The Washington Capitals have signed ahead Ryan Leonard to a three-year entry-level contract, senior vp and basic supervisor Chris Patrick introduced at present. Leonard ‘s contract will carry a median annual worth of $950,000.
The Capitals chosen Leonard with the eighth total choose within the 2023 NHL Draft.
Leonard, 20, recorded 49 factors (30g, 19a) in 37 video games with Boston Faculty (NCAA) this season. The 6’0”, 200-pound ahead led the nation in targets and have become the primary NCAA participant with back-to-back 30-goal seasons since Boston Faculty’s Cam Atkinson in 2009-10 and 2010-11. As well as, Leonard led the NCAA in game-winning targets (9) and ranked tenth within the nation in factors. Leonard is one in all 10 finalists for this 12 months’s Hobey Baker Memorial Award, given to the highest NCAA males’s ice hockey participant within the nation. The Amherst, Massachusetts native was additionally named Hockey East Participant of the Yr and a Hockey East First Crew All-Starafter main the convention in scoring.
Graphic: @CapitalsPR
Throughout his freshman season at Boston Faculty in 2023-24, Leonard registered 60 factors (31g, 29a) in 41 video games. Leonard led the workforce in plus-minus (+35) and ranked second on the Eagles in targets (29) and third in factors (58) through the common season earlier than including six factors (4g, 2a) in 4 NCAA Event video games to assist Boston Faculty attain the Nationwide Championship recreation. Leonard’s 31 targets as a freshman set a program report for first-year gamers and he turned simply the fourth Boston Faculty freshman to report 60 factors. Leonard completed the 2023-24 season ranked third within the NCAA in targets and tied for fourth in factors and was named a Second Crew East All-American by the American Hockey Coaches Affiliation.
Leonard finishes his collegiate profession with 109 factors (61g, 48a) in 78 video games performed.
In January, Leonard led Crew USA to its second straight gold medal on the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship, the USA’ first back-to-back World Junior gold medals within the historical past of the event. Leonard, the U.S. captain, was named event MVP and Finest Ahead after recording 10 factors (5g, 5a) in seven video games. Leonard recorded two major assists within the gold medal recreation towards Finland to assist the People overcome a 3-1 deficit en path to a 4-3 time beyond regulation win. Leonard, a two-time World Junior gold medalist, has recorded 16 factors (8g, 8a) in 14 profession World Junior video games, together with eight factors (4g, 4a) in six elimination video games, 5 factors (2g, 3a) in 4 medal spherical video games and three factors (1g, 2a) in two gold medal video games.
Leonard additionally represented the USA on the 2024 IIHF Males’s World Championship, the place he appeared in six video games and recorded one help. As an eighteen-year-old, Leonard gained a gold medal with Crew USA on the 2023 Underneath-18 World Championship, scoring the gold medal clinching objective in time beyond regulation towards Sweden to offer the USA their first Underneath-18 gold since 2017.
