Tom Wilson appeared to be the most devastated Washington Capitals player when the team announced that TJ Oshie would be stepping away from the game due to a chronic back injury in September.
“He’s like family to me,” Wilson said then. “We’ve gotten really close.”
Wilson and Oshie, two bash brothers on the Capitals’ right side, would share a ridiculous pregame ritual where they gave each other butt taps with their sticks to hype each other up. When the puck was dropped, the two would be a one-two punch in the team’s top six — both physically and offensively. Wilson also mirrored Oshie’s style on the power play, as both suited up in the bumper spot on different units.
Friday, Wilson scored twice against the New York Islanders, including a perfectly placed one-timer from Oshie’s old spot on a first-period man advantage. The PPG was his eighth goal of the season.
At intermission, Monumental Sports Network’s Al Koken asked Wilson if he’s tried to incorporate some of what he learned from Oshie. Wilson revealed something exceptionally kind that Oshie would do to get Wilson more opportunity.
“You know what, he was so good to me in my whole career,” Wilson said. “He would always get off the ice early on power plays so I could go out there and try and score a goal. So I just tried to watch him as much as I could. There’d never be anyone as good as Oshie in that spot, but happy to get one.”
Later, in the third period, Wilson showed that he’s learned from another one of the Capitals’ currently sidelined legends. Skating to an open spot in the left circle, Wilson scored his ninth goal of the year with a one-timer from Alex Ovechkin’s office.
Now a dad off the ice, Wilson’s leadership role has also grown as he’s wearing an A as a full-time Capitals alternate captain this season. And he’s taking what he’s learned from his superstar teammates to keep the wins coming. How very Ovechkshie of him.
