Washington Capitals Player Preview: Ilya Samsonov Now or Never

Ilya Samsonov is the most talented netminder the Washington Capitals have on their roster. However, due to his own actions, he is not the established number one goalie that many thought he would be by now.

Samsonov was to be the heir to Braden Holtby‘s throne after an impressive rookie season where the Russian netminder went 16-6-2 with a .913 save percentage and a goals against average of 2.55 while backing up Holtby. Forever a legend in DC, the former Vezina-winning Holtby became too expensive for the numbers he was putting up at the end of his tenure with the Capitals. And with a talented goalie like Ilya Samsonov waiting for his chance, Brian MacLellan and the Capitals decided to move on from the goalie who led the franchise to it’s first ever Stanley Cup championship in 2018.

With big shoes to fill, Samsonov has yet to live up to his expectations. Inconsistency on the ice is something to expect from a 24-year-old but his decisions off of the ice are what is most concerning. An ATV accident sustained during the NHL’s COVID-pause prevented him from joining his team in the playoff bubble of 2020 and multiple stints on the COVID-19 protocol list a season ago have prevented Samsonov from putting his best foot forward.

Finishing 2020-2021 with an 13-4-1 record, a disappointing .902 save percentage and a goals against average of 2.69 are a far cry from his outstanding rookie campaign. To further compound the problem, being benched by head coach Peter Laviolette late in the year as the playoffs neared for being late to a team function did not help the public perception of Ilya Samsonov. 

"“We’ve got to work together inside here,” Laviolette explained. “There’s gotta be rules. There’s gotta be boundaries. We got expectations set and you need to be accountable to that.”"

Despite the talent that he so clearly has, the Capitals were not ready to commit long-term to Samsonov and agreed to sign him to a one-year bridge contract worth $2 million. A so-called ‘prove it’ contract. If Samsonov can put his immaturity behind him and perform on the ice, Samsonov is sure to get a lucrative extension from the Capitals. If 2021-2022 is a repeat of last season, Vitek Vanecek will likely be the Capitals goaltender moving forward.