Ivan Miroshnichenko has notched his second NHL goal and is steadily gaining confidence with the Washington Capitals. However, his time in the NHL may be limited if the Capitals aim to optimize the benefits of his entry-level contract. His ninth game against the Seattle Kraken prompts a decision for the Capitals regarding the entry-level slide rule.
The rule is as follows according to Cap Friendly:
If a player who is signed to an entry-level contract and is 18 or 19 years of age (as of September 15 of the signing year), does not play in a minimum of 10 NHL games (including both regular season and playoffs; AHL games do not count), their contract is considered to ‘slide’, or extend, by one year. For example, if a player signed an ELC for three seasons from 2015-16 to 2017-2018, and their contract slides, their contract is now effective from 2016-17 to 2018-19.
If the Capitals want to ease Miroshnichenko into the 2023-24 season, they have a couple of options. They could retain him on their roster but bench him for the remaining games as a healthy scratch. Alternatively, they could send him back down to Hershey for the remainder of the season, allowing the minor league team to gear up for their Calder Cup defense. As a procedural move, the Capitals reassigned Miroshnichenko to Hershey on the NHL’s trade deadline day, making him eligible for the AHL postseason.
Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan recently commented that he expects Miroshnichenko to play some games and move back and forth between the NHL and AHL for the remainder of the year.
With key players returning from injury and others available on the roster, this move would benefit both the Capitals’ immediate performance and their long-term development. Additionally, the Capitals have expressed their intention to give opportunities to other players from Hershey for the remainder of the season, such as Ethen Frank and Alex Limoges. They have two remaining call-up slots for the season.
MacLellan stated, “Depending on our roster situation and injuries, there are several players down in Hershey who have performed well and might get a chance to play a few games, including [Ethen Frank].”
Regardless of the decision made, the Capitals have a promising NHL prospect in the 20-year-old Miroshnichenko. He has demonstrated his potential with two goals and ten shots on goal in his last five games, consistently receiving significant ice time in each appearance.
