Washington Capitals winger TJ Oshie is back in the state that he called home late in his childhood. The Capitals have traveled to Minnesota to take on the Wild in a cross-conference matchup on Tuesday night.
Oshie, who moved to Warroad, Minnesota as a 15-year-old in part to advance his hockey career, won two state titles with Warroad High School and had his number retired by the Warriors two summers ago. Oshie met with assembled media after Monday’s practice in Xcel Energy Center’s visiting locker room, a special spot from his past.
“This locker room, specifically, is pretty special to me,” Oshie said. “Being in here for a state championship and then in the room just down the hall for another state championship. That’s really the first memory that comes back to me from back in high school. Being in an NHL locker room for the first time is pretty surreal. Eye-opening what the NHL players got back then.”
Oshie played three seasons for the Warroad Warriors (2002-05). Warroad went undefeated his senior year as Oshie scored an absurd 100 points (38g, 62a) in 31 games. One of the most dominant players in the state, Osh also chipped in 85 points in his junior season.
The 37-year-old winger is one of only four players to have his number retired in the school’s history, joining Dave Christian (no. 3), Billy Christian (no. 10), and Oshie’s second cousin Henry Boucha (no. 16). During his number retirement ceremony, Oshie called Warroad “the most special place for any kid to grow up in” and that his only regret was that “I didn’t move here until I was 15.”
Oshie’s connection to St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center isn’t limited to just his high school career though. In all three of Oshie’s college years at the University of North Dakota, he played in the WCHA Men’s Ice Hockey Tournament Final Five inside the arena.
In 2006, North Dakota won the WCHA championship and received an automatic bid to that season’s NCAA Men’s Division I Ice Hockey Tournament. Oshie was named to the All-Tournament Team for his contributions to the victory.
After starting his NHL career, Oshie has also battled the Minnesota Wild in the arena with both the St. Louis Blues and now the Capitals.
“It’s crazy the first time I walked into this building compared to how I walk in today in a completely different situation,” Oshie said. “A lot of really great memories and a lot of great people here in the state of Minnesota. It’s phenomenal being back.”
Although this will be Oshie’s first visit back home in an official NHL capacity this season, he did fly back to Minnesota weeks ago to see his personal chiropractor — something he has done several times as he’s tried to work himself back from injuries.
The veteran forward has had well-documented issues with his back in recent years. Over this past offseason, he had a back procedure that made “a light year’s difference.” He also recently gave up playing golf as a hobby to keep his back from flaring up.
Since returning to action with the Capitals, Oshie has six points (5g, 1a) in six games. In his last five career games against the Wild, he has been held without a point. Before that, he had seven points (4g, 3a) in eight games against them as a member of the Caps.
