Braden Holtby starts playoffs anew while Ilya Samsonov called up as precaution

This time last year, the Washington Capitals’ goaltending situation looked worlds different.

The Capitals entered their first-round playoff series against the Columbus Blue Jackets starting Philipp Grubauer in net, with then-coach Barry Trotz believing Grubauer had the hotter glove after Braden Holtby struggled in the final months of the regular season.

Holtby was relegated to No. 2. Pheonix Copley was called up from the minor league Hershey Bears to serve as the No. 3, the emergency guy.

One Stanley Cup run and one unforgettable save in Vegas later, Holtby has reminded the NHL he is a top-flight goalie, Grubauer got a new start with a trade to Colorado and Copley earned himself a mid-year contract extension with a solid year as Holtby’s backup.

Holtby is not one to linger on last year’s circumstances.

“Last year’s last year, this year’s this year. No, we’re not answering any questions about last year anymore because we’re starting a new run,” Holtby said Wednesday. “Our preparation is to focus on what we can do to have success in Game 1. Whatever’s happened (in the past), now it doesn’t matter.”

Forget the past, then, but what about the future? The Capitals’ netminder of the future is 22-year-old Ilya Samsonov, their 2015 first-round draft pick. Washington recalled Samsonov from Hershey on Thursday entering Game 1 of the first-round series against the Carolina Hurricanes, but he’s no threat to Holtby for now.

Coach Todd Reirden told reporters Samsonov would be with the team for Games 1 and 2, “and then we’ll go from there.” That’s in contrast with their strategy with Copley a year ago, as the Alaska native stayed in Washington for the entirety of the playoffs. The difference this year might be that Hershey has games to come in the AHL Calder Cup Playoffs, whereas last year the Bears’ season ended early.

Whatever the Capitals eventually do, Reirden said it was a situation where neither the team nor Samsonov had anything to lose.

“I think it’s a great situation where the player has had a really strong year, deserves an opportunity that (he) wasn’t able to get an opportunity during the regular season,” Reirden said. “Now he gets to be around it. I think the experience of working with Scott Murray, our goalie coach, and just being around the atmosphere is huge, and on top of it it’s a great precaution to have from a coaching standpoint.”

Copley remembers what it meant to be the No. 3 in the room and said he’ll help Samsonov out any way he can.

“It’s good to have a three not only for us, but in case anything happens,” Copley said. “And he’s a great guy so it’s always good to have those kind of guys around.”