The Washington Capitals, parent club of the AHL’s Hershey Bears, have acquired defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk and goaltender Pheonix Copley from the St. Louis Blues, NHL affiliate of the AHL’s Chicago Wolves, in exchange for forwards Zach Sanford and Brad Malone, a first-round selection in the 2017 NHL Draft and a conditional draft pick(s).
Copley, 25, returns to the Capitals organization after spending the 2014-15 season with Hershey. He has a 15-6-3 record this season with the Chicago Wolves with a 2.31 goals-against average, a .920 save percentage and one shutout.
Copley has posted a 47-26-9 record with seven shutouts, a 2.47 GAA and a .917 save percentage in 88 career AHL games with Chicago and Hershey. He has also made two career NHL appearances with the Blues.
Sanford, 22, has 11 goals and five assists in 25 AHL games with Hershey this season, as well as two goals and one assist in 26 NHL games with Washington. The 22-year-old rookie was a second-round choice by the Capitals in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.
Malone, 27, has registered seven goals and 13 assists for 20 points in 52 games with Hershey this season. A fourth-round choice by Colorado in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, Malone has played 176 games in the NHL with Colorado and Carolina, totaling 13 goals and 17 assists.
In 217 AHL games with Hershey and Lake Erie, Malone has recorded 36 goals and 59 assists for 95 points.
