Washington Capitals coach Spencer Carbery fumbled his words as he discussed new linemates Ilya and Aliaksei Protas.

The Capitals called up their AHL star, 19-year-old Ilya, on Monday, which Carbery said is great and exciting. But it also presents him with a unique challenge: How do you differentiate between the two in the heat of the moment?

Discussing it with the brothers from Belarus, Carbery briefly considered the nicknames “Pro” and “Lil Pro,” but he tossed that idea out because “lil” is a bit too difficult to yell from the bench, especially when they are playing on the same line. Instead, they settled on “Pro” for Ilya and “Big Pro” for Aliaksei.

Aliaksei is, after all, Ilya’s big brother by five years, although reporters watching Ilya’s first practice with the team Tuesday questioned if the little brother might have passed his big brother in height.

“I hope not,” Aliaksei replied adamantly when asked. Carbery said he’d need to see the two back-to-back, but Ilya conceded his big brother is still taller.

Both are officially listed at 6-foot-6. Together with 6-foot-4 Tom Wilson, they presented an intimidating line at Tuesday’s practice.

Carbery explained that he decided to put the brothers together to ease Ilya’s transition into the NHL.

“Basically trying to make him as comfortable as possible and give us some balance through three lines. ... I think the insulation, and him being able to communicate with his brother, and his brother helping him through and also Wilson,” Carbery said.

At the AHL level, Ilya showed that he’s a 200-foot player who’s intelligent and a good skater despite his size. Carbery said he’s excited to see if Ilya’s skill around the net, ability to make small plays, and offensive talent at both full strength and on the power play will translate to the NHL.

Starting out between two 30-goal-scorers last season in Wilson and his brother is nerve-racking, Ilya said. While Aliaksei joked that Ilya needs to be crisper with his passes, he said he doesn’t think Ilya really needs his help.

“I didn’t skate for him, I didn’t do the gym for him, right?” Aliaksei said. “He’s done it himself. He’s a hard-working guy. He absolutely deserves it. Did I help him? Yes. I tried my best. I’m excited for him. But he did it by himself.”

As proud as he is of his little brother, Aliaksei didn’t expect Ilya to take off quite as fast as he did in the AHL. As Carbery pointed out, even Aliaksei took some time to be a top scorer in the AHL. Ilya had 62 points in 66 games before being promoted.

The game before Ilya was called up, he scored six points for the Hershey Bears. Aliaksei had scored two points for the Capitals. He felt good about that until he saw his younger brother’s stat line, he joked.

The brothers talk every day, sometimes about hockey, but often over FaceTime so Ilya can talk to Aliaksei’s daughter, whom he had only seen in-person once.

But when Ilya called with the news of his call-up, Aliaksei didn’t answer. He was busy with his daughter. Ilya followed it with a text. Aliaksei immediately picked up the phone after that.

Although he joked that he made his brother stay in a hotel, in reality, Aliaksei offered his brother his guest room. The Capitals only have four regular season games left, so it wouldn’t make sense for Ilya to find his own place. Plus, Ilya will get to spend more time (and maybe help out) with his niece.

Ilya will make his debut Wednesday in Toronto, and he’ll get to do it with his brother by his side.

“It’s just unbelievable,” Ilya said. “I couldn’t believe for a second. I was so shaky for a bit. It was special, for sure. I can’t describe it, and I can’t wait for tomorrow.”