Basketball

Capitals’ Tom Wilson not interested in ‘physical’ showdown against Rangers


The Washington Capitals are preparing to face the New York Rangers in both teams’ season opener, but the talk heading into the game has been all about Tom Wilson and the incident against the Rangers last May.

On May 3, Wilson sparked a second-period melee that earned him four minutes for roughing, a 10-minute misconduct, a $5,000 fine, and sent Rangers star Artemi Panarin to the dressing room with a lower-body injury. The teams then faced each other in a fight-filled rematch on May 5.

On Wednesday, Wilson said he isn’t focusing on fighting heading into this game.

“Having a big, physical first night with the Rangers isn’t where we want to be this year,” Wilson said. “We have a lot of goals. I want to score goals. I want to be a leader. I want to take on more responsibility and get our team to the playoffs and hopefully more.”

The Rangers acquired Ryan Reaves in the offseason as a clear attempt to add more grit to the lineup. But Reaves told reporters last month he wasn’t acquired just to fight Wilson.

“I’m not here because of Tom Wilson,” Reaves said. “I’m here because of what players like Tom Wilson bring to his team.”

Alex Ovechkin, who left the Capitals’ final preseason game early with a lower-body injury, said he is a game-time decision.

(Photo: Steve Babineau / NHLI via Getty Images)





READ NEWS SOURCE

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you accept our use of cookies.