Andrew Cristall is once again putting his best foot forward towards making the Washington Capitals out of training camp.
The 20-year-old winger found his way onto the scoresheet once again in the Capitals’ 4-3 preseason win against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday night. Cristall’s power-play goal in the first period was his second of this year’s preseason in three games, giving him four goals in seven career NHL exhibition matchups.
Cristall converted in Columbus after collecting a loose puck that had bounced off of Connor McMichael, slipping a backhand shot past Blue Jackets goaltender Jet Greaves. Both of his goals this fall have come with the Capitals up a man.
Cristall, who also recorded the shootout winner for the Capitals in their 3-2 win over the New Jersey Devils last weekend, skated on the team’s third line with Hendrix Lapierre and Sheldon Rempal against the Blue Jackets. He received 15:49 of ice time, tallying four individual shot attempts, three individual scoring chances, three individual high-danger chances, two shots on goal, and two hits.
The British Columbia native is now tied for second on the team in goals this fall with two, sitting behind just Sonny Milano (4). Over the past two preseasons, only Milano (7) and Hendrix Lapierre (6) have recorded more points than Cristall (5).
Cristall’s path to the pros is much different this year, as even if he doesn’t make the Capitals out of training camp, he doesn’t have to return to the WHL like he did last season. While his ultimate goal will be to start in the NHL, the team can freely send him to the AHL’s Hershey Bears and recall him whenever they want throughout the year.
In his last junior season split between the Kelowna Rockets and Spokane Chiefs, Cristall led the entire WHL in scoring. He recorded 132 points (48g, 84a) in 57 regular-season games, later posting 41 points (21g, 20a) in 19 playoff games for the Chiefs.
Cristall is in the midst of a tough battle for the final few roster spots on the Capitals, matching up against a strong group that includes Milano, Lapierre, Ivan Miroshnichenko, Ethen Frank, and others. Unlike three of those names, Cristall is waiver-exempt, meaning he could be one of the odd men out sent to the AHL, simply because the team does not want to lose an asset to another NHL team for free.
“Guys that are fighting for spots are playing at a real high level,” head coach Spencer Carbery said last week. “And as a coach, as an organization, that’s what you want to see. They’re prepared. They’re ready for this moment. They want to earn a spot on this team. And, and they’re going and showing that out on the ice right now. And that’s, yeah, you just go down the list of the guys that are, that are fighting for their role on this team, they’re playing at a real high level.”
He added, “There’s going to be some really, really difficult decisions.”
NHL teams must set their 23-man opening-day rosters by 5 pm on October 7. The Capitals open their regular season at home against the Boston Bruins on October 8.