In a somewhat surprising move, The Washington Capitals have placed goaltender Pheonix Copley on waivers on Wednesday in favor of keeping 22-year-old Russian prospect Ilya Samsonov as the team's backup to start the '19/'20 season.
This is a bold move, as the young Russian has only 37 games of experience on North American ice, all of which were with the Hershey Bears of the AHL last season.
There are many who believe the learning curve for European goaltenders is much smaller than it is for Eurpoean skaters, however, considering the massive size difference in the ice surface, it can still be quite complicated for a European netminder to adjust, given the fact that the angles that the shots come from are much different. This is reflected in Samsonov's first-year as a pro in NA, as the Russian posted a 2.70 GAA and .898 save percentage. Prior to last season, Samsonov had not posted a season save percentage below .925 or a GAA above 2.31 in the KHL.
With a really strong camp from Ilya Samsonov, it appears that the Caps are willing to risk losing Copley on waivers to allow the Magnitogorsk native to really be tested at the NHL level, albeit in a more limited role, as a backup to Braden Holtby.
Copley started 27 games last season, posting a 2.90 GAA with a .905 save percentage.
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Source for stats: hockeydb
