Wilson makes his presence known when he's on the ice, but he's developed enough offensively to play on the first line and was key in helping the Washington Capitals win the first Stanley Cup in their history.
Washington selected Wilson with the No. 16 pick in the 2012 NHL Draft largely because of his reputation as a big hitter. In 2011-12 with Plymouth of the Ontario Hockey League, he finished with 27 points (nine goals, 18 assists) and 141 penalty minutes in 49 games, but scored 13 points (seven goals, six assists) in 13 playoff games.
Wilson makes his presence known when he's on the ice, but he's developed enough offensively to play on the first line and was key in helping the Washington Capitals win the first Stanley Cup in their history.
Washington selected Wilson with the No. 16 pick in the 2012 NHL Draft largely because of his reputation as a big hitter. In 2011-12 with Plymouth of the Ontario Hockey League, he finished with 27 points (nine goals, 18 assists) and 141 penalty minutes in 49 games, but scored 13 points (seven goals, six assists) in 13 playoff games.
In 2012-13, the Toronto native more than doubled his offensive production, with 58 points (23 goals, 35 assists) in 48 games before getting 17 points (nine goals, eight assists) in 12 playoff games. After Plymouth was eliminated, Wilson joined Hershey for the American Hockey League playoffs and scored one goal in three games in the Calder Cup Playoffs.
Wilson made his NHL debut with the Capitals in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Second Round against the New York Rangers in 2013, but didn't get a point in the final three games of the series.
He made the Capitals as a 19-year-old in 2013-14, playing all 82 games and finishing with 10 points (three goals, seven assists) along with 151 penalty minutes, seventh in the NHL. The 6-foot-4, 218-pound forward saw his average ice time increase by three minutes per game, to 10:56, in his second season and he had 17 points (four goals, 13 assists) in 67 games. He also finished fourth in the NHL with 172 penalty minutes.
In 2015-16, Wilson again improved on his offensive numbers with 23 points (seven goals, 16 assists). But his big jump came in 2017-18, when he showed he was capable of playing higher in the lineup. Wilson set NHL career highs in goals (14), assists (21) and points (35), as well as plus-minus rating (plus-10). He also averaged 15:59 of ice time per game, up from 12:56 in 2016-17.
His numbers in the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs were even better. Wilson finished with 15 points (five goals, 10 assists) and was plus-11 in 21 games. He scored in Games 1 and 4 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Vegas Golden Knights.
Wilson's offensive numbers hit new highs in 2018-19, when he scored 22 goals and finished with 40 points. He followed that with 21 goals, including five game-winners, and 44 points in 2019-20, often playing on Washington's first line with Alex Ovechkin and showing he's more than just a physical presence on the ice.
