Monthly Report For Capitals Prospects In The Canadian Junior Hockey Leagues — October 2024: Ilya Protas, Eriks Mateiko And Terik Parascak Start Fast

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Photo: Kelowna Rockets

The Canadian major junior hockey leagues got into full swing in October. The Washington Capitals prospects were generally loaned to their junior teams near the end of September, so most of them played in only a handful of games during September. While the prospect write-ups will touch on their September performances, it will focus mainly on their performance during October.

The Capitals currently have six prospects playing in Canada’s major junior leagues: the Western Hockey League (WHL), the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJML). The prospects in those leagues are defenseman Cam Allen, left wing Andrew Cristall, left wing Eriks Mateiko, right wing Terik Parascak, right wing Ilya Protas, and center Patrick Thomas. The one Capitals prospect playing in the USHL in the United States, Miroslav Satan, will also be included in this summary.

CHL (WHL/OHL/QMJHL)

CAM ALLEN (D) – 19 – DRAFTED 2023 (Fifth Round, #136 Overall)

Team: Guelph Storm – League: Ontario Hockey League (OHL)

Photo: Guelph Storm

Allen is playing in his fourth full season with the Guelph Storm of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Last season, after missing the first half of the season due to injury, he was one of the Alternate Captains. He is continuing in that capacity this season

He started his season on September 27, scoring a goal and recording an assist in a 6-4 victory against Owen Sound. He played in two games during September and added another assist in the team’s second game.

In October, he assisted in games against the Kitchener Rangers on October 6, the Peterborough Pets on October 11, the Kitchener Rangers on October 20, and the Flint Firebirds on October 25. However, he scored no goals during the month.

As of October 31, Allen’s overall season totals were 12 games played, one goal, seven assists, and -15.

The Guelph Storm have done poorly this season, with a record of 3-8-0-1 in 12 Games and last place in the Midwest Conference of the OHL, a stretch that included a six-game losing streak. During their game on October 26, they were forced to play with a lineup of just nine forwards due to injuries and suspensions.

ANDREW CRISTALL (LW) – 19 – DRAFTED 2023 (Second Round, 40th Overall)

Team: Kelowna Rockets – League: Western Hockey League (WHL)

Photo: Kelowna Rockets

Cristall is playing in his fourth full season with the Kelowna Rockets of the Western Hockey League (WHL). The Capitals returned him to Kelowna on October 7. Once there, he was appointed as one of the Alternate Captains. He had occasionally been an alternate during the 2023-24 season.

During October, he scored a goal and recorded at least one assist in five of the six games he played, with October 18 being his only pointless game. Many of his assists this season have been on goals that Tig Iginla (2024 NHL draftee for Utah) scored.

Cristall’s first game since returning to Kelowna took place on October 11 when the Rockets exploded for nine goals in a 9-4 victory over the Portland Winterhawks. Tig Iginla scored the Rockets’ first two goals with Cristall providing the primary assist on each. Cristall then scored the team’s third goal, at 12:28 in the first period, staking the team to a 3-0 lead. He had one more assist on Tig Iginla’s second-period goal. He was named the First Star of the game.

On October 14, in a game against the Prince Albert Raiders on Canadian Thanksgiving Day, Cristall started the festivities by scoring a power-play goal at 15:38 during the first period. Cristall scored after receiving a nice cross seem pass from Tig Iginla.

He also assisted on the team’s third goal which came at 7:45 during second period which put the team up 4-1. The game was a very wild affair featuring much scoring by both teams and the Raiders had pulled ahead 5-4 nearly seven minutes into the third period but the Rockets struck back less than a minute later. At 14:10, stay-at-home defenseman, Carter Kowalyk scored the game winner with an assist from Cristall. The final score was 7-5 in favor of Kelowna.

On October 19, during a 6-5 loss to the TriCity Americans, he scored a goal at 6:43 during the second period which had put the team up 3-1. He also assisted on the team’s first goal during the first period and their fourth goal which came at 7:40.

The Rockets ultimately blew their 4-1 lead and lost 6-5.

On October 23, when the Rockets played the Victoria Royals, Cristall scored a power play goal at 8:20 during third period which put the team up 3-2. Cristall went post and then in for the score. Earlier in the game, he had assisted on his team’s first goal. Unfortunately, they could not hold onto the lead as the game went into Overtime and lost 4-3 in the shootout.

During a 6-0 shutout against the Moose Jaw Warriors on October 25, Cristall scored a goal on a breakaway and assisted on all three goals for Tig Iginla’s hat trick. He was voted second star of the game.

For the season so far, Cristall has played in six games, scoring five goals and has recorded 11 assists for 15 points overall. He is also +11.

The Kelowna Rockets currently are in 9th place out of 11 teams in the Western Conference standings of the WHL with a record of 5-6-0-1. The team was off to a slow start before Cristall returned to the team. They have been 4-1-0-1 since his return.

ERIKS MATEIKO (LW) – 19 – DRAFTED 2024 (Third Round, 90th Overall)

Team: St John Sea Dogs – League: QMJHL

Photo: St. John Sea Dogs/Michael Hawkins

Mateiko is playing in his third full season with the St John Sea Dogs of the QMJHL (Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. He scored his first goal of the season on October 5 during a 3-2 win against the Charlottetown Islanders and was voted third star of the game. The goal came at 9:08 during the first period after he had won the faceoff in the Islanders zone. Tyler Peddle passed to Nate Tivey who set up Mateiko for his first goal of the year.

On October 9, the Sea Dogs announced their leadership group, with Mateiko being appointed as the 22nd Captain in franchise history.

He scored another goal on October 11 during a 3-0 victory against the Sherbrooke Phoenix. His goal, a tip-in on a shot by Nate Tivey was the team’s first and occurred at 4:03 during the first period.

The next day, he scored the team’s first goal during a wild 6-5 shootout win. The goal came at 4:40 during the first period when he received a pass and shot it in an open slot under the goaltender’s blocker to tie the game at 1-1.

On October 17, he scored a goal in his fourth consecutive game in an 8-5 loss to the Moncton Wildcats.  The goal came at 2:29 during the third period and decreased the team’s deficit to 6-4.

On October 20, he opened the scoring at 4:13 during the second period and assisted on his team’s last goal. Unfortunately, the Sea Dogs lost 4-3. Mateiko picked up a rebound and jammed it in at the side of the net for his fifth goal of the season.

He scored in both games on the weekend of October 26 and 27. On October 26, the Sea Dogs lost 4-2 against Drummondville. Mateiko scored with less than a minute to go during the first period when he went five-hole and put his team up 2-1.

The next day, the Sea Dogs rebounded and won 3-2 in overtime against the Gatineau Olympiques.

For October, Mateiko played in 11 games, scored seven goals, and recorded three assists. He also had 8 penalty minutes. He had also played in two games during September but was kept off the scoresheet.

In games through October 31, the Sea Dogs played in 16 games and had a record of 8-8.

TERIK PARASCAK (LW) – 18 – DRAFTED 2024 (First Round, 17th Overall)

Team: Prince George Cougars  –  League: Western Hockey League (WHL)

Photo: Prince George Cougars

Parascak is 18 years old (turns 19 on May 28, 2025). He is playing his second full season with the Prince George Cougars in the WHL. After being cut from the Washington Capitals training camp, Parascak made his season debut with the Prince George Cougars on October 2 and immediately made an impact during a 5-2 win against the Kelowna Rockets. He scored two goals and has one assist.

His first goal came at 3:34 during the second period and tied the game at 2-2. After getting a pass from Riley Heidt, Parascak hammered home a one-timer for the score. This goal was considered a candidate for “goal of the year” on social media.

He scored his second goal of the game on a tip-in which was the team’s fourth goal at 15:11 during the third period.

He had another two-goal game on October 9, a game where Prince George jumped off to a 3-0 lead after the first period, lead 4-0 after two periods, blew their lead during the third period, and lost 5-4 in a shootout.

He scored the team’s third goal at 18:40 during the first period.

He scored again with just 17 seconds left in the second period when he banged home a shot after receiving a pass. The goal put the Cougars up 4-0, a lead they eventually blew.

He had a highlight reel goal on October 25 during a 6-3 win against the Victoria Royals which occurred at 9:12 during the second period and put the team up 3-1 at the time. He also assisted on the team’s second goal.

He had another two-goal game on October 29 during a 4-1 victory over the Moose Jaw Warriors. He scored his first goal at 8:13 during the third period which put the Cougars ahead 3-1, giving them an insurance goal. He wired a one-timer over the glove of the opposing goaltender. He also scored an empty net goal for the team’s fourth and last goal with two minutes left to go in the game while the team was shorthanded. He was voted the second star of the game.

Overall, Parascak played 10 games during October where he scored 8 goals and recorded 11 assists for 19 points overall. He had three games where he scored two goals and three games where he had two or more assists, including three assists during the game on October 16.

At the end of October, the Cougars are in second place in the Western Conference of the Western Hockey League with a record of 8-4-2-2 in 16 games.

ILYA PROTAS (LW) – 18 – DRAFTED 2024 (Third Round, 90th Overall)

Team: Windsor Spitfires – League: Ontario Hockey League (OHL)

Photo: Guelph Today

Protas, the brother of current Washington forward, Aliaksei Protas, is 18 years old (turns 19 on July 18, 2025).  He is playing in his first season with the Ontario Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Protas started off his season with a six-game goal scoring streak, including two multiple games.

On October 3, his goal put the Spitfires up 3-0 in a game they eventually won 5-0.

On October 5, in a 5-1 win against the Brandford Bulldogs, Protas scored the first goal of the game at 7:47 during the first period.

October 11 was Protas’ first multi-goal game of the season when they beat the Brampton Steelheads 7-5.  He scored his first goal on a rebound at 10:15 during the first period when the Spitfires were down 2-0 to make the score 2-1. He scored again at 1:49 in the third period on the power play which gave the Spitfires the lead at 4-3.

On October 12, the Spitfires listed Protas as the first line center, even though he is normally a left winger when they ran a lineup of 11 forwards and 7 defensemen. Protas scored that day, with a goal at 10:58 during the second period but the team suffered their first regulation loss as they lost 6-3 to the Erie Otters.

On October 14, Protas scored a goal and had two assists for the Spitfires in a come-from-behind 5-2 victory against the Oshawa Generals. The Spitfires were down 2-0 at 5:04 during the second period when Protas got the puck during a cycling play and buried the puck for his sixth goal of the season and the first goal for Windsor. He added two assists, one on the game-winner, and the other on an insurance goal as his team completed the comeback and then pulled ahead for the win. Protas was voted the third star of the game.

He had another two-goal game on October 18, a 4-1 victory over the Guelph Storm. He scored his first goal at 9:19 when Protas, at the front of the net, received a pass and then buried it. This put the Spitfires ahead 1-0. He scored again at 6:39 during the second period on a rebound. This goal put the Spitfires and ultimately held up as the game-winner. He also assisted on an insurance goal at 18:47 during that same period. He was voted as the #1 Star of the game.

During October, Protas played in 10 games, scoring 10 goals and recording 6 assists for 16 goals overall. He had two games where he scored more than one goal. He has lined up as first-line center since October 12, despite the fact his natural position is right wing.

The Spitfires are currently in first place in the Western Conference of the Ontario Hockey League.

PATRICK THOMAS (C) – 20 – DRAFTED 2023 (Fourth Round, #104 Overall)

Team: Brantford Bulldogs  –  League: Ontario Hockey League (OHL)

Brantford is 20 years old (turns 21 on August 21, 2025). He is playing in his second full season with the Brantford Bulldogs of the OHL and his third full season in Canadian Junior hockey. He had a great game on September 28 where he scored 1 goal and recorded 4 assists in a 6-2 win over the Oshawa Generals. He was selected as the first star of the game.

Thomas only scored one goal during October which came during a 6-3 win over the Ottawa 67’s on October 11.  He scored his goal at 18:46 during the second period. He collected a rebound and tried to feed the front of the net, with the puck deflecting off a defenseman’s skate and into the Ottawa goal. This goal put the Bulldogs ahead 4-3 and held up as the game-winner. In that game, he also had four assists.

He had two other games in October where he had multiple assists, one on October 9 during a 5-1 win against the Sarnia Sting and the other on October 19 during a 5-4 overtime win against the Kingston Frontenacs.

Thomas played in 10 games during October, scoring 1 goal and recording 9 assists for 10 points overall. His season’s totals through the end of October are 2 goals and 13 assists in 12 games. Through October, Brandford had a 6-3-2-0 record.

On October 18, the Bulldogs named Thomas as the 8th captain in franchise history.

MIROSLAV SATAN (C) – 18 – DRAFTED 2024 (Sixth Round, 212th Overall)

Team: Sioux Falls Stampede – League: United States Hockey League (USHL)

Satan is 18 years old (turns 19 on March 2, 2005). He is playing in his first full season with the Sioux Falls Stampede in the United States Hockey League (USHL). Prior to that, he played junior hockey in Slovakia.

He scored a goal and recorded an assist during a 6-3 win against the Dubuque Fighting Saints on October 11. He assisted on the Stampede’s first goal which came at 2:31 during the first period. He scored his goal at 2:30 during the second period, a goal which put the Stampede ahead 3-1.

He scored his second goal of the season on October 27 against the Omaha Lancers during a 5-0 win. His goal came at 4:13 during the second period.

Satan played in five games during October and has played a total of eight games. All of his points this season occurred during October. He has typically been the center on the fourth line.

By Diane Doyle

 



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