Capitals Make Seven Selections on Second Day of 2024 NHL Draft

The Washington Capitals selected defensemen Cole Hutson (43^rd overall) and Leon Muggli (52^ndoverall), left wings Ilya Protas (75^th overall) and Eriks Mateiko (90^th overall), goaltender Nicholas Kempf (114^thoverall) and centers Petr Sikora (178^th overall) and Miroslav Satan (212^th overall) on the second day of the 2024 NHL Draft at Sphere in Las Vegas. On Friday, the Capitals selected right wing Terik Parascak with the 17^th overall pick. 

Hutson, 18, spent the 2023-24 season with USA Hockey's National Team Development Program's Under-18 Team, recording 51 points (15g, 51a) in 51 games played. Hutson led the team’s defensemen in goals, assists, points, power-play goals (5), game winning goals (3) and shots on goal (104). Hutson also appeared in 19 games with the USNTDP Juniors, where he recorded 12 points (3g, 9a). During the 2022-23 season, Hutson set USA Hockey’s NTDP single-season record for points by a defenseman after recording 68 points (10g, 58a) in 61 games played. Hutson represented the United States at the 2023 and 2024 Under-18 World Championships, winning a gold medal in 2023 and a silver medal in 2024. At the 2024 tournament, Hutson led all defensemen in goals (4), assists (9) and points (13) and was named the tournament’s Best Defenseman. Hutson, USA Hockey's NTDP all-time leader in career points by a defenseman, registered 119 points (25g, 94a) in 112 career games over two seasons.

Muggli, 17, spent the 2023-24 season with EV Zug of the Swiss National League (NL), where he led all under-18 skaters with 12 points (3g, 9a) in 42 games. Muggli's 12 points were the most ever by a defenseman age 17 or younger in league history. The 6’1”, 177-pound defenseman also added two points (1g, 1a) in 11 playoff games last season. Muggli represented Switzerland at the 2024 World Junior Championship and the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. In addition, Muggli captained Team Switzerland to a gold medal at the 2023 European Youth Olympics, where he was named the best defenseman of the tournament after tallying four points (1g, 3a) in four games.

Protas, 17, was ranked ninth among North American left wings and 49^th among all North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting. The 6’5”, 198-pound forward recorded 51 points (14g, 37a) in 37 games with the Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL) in 2023-24. Protas led all USHL rookies in assists and ranked tied for second among first-year players in power-play goals (6) and third in points. In addition, Protas led Des Moines in assists and power-play goals, while his 51 points ranked second on the team. The Minsk, Belarus native split the 2022-23 season with the Under-17 and Under-18 Belarus national team, recording 34 points (19g, 15a) in 29 games with the Under-17s and nine points (5g, 4a) in 10 games with the Under-18s. Ilya’s older brother, Aliaksei, was drafted by the Capitals in the third round (91^st overall) of the 2019 NHL Draft and has recorded 53 points (13g, 40a) in 169 career NHL games with Washington. Aliaksei and Ilya Protas are the second set of brothers in franchise history to be selected by Washington, joining Yvon Corriveau (19th overall, 1985) and Rick Corriveau (168th overall, 1991).

Mateiko, 18, recorded 43 points (23g, 20a) in 49 games with the Saint John Sea Dogs of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) in 2023-24. The 6’5”, 216-pound forward, who served as an alternate captain for Saint John, led the team in goals and ranked tied for first in power-play goals (6) and second in points. A native of Jelgava, Latvia, Mateiko represented his country at the 2024 World Junior Championship, where he recorded one goal in five games. Mateiko was ranked fifth among North American left wings and 33^rd among all North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting. Mateiko registered 36 points (16g, 20a) in 62 games during his rookie season with Saint John in 2022-23, ranking third among the team’s first-year players in goals and fourth in points. Mateiko was the captain of Latvia at the 2023 Under-18 World Championship and finished the tournament with two points in five games.

Kempf, 18, was ranked fourth among North American goaltenders by NHL Central Scouting. Kempf appeared in 37 games for the National Team Development Program's Under-18 Team in 2023-24, posting a record of 23-7-0 with a 2.99 goals-against average, a .897 save percentage and three shutouts. The Chicago, Illinois native also played 19 games with the USNTDP Juniors, where he went 10-4-1 with a 3.88 goals-against average and a .870 save percentage. The 6’2”, 189-pound goaltender earned a silver medal with Team USA at the 2024 Under-18 World Championship and ranked first among all goaltenders at the tournament in goals-against average (1.89) and save percentage (.919). Kempf, who is committed to play at Notre Dame (NCAA) next season, also backstopped Team USA to a gold medal at the 2022 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, posting a record of 4-0-0 with a 2.50 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage.

Sikora, 18, was ranked 11^th among International centers and 37^th among all International skaters by NHL Central Scouting. The 5’11”, 172-pound forward recorded 40 points (13g, 27a) in 30 regular-season games with HC Oceláři Třinec’s U-20 team (Czechia-Jr.) and seven points (5g, 2a) in four playoff games in 2023-24, helping his club win the league championship. In addition, Sikora appeared in 22 games with HC Oceláři Třinec in the Czech Extraliga (Czechia-1), where he recorded three points (1g, 2a). Sikora served as an alternate captain for Czechia at the 2024 Under-18 World Championship, registering two points (1g, 1a) in five games and was named a top-three player on his team. At the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, Sikora recorded three points (1g, 2a) in five games and helped lead Czechia to a silver medal.

Satan, 18, registered 30 points (14g, 16a) in 26 games with HC Slovan Bratislava’s U20 team (Slovakia-Jr.) last season. The 6’7”, 190-pound forward represented Slovakia at the 2024 Under-18 World Championship, where he recorded four points (0g, 4a) in seven games. Satan, who was ranked 51st among all International skaters by NHL Central Scouting, was one of two skaters listed at 6’7” or taller in their 2024 final rankings. Satan is the son of 14-year NHL veteran Miroslav Satan, who recorded 735 points (363g, 372a) in 1,050 career games with the Edmonton Oilers, Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, Pittsburgh Penguins and Boston Bruins.