Trevor van Riemsdyk did something that he hasn’t done in literal years: send a piece of vulcanized rubber over the goal line for his own team.
Saturday, against the San Jose Sharks, the 33-year-old blueliner ended the longest active goal drought in the NHL, 145 games, with a bank shot — from behind the net (!) — on San Jose Sharks netminder Georgi Romanov. After moving down from his point position, TVR sent a shot off of Romanov’s pads and in.
Adding to the ridiculousness of the moment, referee Chris Rooney emphatically pointed at the puck after it found paydirt.
“I was shocked when I saw it [was in],” van Riemsdyk said postgame. “But as I was just rounding the net, I saw it behind his foot there, so it was a fortunate bounce, but at this point I’ll take anything.”
The goal was TVR’s first since he beat New Jersey Devils goaltender Akira Schmid on March 9, 2023, over two years ago, marking his single-season career-best seventh of the 2022-23 campaign. Peter Laviolette was still coaching the Capitals, and Nicklas Backstrom was in Washington’s lineup. Joe Biden was the president and Hawk Tuah was yet to be a household name.
TVR’s long goalless streak officially began two days later on March 11, 2023. The rearguard did not score in nine more games of the 2022-23 season, went without a goal in all 70 games he played during the 2023-24 campaign, and then went 66 games without a goal this season.
“[Felt] pretty good,” van Riemsdyk said. “It’s been a long time, but I was joking in the locker room saying my son’s almost two and hasn’t been alive for a goal yet, so it was nice a week before his birthday to get one.”
TVR’s teammates made sure to grab the puck for his son Lucas, who was born two weeks after he scored against the Devils.
“Oh, that’s the best,” Dylan Strome said. “The guy works so hard. Doesn’t say much, doesn’t complain ever. Just goes out there, does his job, makes flat passes, doesn’t get beat. Not the quickest fleet of foot guy. But you don’t find a guy (who doesn’t) get beat like him. Guys can’t get around him. He’s got a great stick.
“So really happy for him. Nice little shimmy shake at the blue line there. And he pointed it out, ‘goal,’ right away. I know he’s been joking about (how) Lucas hasn’t seen him score yet, his son. So we grabbed that puck for Lucas. That’s going to be a one that he remembers for a long time, I’m sure.”
The goal came at a pivotal moment of the game, just 40 seconds after Macklin Celebrini had cut the Capitals’ lead to two goals. Head coach Spencer Carbery made a point in his locker room victory speech to acknowledge the timeliness of TVR’s long-awaited tally.
“For me, the difference in that game, building comes alive, it gets to 3-1,” Carbery said. “Lars’ line goes out there, turns a puck over, gets in on the forecheck, and Trevor van Riemsdyk…”
Before he could finish his sentence, the rest of the Capitals drowned their bench boss out with cheering and a standing ovation. Aliaksei Protas then awarded van Riemsdyk the team’s gaudy gold chain handed out to their chosen player of the game.
Shoutout baby Riemer#ALLCAPS pic.twitter.com/qhM5USl4Do
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) March 16, 2025
Van Riemsdyk now has 17 points (1g, 16a) in 67 games this season. Despite his lack of goal-scoring, he’s still on pace to hit the 20-point mark in a season for just the second time in his career. His previous career-high in points is the 23 (7g, 16a) he recorded in 2022-23.
