Dylan Strome has spent much of the year setting up Alex Ovechkin, but he got his own moment in the spotlight against the New York Islanders Tuesday night.
Notching all three of Washington’s goals in the 3-1 victory, Strome earned his third NHL hat trick and his first in a Capitals uniform. The trio of goals not only gave him a new career high in goals (28) but also pushed him past the 80-point threshold for the first time in his career.
Tayler Strome, Dylan’s wife, revealed on Instagram that he had some extra motivation going into the game, with Tuesday marking three years since the passing of the couple’s golden retriever, Wrigley.
“Gettin one for the wrig man tonight ❤️,” he texted Tayler pregame, per her Instagram story.
Wrigley’s death was especially hard on the pair, Strome explained to reporters postgame, making his accomplishment Tuesday night even more meaningful.
“When you become a family and you get a dog and he passes really young, it’s tough,” he said. “It was tough for our family, and today happened to be the day he passed away three years ago. They say dogs are man’s best friend, and I really felt that…I know he was watching me tonight.”
While he only promised Tayler a single goal, Dylan recorded a career night, earning his first hat trick since March 8, 2022.
He broke the ice midway through the first period on the Capitals’ first power play of the game. After passing the puck to Pierre-Luc Dubois at the right circle, he got it back at the blue line before beating Isles goaltender Ilya Sorokin.
Strome struck again in the second period, this time picking up a feed from Alex Ovechkin and shooting from the high slot.
An own goal from Nic Dowd stopped Strome’s bid for a natural hat trick, but he scored on an empty net late in regulation to regain Washington’s two-goal lead and cap off his night.
Though head coach Spencer Carbery rarely deploys Strome when opponents pull their goaltenders, he opted to send him out, hoping he could finish off his hat trick.
“Put him out there in an unorthodox spot for him, five-on-six, but (I) knew that he had two and thought it was a good time for him to be able to get out there and try to seal the victory for us,” Carbery said postgame. “He’s done a lot for this team, and so he deserves — and has earned — to be in that spot to try to get that hat trick and seal the win for us at this point in the season.“
After the win, Strome credited his teammates for both his career-best season and his performance Tuesday against the Islanders when asked about the milestones.
“It’s nice,” he said. “It’s a lot of great players I get to play with. I’ve been playing with O most of the season and obviously this season that Pro has had, to play with guys like Willy and Mikey and Dubie — the whole team’s been chipping in.”
Strome’s efforts earned him a shoutout in Carbery’s postgame locker room speech and the Capitals’ player-of-the-game chain.
With Strome known as the Caps’ stats guy, often throwing out trivia during interviews and in the locker room, his teammates decided to flip roles and made sure to highlight Strome’s own impressive numbers, including his third career hat trick, 80-point season, and career high in goals.
“Appreciate all the kind words,” Strome responded. “Obviously, one more to go. Let’s keep this train rolling into the playoffs.”
Since coming to Washington in 2022, Strome has set a new career high in goals, assists, and points in three straight seasons as he’s come into his own within the Capitals organization. Once an unrestricted free agent after the Chicago Blackhawks opted not to tender him a qualifying offer, Strome is playing at a point-per-game pace with 81 points (29g, 52a) in 81 games, holding a healthy nine-point lead on Ovechkin as the Caps’ top scorer.
