The Washington Capitals might be acting a little hastily in the aftermath of Ovechkin’s 895th goal and record break. Though the team is standing tall at the top of the Eastern Division, every decision made now will be a vital one in terms of how they make it through the next few months. Washington, however, might have a bigger plan in mind, as, with the playoffs scheduled for just 5 days away, they have made a move involving Terik Parascak, their 2024 first-round pick!

It was announced earlier this week that Terik Parascak is being loaned to the AHL’s Hershey Bears. Now Parascak should be ineligible to play in the AHL until he turns 20, and the Canadian right winger is currently only 18.

Under the NHL-CHL agreement, Parascak would typically be too young to join the AHL. But with his WHL club, the Prince George Cougars, already out in the first round of the playoffs, the Capitals, who he is under contract with, were able to wrangle a loan with their junior developmental affiliate, the Hershey Bears, for the remainder of the postseason run while the big boys enter the playoffs.

Sure, it seems like a good decision on one level. Terik Parascak, an 18-year-old kid, will be able to get more experience while his teammates go on to the big leagues. But it’s also a super risky thing to be doing and potentially sends mixed signals. See, things are different in Gabe Landeskog’s case; he’s been shifted to the AHL to recover from a groin injury and seems to be doing just fine.

But Parascak, who scored 105 points in his rookie season in the WHL, was drafted 16th overall and widely thought to be one of the more NHL-ready offensive talents from his class, should probably ride that wave of momentum into the NHL, right? This essential demotion might put a spanner in the works, as it has in the past.

The Jack Studnicka example: When loaning a player from the NHL to the AHL was a setback

Ah, the sad tale of Jack Studnicka in light of the Terik Parascak loan.

Studnicka was a Boston Bruins prospect who was brimming with potential. A 2017 second-round pick, Studnicka looked well poised to become a star asset for the Bruins, building up their center power. He showed promise in the junior leagues and international competitions. But the Bruins, probably with the best of intentions, decided it would likely be better for him to get more training in the AHL before getting into the real thing.

But did it work?

Not quite. Studnicka ended up bouncing between Providence and Boston for several seasons and was never able to fully lock down his place on either team. As we know from Marchand’s transition to the Panthers, it takes a while to find your feet in a new team, and playing hockey in constant is simply not the way to do it. Studnicka didn’t grow into the player everyone thought he would be because he was unable to fully learn in the NHL.

And unfortunately, by the time Boston traded him to Vancouver in 2022, his centerpiece days were long behind him. Then, only to make things worse, Vancouver traded him to the San Jose Sharks, who again demoted him to the AHL! He is now with the Kings, at least till July, but yet again in the AHL with their affiliate, the Ontario Reign.

So, while it is true that every player develops differently and Terik Parascak’s trajectory may be wildly different than Studnicka’s, it’s also true that nothing good comes from sheltering talent. Set them out on the ice and let ’em fly or let them fall and get back up, is all.