July 2, 2023
The Washington Capitals, the National Hockey League affiliate of the 2023 Calder Cup Champion
Hershey Bears, announced today that the club has re-signed defenseman Dylan McIlrath to a two-year, two-way contract and goaltender Hunter Shepard to a two-year, two-way contract. The announcements were made by Washington's senior vice president and general manager Brian MacLellan.
McIlrath, 31, captained the Bears to a Calder Cup championship this year, leading Hershey to its league-record 12th title. He was named the 45th captain in club history and skated in 60 games in his second year in Hershey, posting a career-high 13 assists and a team-best 102 penalty minutes. He won Hershey's Milton Garland Award as the club's best defenseman, and in the Calder Cup playoffs, McIlrath appeared in all 20 games, collecting two points (1g, 1a) and 44 penalty minutes as he won the second Calder Cup of his career.
During the 2022-23 campaign, the Winnipeg, Manitoba native also earned a recall to Washington, making his Capitals' debut on Feb. 16 versus Florida, and posting an assist in six games. His NHL career has seen McIlrath play 72 games for the New York Rangers, Detroit, and Washington, adding six points (3g, 3a) and 128 penalty minutes.
McIlrath has skated in 560 career AHL games with Connecticut/Hartford, Grand Rapids, Springfield, and Hershey, scoring 113 points (27g, 86a), registering a +35 rating, and 1,104 penalty minutes. He has also played 71 Calder Cup playoff games, previously winning a title with Grand Rapids in 2017.
Shepard, 27, posted a 20-8-5 record for Hershey in 33 games last season, ranking second in the American Hockey League with a goals-against average of 2.18. His save percentage of .916 ranked sixth in the league, and he finished the campaign with one shutout. He was named the AHL's Goalie of the Month for November, recording a 6-0-0 record with a 1.63 goals-against average.
In the playoffs, Shepard led Hershey to the Calder Cup title, starting in net for all 20 of the club's postseason games, recording a 14-6 record with a 2.27 goals-against average, a .914 save percentage, and three shutouts. He earned the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as playoff MVP, becoming the fourth Hershey goaltender all-time to earn this distinction. Following a loss in the playoffs, Shepard was sensational, going 5-1 with a .934 save percentage and two shutouts. He made 45 saves in the Game 7 overtime win at Coachella Valley to secure Hershey its league-record 12th Calder Cup win.
In his AHL career, Shepard has played 45 games, owning a 28-11-5 record with a 2.07 goals-against average, a .922 save percentage, and three shutouts. He has also played 44 career ECHL games with South Carolina, and led the Stingrays to the 2021 Kelly Cup Finals. He was a two-time NCAA Champion at the University of Minnesota-Duluth prior to turning pro and was twice named the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) Goaltender of the Year (2019 and 2020), and earned First-Team All-American honors in 2019 and Second-Team All-American honors in 2020.
The
Hershey Bears are the 2023 Calder Cup Champions!
The Bears will take the ice to defend the club's title starting in October, but you can
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