Capitals' Thompson, Wilson Continue To Force Team Canada's Hand — And Chychrun's Close Behind

A handful of Capitals are making quite the case for the upcoming Olympic games.

It’s getting harder to imagine Team Canada not having some representation from the Washington Capitals come February.

After all, Logan Thompson and Tom Wilson are only getting better as the season goes on, and on Sunday, continued to make their cases to make the Olympic roster for Milan Cortina.

Thompson stopped 30 of 31 shots, and Wilson scored twice and added an assist en route to a 4-1 win over the New York Islanders.

For Thompson, he was tested early and often, as the Islanders had the Capitals on the ropes from the get-go. He came up with a handful of ten-bell saves to open play, including a cartwheel glove save on Anders Lee off a 2-on-1 and a split save to shut down Mat Barzal on a wraparound bid.

“Yeah, I mean three or four huge saves in the first period. I think that’s something that he does very well for us. There’s 82 games. Some nights you come out a little bit slow, and in the last couple of years, he’s been able to make really big saves in the first, allow us to wake up, go down and get one, kind of get in front,” Wilson said of Thompson. “That’s huge when you have a goalie that’s doing that for you. So it’s no surprise he’s been playing really, really well, and every time he’s in there, he gives us a chance.”

Thompson’s 11 wins are tied for the second-most in the league, and his .916 save percentage ranks fourth. The 28-year-old also leads all Canadian goaltenders in goals saved above expected (16.8).

“It really could have gone the other way,” Thompson said of his performance. “I think it’s very similar to the Tampa game, right? I think sometimes you let four goals in on six shots, and other times you’re keeping the puck out of the net,” he said.

Thompson didn’t play in the 4 Nations Face-Off last season, and he also didn’t earn an invite to Canada’s 2025 National Teams Orientation Camp. Since then, he’s had talks with Team Canada management and is comfortable with any role on the team, which may have been the reason he was snubbed from past rosters.

That said, he isn’t overthinking it.

“I’ve said before, every kid dreams of making that team, but I’m not going to sweat it. My main focus is here with the Washington Capitals and I’ll let the people evaluating make their decisions,” Thompson told TSN’s Mark Masters. “Either way won’t be any hard feelings. I’m still going to cheer for Team Canada whether I make the team or not.”

Wilson, meanwhile, is in a bit of a different spot. He got the invite and attended Canada’s orientation camp over the summer, and general manager Doug Armstrong has been at multiple Capitals games, evaluating the entire team, but mainly, No. 43.

He’s impressed, as the 31-year-old has played top minutes while racking up 15 goals, tied for the fourth-most in the league, and 14 assists for 29 points through 26 games. Wilson is on a five-game point streak, leads the Capitals in scoring and plays both special teams while logging more ice time than any other forward in D.C. this season.

“To have an opportunity to be in the conversation at the very least is pretty special,” Wilson said earlier in the year, adding, “I’ll focus on the Caps and what we’re doing here.”

Then, there’s one final dark horse that’s emerged in the race late: Jakob Chychrun, who holds dual citizenship but has represented Canada on the international stage over the course of his career, meaning he’s locked in to represent the Canadians when it comes to the IIHF.

Chychrun, who leads all Capitals in ice time and is playing the most minutes in his career yet, has been dominant on the blue line this season. His 10 goals lead all NHL defensemen after recently going on a five-game goal streak and 10-game point streak.

“He’s so talented at finding shot lanes, changing his shot angle, moving his feet. It’s not the same every time. He’s got that (Cale) Makar in him where he can shoot it right away. He gets it, shoots it, releases it, but he also can move it laterally for five, six, seven seconds, and you can attack down, and then he’ll do something different the next time. It keeps defenders off balance,” coach Spencer Carbery said.

Charlie Lindgren also noted that he should be in the Olympic conversation not just for his offense, but because of his steady presence on the backend.

Canada will continue to finalize its roster in the coming weeks, and all the while, D.C. will be watching carefully.