Some housecleaning as the Caps make their first cuts of training camp. Nine players were sent to AHL affiliate Hershey, which begins its own training camp on Wednesday. Defensemen Joe Finley and Patrick Cullity, 23; forwards Anton Gustafsson, 20, Dmitry Kugryshev, 20, Jake Hauswirth, 22, Nikita Kashirsky, 25, David de Kastrozza, 23, and Ashton Rome, 24; goalie Todd Ford, 26.
Five other players were returned to their junior teams: Defensemen Samuel Carrier, 18, of QMJHL Lewiston and Brett Flemming, 19, of OHL Mississauga St. Michael’s; forwards Garrett Mitchell, 19, of WHL Regina and Stanislav Galiev, 18, of QMJHL Saint John; and goalie Philipp Grubauer, 18, of OHL Windsor.
Washington also announced the signing of goalie Brandon Anderson to a three-year, entry-level contract. Anderson, 18, played in goal during the Caps’ rookie game at Ketler Iceplex against the Philadelphia Flyers last week. Anderson had already been returned to his WHL junior team Lethbridge on Sunday.
That leaves four goalies in camp – Semyon Varlamov, Michal Neuvirth, Dany Sabourin and Braden Holtby. The first two are expected to share the starting duties in Washington this season. There are also 16 defenseman remaining and 27 forwards. The Caps open their preseason schedule in Columbus on Wednesday night. Bruce Boudreau didn’t share his roster with reporters after practice on Tuesday.
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