The Washington Capitals are all famous hockey players as adults, but when they were little, they were just like you and me (maybe with a bit more of an excessive hockey addiction).
Most of the players had hockey jerseys as kids and recently the Capitals asked each player the first sweater they ever received.
These were the teams and players they idolized.
The following are the answers posted by the Capitals in a promotional video, featuring additional context provided by RMNB.
What was the first jersey you had as a kid?
Alex Ovechkin
“My first jersey was San Jose Sharks,” said Ovechkin.
Ovechkin, who grew up in Moscow, Russia, did not have a television growing up, but learned of the NHL and its biggest stars — like Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Sergei Fedorov — through videotapes that showed highlights of goals, hits, and fights.
“My favorite team was San Jose,” Ovechkin said. “I was cheering for them, especially when (Owen) Nolan was there.”
Ovi ended up getting a Sharks hat, hoodie, and jacket. Eventually his father Mikhail gave him an Ulf Dahlen Sharks jersey. Dahlen played three of his final four NHL seasons in Washington, posting 53 goals and 138 points in 217 games. Now 56, the Swede recently served as a head coach in the HockeyAllsvenskan and SHL.
As of 2020, Ovi’s Dahlen jersey was pinned to the wall of his game room back in Russia.
Tiny Ovi also idolized Sergei Fedorov and ended up getting an unofficial jersey of the Red Wings star as well.
Rasmus Sandin
“My first jersey I had as a kid was a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey, funny enough,” Sandin said. “My second jersey was a Washington Capitals jersey.”
Coincidentally, Sandin, a native of Sweden, was drafted in the first found of the 2018 NHL Draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs. Last season, he was traded to the Capitals for Erik Gustafsson and a first-round pick. Sandin idolized fellow Swede Nicklas Backstrom.
Connor McMichael
“Alex Ovechkin,” said McMichael.
Growing up in Ajax, Ontario, McMichael was addicted to hockey as a kid and dreamed of being an NHL player. McMike even dressed up as Alex Ovechkin for Halloween. His mother Catherine posted the picture before his first NHL game.
Not just a costume today! Have fun son and enjoy every minute. We are so proud of you! ❤️@Capitals @con91mcmichael https://t.co/H7rByOe2fQ pic.twitter.com/IBeeF7cqiV
— Catherine McMichael (@catmcmichael) January 24, 2021
Now, after paying his dues in the minors and winning a Calder Cup championship with the Hershey Bears, the 2019 first-round pick sometimes centers Ovechkin, who is playing in his 19th season in the NHL and chasing Wayne Gretzky’s NHL goals record.
Dreams do come true, kids.
TJ Oshie
“The first jersey I had was I believe a Joe Sakic jersey,” said Oshie.
Sakic, captain of the Colorado Avalanche, helped the team win two Stanley Cups in 1996 and 2001. Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2012, Sakic is one of the greatest goal-scorers and playmakers in NHL history, posting 1,641 points (625g, 1,016a) in 1,378 games.
Oshie was born in 1986 and grew up north of Seattle in Everett, Washington as a kid.
“I had the full (Sonics) jersey and shorts for Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp,” Oshie said in the past. “I was a huge Ken Griffey Jr. fan. I actually wanted to name Campbell, my son, Griffey but my wife had other plans.”
At age 15, the Capitals’ winger moved to Warroad, Minnesota where he’d go on to star for their high school hockey team.
Oshie was drafted in the first round of the 2005 NHL Draft by the St. Louis Blues. Though it was not the experience you’d imagine. Oshie did not attend the draft and was watching MTV at home when his name was called hundreds of miles away in Ottawa.
“I wasn’t really paying any attention to the draft,” Oshie said. “My dream wasn’t really to get drafted. It was to play in the NHL. I never watched hockey growing up. I don’t know. I just never watched the draft. I honestly didn’t even really know what it meant.”
Tom Wilson
“First jersey I had as a kid was Steve Yzerman Red Wings jersey,” said Wilson.
Yzerman, a smart two-way center, led Detroit to three separate Stanley Cups, winning the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1998 as Playoff MVP when Detroit swept Washington in four games. During his 22 seasons in the league, Yzerman scored 692 goals and recorded 1,755 points.
Wilson also had an Alex Ovechkin jersey growing up, making the revelation at the 2012 NHL Draft. An excited Wilson said to reporters then, “It’s gonna be really cool to meet him.”
Ovechkin and Wilson, along with Evgeny Kuznetsov, formed the Capitals’ first line that helped the team win its first Stanley Cup championship in 2018. Wilson still plays to the right of Ovi in games.
Wilson also had an old school black Caps jersey as well, featuring the Capitol dome logo.
Dylan Strome
“Mats Sudin,” Strome said.
Born in Mississauga, Ontario, in 1995, Strome was a huge Leafs fan growing up and played for the Toronto Marlboros as a teenager.
Per Steve Dangle, Strome posted himself wearing a Leafs jersey the day of Game 7 of the team’s 2013 playoff series against the Boston Bruins. The Leafs lost famously lost that game 5-4 in overtime.
The Swedish Mats Sundin is a Hockey Hall of Famer and had his number 13 retired by the Leafs. He scored 564 goals and registered 1,349 points in his career.
Beck Malenstyn
“Dan Cloutier,” Malenstyn said.
Malenstyn, who grew up in White Rock, British Columbia, picked the unheralded Cloutier, who spent most of his career as a backup goaltender. Cloutier made 57 or more starts for Malenstyn’s hometown team, the Vancouver Canucks, each season from 2001 through 2004. Cloutier’s final campaign in the NHL was in 2007-08.
Charlie Lindgren
“Patrick Lalime,” the Capitals’ starting goaltender said.
After bouncing around in the minors for years, Lalime finally got an opportunity with the team that drafted him, Pittsburgh, and impressed mightily. He set the NHL record for the longest unbeaten streak — 14-0-2 record in his first 16 games — for a goalie to start their career during the 1996-97 season.
Lalime played for four other different teams including the Ottawa Senators, St. Louis Blues, Chicago Blackhawks, and Buffalo Sabres. The Capitals showed Lalime wearing a Senators jersey during Lindgren’s response.
Anthony Mantha
“Montreal Canadiens,” said Mantha.
Mantha’s grandfather is four-time Stanley Cup winner Andre Pronovost. Pronovost won all four of his championships with the Montreal Canadiens in consecutive years: 1956–57, 1957–58, 1958–59, and 1959-60.
Pronovost was in attendance when Mantha scored his first NHL goal and began crying when his grandson’s goal song was played.
Darcy Kuemper
“Oilers,” Kuemper said.
Kuemper grew up in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and played many of his youth hockey games when he was little at SaskTel Centre, which is about five hours east of Edmonton.
Sonny Milano
“Probably the New York Islanders,” said Milano.
Milano grew up in Massapequa, New York and was an Islanders fan. He spent many of his days training at Northwell Health Ice Center, a sports performance center in the Isles practice facility, per Newsday.
Martin Fehervary
“The Slovak national team jersey,” said Fehervary.
Fehervary, 24, has since gone on to suit up for the Slovakian national team eight different times in international competition, including the World Championship three different times.
Fehervary won the Robert Svehla Award as the Slovak Defenseman of the Year for 2022-23. What a glow up!
Joel Edmundson
“I grew up a Calgary Flames fan so probably an Iginla jersey,” Edmundson said.
With the Winnipeg Jets relocating three years after he was born, Edmundson, a Brandon, Manitoba native, fell in love with the Flames. His father on the other hand, had his own team.
During an interview with the NHLPA in 2020, Joel revealed his dad Bob was a huge Habs fan.
“My dad’s going through a tough time right now,” Edmundson said then. “Right before we went into the bubble for the playoffs, I found out he got lung cancer. To be able to share the news that I got traded to Montreal – it’s always been his favorite team – it brought me back to when I was growing up at home, and in his office, all of the walls are painted Canadiens colors. Me going to Montreal, it put him over the top. It’s been exciting for us.”
While not a forward, Edmundson brings some of the same snarl that Iginla had in his game.
Evgeny Kuznetsov
“Oh, probably my [Traktor] game jersey,” Kuznetsov said. “I didn’t really have any jerseys when I was a kid. It was pretty expensive for us.”
Kuznetsov grew up in Chelyabinsk, Russia, where he was a superstar youth hockey player. After playing for Traktor’s youth team, he continued with his hometown team at the KHL level.
Nick Jensen
“Yzerman,” said Jensen.
Jensen was another Capitals player who first rocked an Yzerman sweater as a kid. The defenseman grew up in Rogers, Minnesota — two states over from Michigan.
Nic Dowd
“Florida Panthers Vanbiesbrouck,” said Dowd.
Sticking to his southern roots, Dowd picked the talented Panthers’ netminder who helped lead the team to a Stanley Cup Final appearance in 1996 — their third year in existence. Vanbiesbrouck’s mask was iconic. It was painted in gold and featured a panther’s head at the top.
While Vanbiesbrouck was his first jersey, Dowd’s favorite team was a different southern team.
“I supported the Predators,” Dowd said to Jewels From The Crown in 2015. “The Thrashers were on TV too. We definitely went as a treat, me and my dad, my brothers or my mom, we’d go to a couple Predators games a year, especially when they played Detroit or Colorado, Shanahan and all those guys. Bridgestone Arena is awesome. Downtown Nashville is great too. It’s a great place to watch a game, we had a lot of fun doing that.”
Dowd, a native of Huntsville, is the third person from Alabama to ever play in the NHL; Jared Ross and Aud Tuten are the two others.
Hockey was his family’s passion.
“My two older brothers played, Josh and Matt,” Dowd said. “They’re 10 and 12 years older than me. Josh was a goalie and Matt was a forward. They played through the same [youth] organization I did. We had what would’ve been a rink if it was cold enough out back. It was a nice little concrete area fenced in. My dad used to play goalie. They always encouraged it. I just fell in love with it.”
Hendrix Lapierre and Matthew Phillips
Lapierre, the Capitals’ first-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, and Phillips did not appear in the Capitals’ first sweater video, but their inclusion is necessary in this article. You’ll understand why quickly.
“I was a big Ovechkin fan growing up,” Lapierre said after being selected by the Capitals. “I had his jersey. I had his poster on my wall. My first jersey that I received was an Ovechkin jersey.”
Congrats Hendrix and all draft picks this year!!! Meet u soon :)))) https://t.co/tCdDks89v3
— Alex Ovechkin (@ovi8) October 8, 2020
After scoring his first NHL goal, Lapierre was greeted on the Capitals bench by Ovechkin, who gave him a happy head butt.
“He’s an awesome guy,” Lapierre said of Ovechkin. “He’s such a good teammate but he’s such a good player too. He finds ways to score all the time. He’s always ready in the room. He was actually really cool to me after my goal. I really appreciate those kinds of things. For them maybe it’s basic, but for me as a young guy, to get those shoulder taps and see those guys score, it’s pretty special. He’s amazing to watch. Everyone is.”
Phillips, a product of the Flames organization, was also a huge Ovechkin supporter growing up as well.
“I was a huge Ovechkin fan,” Phillips said to the Toronto Sun. “I wore number eight for Ovechkin. That was my number, all the way until I hit junior. I actually have an old Caps jersey, but it doesn’t fit me anymore.”
Capitals’ first jersey video
Whether you call it a jersey or a sweater, everyone remembers their first one#ALLCAPS pic.twitter.com/rxWNFibYBz
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) December 1, 2023
