Ryan Leonard be what kind of player is he at the end of the day looking ahead Leonard is poised to return to Boston College for his sophomore season where he’s expected to assume a more prominent role as the team sets its sights on winning the NCA a frozen four finals alongside his linemates wills Smith and Gabe perau so I think that of course that is ultimately what they’re looking for is to make another push for the playoffs again that has been the rumor mill about Smith going to the Sharks uh is there any chance uh that Leonard does join the capitals even though he said he wants to play his sophomore season at Boston College I think stranger things have happened but all things considered if you could put a bowl on his season I would say very successful I don’t think that the capitals could have asked for anything more by selecting Ryan Leonard there was a lot of players uh speculated out there that maybe the capital should go in on mof maybe they should go in on Benson well mof wasn’t GNA even be an option anyway as he got selected ahead and went to the Flyers but all things considered you know kind of looking back on this in the rearview mirror I think that they made the right decision that Brian mlen and uh the the Ross Mahoney and the people making the decisions in the draft they made the right selection by selecting Ryan Leonard a key piece for years to come I really do believe in and as capitals fans I know it’s hard to be patient uh but it will be worth the wait just to get it going here talking about Andrew Crystal one of the guys that uh many people had kind of wondered why didn’t he go in the first round he’s the one that’s the good friend with Conor Bard uh just has a really great skill so big skill set and but what was the hangup on him why did he go in the second round in the second round the 223 NHL draft the cap selected Andrew Crystal a 19-year-old left Winger from Vancouver Crystal was a standal player for the Colona rockets in the Western Hockey League where he played before being drafted he had an impressive draft season with 95 points 39 goals 56 assists in 54 games leading the Colona rockets in ranking sixth in the WHL and you know kind of it’s the same thing about Crystal as I would say for Ryan Lenard two different players as I think that um you know Leonard’s got the bigger frame he’s got the higher skill set but I think that Andrew crystal is a little bit more of a raw talent but I ultimately think that you know if the stars align and he can continue to work on his game I think the future is bright for the capitals despite the initial concerns that caps would have to trade up to get Crystal they could pick him with a 40th overall pick caps GM Brian mclen said that it attempted a couple of opportunities on Thursday to move up on to the second round to select Crystal however Crystal was still available when the capitals turn came and they quickly made their second draft pick again this is news about Crystal when he was selected last summer in 2023 that you know was kind of something that fell in their lap and some people are surprised why was he available and I think to a certain extent some fans were thinking I’m like if he’s so great why was he available in the second round I’ll talk about that a little bit later in this segment Crystal’s excellent Puck skills in hockey IQ make him a dynamic offensive threat and a top six Winger in the NHL potentially his skating abilities will require work but his skill and hockey sense are standout attributes even among a deep skilled draft class he has a powerful and accurate shot and is an excellent at shooting through traffic and fooling genders again sign us up you know we hear often times that the capitals want to get younger they want to get faster Andrew is that but we want to see is he good to go you know it’s one thing to play uh good in the WHL but that doesn’t necessarily always translate to the NHL it would be interesting to see if they could get something like that but let’s kind of turn back the clock a little bit and talk about Crystal before playing Junior Hockey Crystal played at St George’s prep school where he was named a team captain of the u15 squad in his sophomore year and led the team with 80 points in just 27 games and oftentimes you hear that about these players like Bard they’re just good hockey players pretty much through their entire careers even before they make it big in The Following season of the 23 24 season Crystal continued his strong performance with Colona scoring a career-high 40 goals and making 71 assists reaching 111 points he ranked first in both assists and points for the team and was the second in goals only behind TIG ainla furthermore he ranked Fifth and assist for the Western Hockey League overall he has been one of the alternate captains for the Colona Rockets uh so quite a player and I think that you know that’s that’s what we know right now is how he’s played this last season and kind of just waiting to see on his progress he is still a young man and kind of like when I talked about Ryan Leonard let him grow into it I don’t think it’s the right idea to rush these players I understand what a lot of capitals fans are thinking well yeah we kind of want these players on the team right now but we don’t want them on the team cuz sometimes I think you can stunt their growth if you kind of push them forward uh before they’re ready but make no mistake about it I am excited about the you know the possibility of what Crystal can be there are several possibilities for Crystal he could make the caps team out of training camp for the 2425 season or be sent back to Colona uh I’m going to say it’s going to be a long shot for him to join the team out of camp in the fall I mean stranger things happen and you know if he shows the skill set then that’s great but again I don’t want to rush him if he’s not ready since he does not turn 20 until February he is still going to be sent to the Hershey Bears so uh he’s just going to have to bide his time and wait for the next big thing but you know we’re hoping for uh to to see more of him in the future and hopefully we don’t have to wait too long crystal said I’m a highly skilled offensive player I can produce at a high rate I like to bring people out of their seats capitals fans will eagerly wait to see Crystal bring his skills to the ice when he starts his professional hockey career whenever that might be uh but you know that is one of the things that I talked about is the future of this team you saw the move uh for the capitals to get that much younger this past season and not really by Design uh it was in part but then injuries and Nick Backstrom and if gny kets off kind of fast-tracked this youth infusion uh and Crystal and Leonard those are the players those are going to be the faces of the capitals in the future after Alex oetkin hangs up the skates we’re going to need these young stars to take the Reigns and be the next wave of your capitals however Crystal must work on his skating to reach the next level his straightaway skating is the most significant area where he needs to improve but he has shown Improvement in the 23 24 season his coaches have been impressed with his dedication to improving his skating and they believe that he has the work ethic to continue developing his game and that is what was said so to the people that are like why did Crystal go in the second round and not the first round that is the thing here let me reiterate Crystal must work on skating to reach the next level his straightaway skating is the most significant area where he needs to improve um and it’s not enough to be friends with Conor Bard it’s not enough to be you know linked to other big players we need to see more Crystal’s talent and potential have caught the attention of many in the NHL he has been compared to players like Johnny goodro and Patrick Kane for his quick hands and ability to make plays in tight spaces his offensive skills are undeniable and he has the potential to become a top scorer in the league again it was worth it to get him at number two uh there are no guarantees in last season season I had the guys from uh locked on NHL prospects I plan on having them on again in the future but they said you know with these guys when they’re not in the first round there is the possibility that he is not just NHL quality I think that that’s a bit presumptuous I think that’s maybe getting a little bit ahead uh but I think that he has to work on his game I think that the guys from lck on NHL prospects said I just it’s not it’s not a lock we don’t know for sure uh until he puts on the capitals Jersey in the regular season if in fact he is that kind of player but if you can see the Highlight package I mean oftentimes it’s not easy to catch those games but if you can catch any of the highlights he does have quite an impressive skill set and if he can even be just a fraction of that uh in the NHL that would be quite something Crystal can potentially become a star in the NHL and the capitals are fortunate to have him with his skill and determination he could help the team win their first Stanley Cup since 2018 capitals fans are excited to see what the future holds for Crystal and their team that’s the biggest thing you know patience we’re seeing that um as well with the Washington Nationals where we’re starting to see those players you know Edge closer and closer James Wood Brady house Robert Hassel those kind of guys Dylan Cruz those kind of NHL players are coming in the form of Leonard in the form of Crystal that you know we’re taking a look at this team team this past year didn’t really live up to expectation but I think that the future is bright and uh it’s just being patient I do hope that Brian mlen does make some big moves this summer but if he doesn’t just know that there are plans for the future
Andrew Cristall, a 19-year-old left-winger from Vancouver, was selected by the Washington Capitals in the second round of the 2023 NHL draft. Cristall is a dynamic offensive threat and a top-six winger in the NHL, with a powerful and accurate shot. Capitals fans are excited to see what the future holds for Cristall and their team.
Leonard’s success in the NHL Entry Draft, his performance with the U18 team and at Boston College, as well as the forecast for his future. It also covers the coaching style of Spencer Carbery with the Capitals and the team’s struggles. Additionally, the summary touches on the upcoming Atlantic Division Final between the Hershey Bears and the Hartford Wolf Pack, highlighting key players and their performances.
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