Andrew Cristall knows the 2025-26 season could be his best opportunity yet to break into the NHL, and he’s not about to throw away his chance.
“It’s a big opportunity… It’s not something I’m taking for granted,” the 20-year-old forward told Mike Vogel on the Break the Ice podcast on Sunday. “I think I’m ready to turn the page and go pro.”
The Washington Capitals’ 2023 second-round draft pick nearly made the team last season with an impressive training camp showing but ultimately was sent back to complete his junior career in the WHL. Cristall split the 2024-25 campaign with the Kelowna Rockets and Spokane Chiefs, finishing as the league’s top scorer after tallying a career-high 132 points (48g, 84a) in 57 games. He then tacked on an additional 41 points (21g, 20a) in 19 playoff games, falling just shy of a WHL championship with the Chiefs.
“It’s obviously a devastating loss, and you never want to lose, but there’s always something to take out of it. It’s a learning experience… It’s a feeling that you don’t really want to feel again. So, it’s definitely a big motivation,” Cristall reflected. “I had a long run in junior, and hopefully in pro hockey, can do the same.”
The Capitals’ 2025 Development Camp was Cristall’s third since hearing his name called at the draft in Nashville. Despite the disappointment of missing out on the opening night roster last year, he believes the experience has just made him that much better.
“I feel really good. I feel really confident,” Cristall said, crediting the relationships he’s built with team staff at Capitals MedStar Iceplex for helping him acclimate to an NHL environment and building pro habits easily.
“They just are so welcoming and they have so much knowledge,” he continued. “Whether it’s stuff on the ice, off the ice, how to eat, how to take care of your body, there’s so many different things that they have so much information on. It’s been a really good learning experience to kind of ask questions and bounce ideas off, whether it’s the player development or strength coaches and whatnot. I feel really good about that.”
Cristall is also a big student of the game. He said he spent significant time with Capitals skills coach Kenny McCudden to “run through some drills” and with player development coach Jim Slater to improve his play.
“I think my defensive game has come around a lot, and I feel like I have a really good stick and can kind of see things in the defensive zone that can maybe get the puck back and create a turnover,” Cristall said. “So, I think that’s definitely a big improvement in my game as well. Just my skating, my speed has come a long way too, but still a lot of work on both those areas to be done.”
Cristall fell to the Caps at 40th overall in the 2023 draft due to concerns about his skating, defensive play, compete level, and somewhat smaller frame. However, since then, the five-foot-nine winger has used critiques like that only to push himself further.
“I think I’ve handled those conversations pretty well, and I think it’s probably more of a credit to the staff on communicating what you need to do, and we need to improve on to kind of get to the next level,” he said. “The conversations I’ve had after development camps and training camps are all positive, but they kind of send you back with a little bit of fuel to the fire on what you need to do to try and make the team… Going from junior to pro hockey is just a lot faster. I think the pace is just up a whole other level, and I think if I can play with pace and work on my speed and things like that, I think I’ll be good.”
After meeting the Capitals’ newest additions from the 2025 NHL Draft and reuniting with some familiar faces from previous development camps, Cristall is excited to eventually put on a Capitals sweater with his potential future teammates.
“I feel like we have a really strong group of prospects,” Cristall said. According to the young winger, part of this year’s group of prospects took a trip to the National Zoo for some off-ice bonding to help build important chemistry.
“Little things like that, where we can talk and get to know the new guys a little bit and just have fun. I think that’s the biggest thing away from the rink, we all have a good time together,” Cristall said.
A couple of particular prospects Cristall is keen on playing with at the next level are Caps’ 2024 draft selections Cole Hutson and Ilya Protas.
“I think playing with Cole would be awesome, especially on the power play,” he theorized. “He can maneuver a puck so well, and he’s just so skilled and just puts his teammates in the right spots to make a play. So, I think playing with him would be pretty awesome. And then a guy like Little Pro, I think, would be super fun to play with… He’s just so skilled and so big. He can win a puck and throw a flat sauce on the ice – and he could score as well. Such a big body and super smart.”
Cristall is also familiar with the team’s 2025 first-round draft pick Lynden Lakovic. The pair faced off once in October before Cristall was traded to Spokane, a 6-0 Kelowna victory where he had a four-point night (1g, 3a).
“Lynden, I’ve only played him a couple times in the Western League, actually, since we’re on the other side of the conference, but he’s obviously a really big player and could skate really well, and he’s got an unreal shot,” Cristall said. “So, another good addition. Hopefully, sooner rather than later, we can all be playing together and try and win a Cup.”
Cristall will come to training camp in the fall, likely battling with fellow Capitals prospects Ivan Miroshnichenko, Hendrix Lapierre, Bogdan Trineyev, Henrik Rybinksi, and Ethen Frank for a spot within the team’s bottom-six forward group. The Caps saw forwards Lars Eller, Andrew Mangiapane, and Taylor Raddysh all depart in free agency, and just 10 of the club’s regular forwards from their playoff run will be back for the 2025-26 campaign.
If Cristall does not make the NHL roster out of camp, he’ll be sent to the AHL’s Hershey Bears.
