With the recent injury to Ilya Samsonov that came in practice yesterday, the Washington Capitals have recalled goaltender Zach Fucale from the Hershey Bears. Fucale has posted a record of 1-1-1 in four games with the Capitals.
That 1-1-1 mark includes one shutout in his debut, a 1.75 goals against average and a .924 save percentage. Fucale became the first goaltender in franchise history to record a shutout in his NHL debut when he stopped all 21 shots against the Detroit Red Wings on Nov. 11 from Little Caesars Arena.
In his second career NHL start on Jan. 8 against the Minnesota Wild, Fucale broke a Washington franchise record for the longest shutout streak by a goaltender from the start of a tenure with the franchise in the first period, besting Cristobal Huet’s mark of 8:36.
In the second period, he broke the NHL record for the longest career opening shutout sequence. Fucale’s streak ended at 138 minutes and 17 seconds, bating Matt Hackett’s (Minnesota) mark of 102:48 set in 2011.
In 20 games with the AHL’s Hershey Bears this season, Fucale has posted a record of 8-8-4 with a 2.85 goals against average and a .884 save percentage. During the 2020-21 season, the Laval, Quebec, native led the AHL in goals against average at 1.80 and ranked second in save percentage at .932, establishing career highs in both categories.
The six foot two, 189 pound goaltender played the most games (11) he has played at the AHL level since the 2017-18 season, posting a 9-2-0 record. Fucale’s nine wins were tied for eighth in the AHL, while his two losses were the fewest among goaltenders with at least 660 minutes played.
Fucale and Pheonix Copley each received the AHL’s Harry “Hap” Holmes Memorial Award, presented to the goaltenders on the team which allows the fewest goals per game in the regular season. In 100 career AHL games, Fucale has a 45-42-8 record with a 2.89 goals against average and a .900 save percentage.
The Capitals held an optional morning skate today at MedStar Capitals Iceplex. Towards the tail end of that practice, Samsonov came onto the ice with goaltending coach Scott Murray. He left early yesterday after he took a shot up high. He won’t dress tonight.
Capitals Coach Peter Laviolette told the media that Vitek Vanecek will get the start tonight while Fucale will backup.