Capitals sign Henrik Rybinski to one-year contract extension
The Washington Capitals announced Thursday that the club has signed right winger Henrik Rybinski to a one-year, two-way contract extension that carries a $775,000 average annual value.
Through 60 appearances last season with the minor-league affiliated Hershey Bears, Rybinski finished with 35 points counting 10 goals and 25 assists coupled with 22 penalty minutes and a plus-11 rating. The 24-year-old Vancouver native then picked up one additional point in three postseason appearances.
In all, through three seasons with Hershey, Rybinski has totaled 20 goals and 49 assists for 69 points through 163 career contests. In 2024, Rybinski helped the Bears to their second-straight Calder Cup championship after putting up five goals and four assists for nine points in 19 playoff outings.
Rybinski was originally chosen by the Florida Panthers in the fifth round of the 2019 NHL Draft. In 2022, Rybinski signed his three-year, entry-level contract with the Capitals after going unsigned by the Panthers.
A graduate of the Canadian junior circuit, Rybinski spent part of five seasons with the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers and Seattle Thunderbirds from 2017-22. In his final season with the Thunderbirds, Rybinski notched a career-high 65 points counting 21 goals and 44 assists coming in only 47 appearances. In all, through 233 appearances in the junior circuit, Rybinski racked up 50 goals and 126 assists for 176 points.
Beyond Rybinski, the Capitals have several other players due new contracts, including fellow forwards Anthony Beauvillier, Lars Eller, Andrew Mangiapane, and Taylor Raddysh, as well as defenseman Ethan Bear, who are all eligible to become unrestricted free agents as of July 1, according to PuckPedia. The Capitals also have a handful of pending restricted free agents including forward Hendrix Lapierre and defenseman Alexander Alexeyev.
The Capitals finished the 2024-25 campaign atop the Eastern Conference with 116 points prior to being eliminated by the Carolina Hurricanes in the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.