#tj1k

They said, "that's who we hate," and I'm like, "All right, I'm on board. I hate these guys. And I'm gonna play like I hate 'em."

Yeah, who could that have been.

okay, picture this: 2014. sochi. usa vs. russia. it's pretty much a meaningless game, technically speaking. but fuck, it'd be nice to win. one of the really magical things about the olympics is that it brings heroes to light, and medals don't always have something to do with that. when tj oshie took six shootout attempts and scored four times to beat the russians, he cemented himself in the hearts of american hockey fans for life. and more than one person i know became a hockey fan because of this infamous shootout. a signature moment! american hero tj oshie, we said. tj sochi! he was considered a tossup to make the team at all, and ten years later, that shootout is basically all we remember about that usa squad. and yet tj always deflected the attention to the guy on the other end of the ice, the goalie who kept the game alive and gave tj the opportunity to ice the game. (thank you, jon quick!!!!) and i think maybe this is one of the easiest ways to explain who tj oshie is: a guy who always plays for his teammates, who digs deep and comes up big when needed, and a guy who will always uplift those around him rather than bask in attention alone.

in the summer of 2015, the capitals traded for tj. at the time, they were searching for a winger who could play to the right of nicklas bäckström. the young guns era was emphatically over; just ovi and nicke remained, and the team just. was not quite there yet. they were good, but not quite there. and gmbm and co. believed that this winger — high energy, physical with some offensive finish — would be able to put them over the top.

and, well, it turned out alright, didn't it?

i don't want to understate the importance of tj's blues era one bit; by all accounts he speaks of his time there glowingly. he did a lot of growing up there, playing for seven seasons with st. louis. so do not take this the wrong way at all but: tj oshie was always meant to be a capital — this is a team that has always seemed to have versions of a core four; there have been so many iterations of the caps with so many great players, but to me, despite my genuine love for the young guns, when all is said and done: the most impactful and truest core will be ovi, nicke, carly, and from the moment he arrived, osh. he fit so seamlessly into the ethos of the organization that it feels now, almost a decade later, like he has always worn capitals red. fans cheerfully joke about how glad they are that the capitals drafted him in 2005. he came into his own here. he's ours. not all big trades can be a home run. but thank god this one was.

he arrived in dc with his customary aplomb and good nature that would endear him to the fans, organization, and local media alike. his energy on and off the ice was notable. he always had time for the people around him, no matter who they were, and that's something that continues to this day — fans talk all the time about how warm and genuine tj is when they happen to meet him out and about. i think one of the most likable things about tj is how absolutely down to earth he is; he is so aware that he is, at the end of the day, just some guy! who's lucky to be living the dream.

but of course, it's not all luck! tj on the ice works as hard as anybody i've ever seen. when asked to talk about him, every one of his teammates and coaches mention his work ethic, his effort level, his layman's attitude in his approach despite having the hands to be able to play an entirely different sort of game. and it's like, the way he plays is not easy on the body; he's built solid but no one would ever call him big. especially when he was younger he played with reckless abandon; you could see his eyes light up when he had a guy lined up for a huge momentum swinging hit. these days he skates as hard as ever but picks his spots for that big physical play more wisely out of necessity. the last few years he's fought back from injury after injury; i think there's a lot of anxiety every time he goes down from the fans because there is this pervasive feeling of: what if he doesn't come back this time? what if this is the one that forces him away? so far, he's always come back. and i love him for that, but i also think he's given so much more of himself to the franchise than we could have ever reasonably asked, and when he eventually hangs up the skates, i hope no one ever wears 77 for the capitals again.

in the end, looking back, i think tj will be remembered for a lot of things that he'd be proud of. but the thing that stands out the most comes down to this: he's all heart, man. like. he's very good, don't get me wrong, but he's never been the biggest or fastest or most talented player on the ice. what he has been though, all throughout his career, is fearless and selfless and determined. heart and hustle, that's tj down to the bone. i love watching him play because he plays from a place of so much emotion. sometimes it's pretty, sometimes it isn't, but he always, always plays with love: for his teammates and for the game and for the people in his life, and that manifests in the way he works so hard every single shift. and just when you think he can't possibly give any more, that he's already giving 100% and there isn't anything left in the tank, he digs deeper and gives you 110%, 115%. he elevates the players around him, too, because when a guy is grinding like he is and sacrificing the body and finding ways to contribute whether he's on the scoresheet or not, you can't not do the same.

he is such a leader in this room; he's been the beating heart of this club in so many ways for nearly ten years. i have a bad habit of mourning the loss of players before they're gone and i'm trying not to. just the thought of a capitals team with no tj oshie.... it feels awful!! above all i want him to be able to live a happy and healthy life post-hockey though, and i do understand what every game costs him. like time and time again, he's put team before his own body and wellbeing. i hope he knows that as fans, we do appreciate him every shift he takes and that we will not begrudge him for a single second when he does decide it's time to retire. and i hope he knows that the love he gives to the people around him is returned to him tenfold.