LISTEN: Capitals’ Tom Wilson on being named NHL All-Star for 2nd time
For the second time in his career, Washington Capitals winger Tom Wilson has been named an NHL All-Star.
The transcript below has been lightly edited for clarity.
Tom Wilson: Hey guys, what’s going on?
Kyle Cooper: Hey, thanks for being with us this morning. Thanks and congratulations on that honor. We all remember your last appearance, scoring that goal just 13 seconds into the match. How are you going to top that this year?
Tom Wilson: Yeah, I don’t know. I had Kuzy with me in Vegas and he made a nice pass to me. That was a pretty fun weekend, so it’ll be nice going home to Toronto for this one to enjoy it with family and friends.
John Aaron: I’m wondering is there like an All-Star game etiquette you’ll abide by? Or are you going to give someone a really good lick if you get the chance?
Tom Wilson: No, I think everybody out there gets a free pass for the weekend. It’s more of a skill-finesse show than the rest of the game of hockey. So we’ll give them a freebie.
John Aaron: OK, very nice of you.
Kyle Cooper: So Tom, say a little bit more about what it means for you to be nominated for this honor and, of course, going home to play there in Toronto.
Tom Wilson: Yeah, it’s a huge honor obviously to represent the Caps and a lot of great teammates and coaches and, you know, support system over the years that allow myself to go and have fun at things like this and represent the team, so it’s a huge honor. And, you know, something, when you look back on your career, these will be the big highlights — so I’m excited about it. I know my family’s excited about it. That’s another great part about this job, is sharing it with your family and friends — that’s kind of what it’s all about. And it makes it even more meaningful to us as a player, so I’m excited
John Aaron: So post-All-Star break or even, you know, just leading up to it, how are you feeling about the team? You guys have been playing well, but there are so many other good teams out there. What’s the outlook for you? What do you guys need to do?
Tom Wilson: Yeah, our division’s always, we know it’s always going to be a tough battle. There’s a lot of good teams and it usually comes right down to the wire at the end of the year, so we got to continue to collect points and hang in those games. And we’ve been doing a pretty good job this year at, you know, finding a way to get points, get into overtime, get wins. And, you know, the team’s playing well, we’ve come together as a group and, you know, we’re excited about the second half here. We just got to keep our foot on the gas and make sure we’re taking care of business when we can.
John Aaron: Just while we have you — what is it like to be such a polarizing guy where the home fans love you so much and the opposing fans just love to hate you? What is that like?
Tom Wilson: I guess it’s — you get the odd boo when you go on the road, but you know I try and focus on this organization, this fan base, this city — you know they’re so good to me. D.C. has taken me in since I was a young kid, and it just means the world, playing on the Caps, going out and competing for this group. So I try and focus on the good. And definitely, you know, the boys and I get the odd laugh when you go on the road and you get some boos and the other fans have some funny signs or whatever for you in warm-up. You know, it’s all part of the game. It’s what makes hockey great and, you know, sports great — the passion from the fans. So you can’t blame them for it. It’s just them being loyal for their teams.