The Washington Capitals enter the season as the oldest team in the NHL but that doesn’t mean there isn’t any youth on the roster. Martin Fehervary easily enters this season as the youngest player on the team at 21 years old and he only has six games of NHL experience under his belt, all in the 2019-20 season.
Fehervary is ready to make that jump from prospect to full time NHL player but the pressure will be on him to be part of the middle of a defense that needs to improve from last season. Peter Laviolette is a defensive specialist but at the same time, adjusting to new coaches without a full training camp and preseason can be a challenge. Fehervary won’t have to worry about either of that.
In 24 games with the Hershey Bears last season, Fehervary recorded 17 points with three goals and 14 assists. The Bears clinched the North Division. One year prior, he recorded 14 points with four goals and 10 assists in 56 games. He made his NHL debut in Oct. 2019 and played in three games before finishing that season with six games under his belt overall.
Not only is Fehervary embarking on a big season with the Caps but he could represent his country in the Winter Olympics. He has in the past as he was called up to Slovakia’s 2018 World Championship team as an 18 year old.
Fehervary will have big shoes to fill. Zdeno Chara won’t be back with the Caps and is still pondering his NHL future. Unless of course he does want to come back. Brenden Dillon is with the Winnipeg Jets. He did skate with the Caps at informal workouts today so he’s in town for a little bit.
Which NHL defenseman does Martin Fehervary look up to? #ALLCAPS blue liner Michal Kempny, of course. pic.twitter.com/JjdaVqHiQ7
— Tarik El-Bashir (@Tarik_ElBashir) June 23, 2018
The right side of the defense is set with John Carlson, Justin Schultz, and Nick Jensen filling it up. Dmitry Orlov leads the charge on the left but behind him is where the questions lie. It looks like that second spot is for Martin Fehervary, or at least it’s his spot to lose. Also competing for that second spot is Michal Kempny who he told the media on draft night was a player he looked up to.
Also competing for spots are Trevor van Riemsdyk, Alex Alexeyev, and Matt Irwin. But none of them have the on ice youth presence of Martin Fehervary. I think he gets the second pair with Justin Schultz on opening night while Kempny occupies the third. Regardless, the defense will be a position everyone will be watching at training camp.