WASHINGTON, DC — Over more than a decade in the NHL, Tom Wilson has made a name for himself through both his scoring talent and his rough-and-tumble physicality, but he’s never managed a Gordie Howe Hat Trick — until now.
Wilson hit the career milestone Thursday against the Montreal Canadiens in his 763rd NHL game. He kicked off the scoring 3:21 into the second period, breaking an extended drought for the Capitals’ power play with a tip-in off Alex Ovechkin’s shot.
After a six-goal second period left the Capitals and Canadiens tied 3-3, Wilson tallied an assist on Connor McMichael’s game-winning goal in the third period. Wilson carried the puck into the Habs’ zone, passing it to Trevor van Riemsdyk before McMichael backhanded the puck into the net.
Wilson wouldn’t get the elusive Gordie Howe until the dying minutes of the game. After laying a big hit on Montreal’s Kaiden Guhle, Wilson faced the wrath of Josh Anderson, who challenged him to a bout. Though both players got some punches in early, Anderson came out of the fight on top.
For a player who isn’t a stranger to either the scoresheet or the penalty box, the fact that Wilson hadn’t recorded a Gordie Howe Hat Trick before now came as something of a surprise, even to those on his own team. Head coach Spencer Carbery could hardly believe the fact when asked about it after the win.
“I’m shocked at that,” he said. “That’s a fact?
“Wow, 600 games, 700? Phew. That is shocking. I’m sure I will see that on social media at some point in the next 48 hours, and a lot of people will be going like, ‘Wow.’ Yeah, I wouldn’t have expected that.”
Though Wilson never quite managed the feat in his first decade in the league, he apparently came within spitting — or punching — distance way back in his first month in the league. Speaking to reporters after the game, Wilson revealed that he’d turned down a chance to complete the hat trick against the New York Islanders back in November 2013 — the same night he scored his first NHL goal.
“It’s funny — it’s been a long career,” he said. “My first goal and my first assist were in the same game, and Matt Carkner grabbed me with like 10 seconds left in the game, when I was 19 years old and said, ‘Do you want one?’ And I just said, “I just want to celebrate my first goal.’ So since then, it hasn’t really happened. Fun to get that one under the belt.”
Wilson has been one of the Capitals’ best players in their first month of the season, recording a four-game goal streak to start the campaign. He has scored at nearly a point-per-game pace with 8 points (6g, 2a), and currently leads the team in goals.
