The Washington Capitals presented Jay Beagle with his Stanley Cup ring Monday ahead of their game against the Vancouver Canucks that night.
And one player in particular, other than Jay himself, got the feels: Nicklas Backstrom.
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Special moment this morning when Beags briefly reunited with the boys #ALLCAPS pic.twitter.com/iIhH4EVTF6
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) October 22, 2018
Backstrom, Beagle, and Alex Ovechkin were the three longest-tenured Capitals players when the team finally broke through and won the Stanley Cup in June. The Calgary native opened the ring in front of the entire Capitals locker room as they clapped and cheered.
“Fits like a glove,” Beagle said after putting the ring on for the first time. “Fits like a glove.”
He then gave a short speech.
“It’s great to see you guys,” Beagle said. “Honestly, I saw you guys yesterday and I truly do miss you guys. You’re family to me. Obviously, we went through something that was incredible and something we’ll never forget.
“You’ll always have a place in my heart. I miss you, guys,” Beagle continued as he began to tear up. “Thanks for being here and for presenting the ring to me.”
Backstrom spoke about the ring presentation to Mike Vogel during the Capitals’ Rinkside Update.
“Yeah, I mean it’s very special,” Backstrom said. “[H]e’s been with the Caps for a long time. I couldn’t be more [happy] to welcome him in and let him have his ring.”
The two players exchanged a big hug in the Capitals locker room. Both were smiling ear to ear.
“He was just glowing when he got that ring,” Backstrom continued. “Fun part and sad to see him leave, but at the same time, it’s part of the business. Seems like he’s doing alright there. Great guy and great hockey player, great teammate. No one deserves it more than him.”
One person happy to see Beagle in the locker room, but relieved not to see him out on the ice was Caps head coach Todd Reirden. The tenacious Beagle, who is one of the best faceoff men in the NHL, broke his forearm two weeks ago while blocking a shot. Beags is out for at least another month.
“Fortunately, we don’t have to deal with Jay Beagle tonight,” Caps head coach Todd Reirden said according to the Washington Post. “He knows our system as well as we do.”
At least he’ll have something shiny to stare at up in the press box.
Headline photo: @Capitals
