Over two years ago, we wrote about TJ Oshie and how he helped make two young girls, six-year-old Kiona and three-year-old Koa, superfans of the Capitals. Oshie took selfies with the girls during warmups of games and tossed them pucks. Oshie even gave Kiona one of his used hockey sticks, promising to autograph it someday.
“My kids adore him,” Jonah P., the dad, said at the time. “He’s made our family even bigger fans of the team.”
Over the weekend, Jonah and his two daughters, now nine and six, had an opportunity to attend their very first practice at MedStar Capitals Iceplex. Unsure where to park, the family chose a level below the eighth floor. As they were pulling into their spot, they noticed several prominent players jumping into their vehicles and leaving the facility. One of the players was Oshie.
“My oldest Kiona yelled to him as he was getting into his vehicle that he promised to sign her stick,” Jonah said laughing. “Oshie got a big smile. He made small talk with the kids and signed a few things before taking a photo with them. It was so wonderful.”
“Kiona and Koa thanked TJ and he came over to shake my hand before leaving,” Jonah said.
The moment seemed like fate. Kiona and Koa would not have seen Oshie on the ice; TJ recently ruled out for the rest of the season due to a lingering upper-body injury.
The family ran into several other Caps in the parking lot — Darcy Kuemper, John Carlson, Charlie Lindgren, and Nick Jensen — before eventually making it upstairs to catch the tail end of practice.
Upstairs, inside the rink, Tom Wilson had a gift of his own for Koa as the family was sitting in the crowd. Now Koa has a stick just like her older sister.
“This was truly one of the most memorable days we’ve ever had as a family and we cannot thank the Capitals enough for how kind they are to my daughters,” Jonah said. “We had no idea how practice was going to go down. We had no expectations. My girls said it was the ‘Best Easter ever!'”
Photos: Jonah P.
