Tom Wilson has a well-earned reputation around the NHL as a player you do not want to mess with. Many opponents have learned the hard way what happens when they push Wilson’s buttons, and most have quickly come to regret it.
According to former Washington Capitals teammate Connor McMichael, sometimes even those on the same side of Wilson can face his ire.
McMichael spoke about his relationship with Wilson and specifically touched on what he believes was the angriest he has ever seen the big winger during his recent guest appearance on The Cam & Strick Podcast.
Connor McMichael talks about former Capitals teammate Tom Wilson
“He’s honestly such a good dude,” McMichael said. “He’s super nice. But at the same time, when it comes to hockey, he’s super intense, and he’s a great leader. I think he’s captain material one day, and if guys are goofing around in practice or something, he’ll go on his next rep and go as hard as he can just to like send a message. Like, enough of that, enough of that stuff, and just like ‘I’m setting the tone.’ So, he’s really good with that stuff, and I mean on the ice, if you get under his skin, he always says like, ‘Don’t wake me up.’ I always hear him saying that. When he gets real mad, he gets real mad.
“He’s willing to do anything for his teammates, whether it’s block a shot, step in to fight after a big hit, or a dirty play. He does it all. He scores big goals. The angriest I’ve ever seen him, though, was probably a couple years ago in the playoffs when he and (Josh0 Anderson went into the bench there. He was not happy about that. Even going into the intermission, he was still seeing red, so I was even scared of him then.”
The incident between Wilson and Montreal Canadiens forward Josh Anderson that McMichael is referring to occurred during Washington and Montreal’s first-round playoff series in 2025. Wilson left his fingerprints all over what turned out to be a short but heated series, most famously boiling over in Game 3, which was the Canadiens’ lone win in five games.
Ahead of the game, Wilson exchanged words with Canadiens enforcer Arber Xhekaj during warmups, and then got into a literal bench brawl with Anderson at the conclusion of the second period.
Tom Wilson and Josh Anderson get into playoff bench fight
While the Capitals fell in Game 3, the ornery way they lost clearly stuck with Wilson, who turned the series on its head in Game 4 with a bone-crunching hit. Wilson caught Canadiens defenseman Alexandre Carrier lacking along the boards at Bell Centre, leading directly to a goal by Brandon Duhaime to tie the game 2-2, and the Caps would then score three more times to wrap up a 5-2 win.
The hit and its game-changing nature were a perfect summary of the type of valuable player that Wilson has become and one of the primary reasons he is tabbed to become the next Capitals captain once the legendary Alex Ovechkin officially calls it quits on his NHL career. Wilson is signed through the 2030-31 season with the Capitals and could get the ‘C’ on his sweater as soon as the 2027-28 campaign.
McMichael was dealt to the St. Louis Blues on June 23 as part of a package that saw Jordan Kyrou head to DC. Before then, Wilson played an integral part in his development with the Caps as both a role model and linemate, especially during McMichael’s breakout 2024-25 campaign.
