BRAMPTON, Ont. -Sitting on the end of his couch, Tom Wilson looked carefully each action taking place on the other side of his television, as did, at the same time, millions of viewers of Canada and the United States.
Each goal. Each punch. Each presence.
“I would have so wanted to be there,” Wilson told NH..com this week.
The scene took place on February 15. The match of the preliminary round of the confrontation of 4 nations between Canada and the United States quickly became a classic, national hymns loaded with emotion at the three first fights in the first nine seconds of play, until a sensational goal of Connor McDavid in front of 21,105 noisy supporters at the Bell Center, Hockey Mecca.
American visitors who came to play with Aplomb their role of bad guys in the metropolis took advantage of their visit, while the United States won this 3-1 match. But history will tell us that it was Canada that had the last word, winning the American soil tournament five days later, after a final against their southern neighbors.
Wilson would have liked to be part of this story. He would undoubtedly have taken advantage of his unique combination of power and speed to raise points and defeat in the red-and-white sweater which he dreamed of growing in Toronto. But he is well aware of the depth of the talented basin from which Canada can draw, and he is the first to admit that all those who were part of team Canada before him deserved their place.
That said, his exclusion from the 4 nations has only eaten his desire to represent his country at the Winter Olympic Games in Milano Cortina 2026 in February. Wilson is expected to participate in the first team Canada training camp for the Olympic Games, which is scheduled for next month in Calgary.
“It is the dream of a life of being mentioned in the same sentence as these players who won gold,” he noted during an interview during the 11th annual Smilezone celebrity golf tournament at the Lionhead Golf Club de Brampton, Ontario. “There are a lot of star hockey players in Canada, and it is a great privilege to be among these big names. I will simply try to play my best until the final training is announced (in January), I will throw myself into the arena.
“I was certainly a little disappointed not to take part (in the confrontation of the 4 nations). And then, in the weeks before the tournament, I told myself that I was going to take advantage of the break and not think too much. »»
But he admitted that everything changed when he watched the start of the United Canada-States match and that he saw the chaos were sown from the first game.
When the washer is deposited, the American striker Matthew Tkachuk launched hostilities by inviting Canadian striker Brandon Hagel to throw the gloves.
A second of play later, Matthew’s brother Brady Tkachuk did the same with Canadian striker Sam Bennett.
And then, six seconds later, the American striker JT Miller and the Canadian defender Colton Parayko threw the gloves.
“The way this match started only increased my desire to be part of this team and participate in a match like that,” he admitted.
Leader with active NHL players in terms of penalty minutes (1532), Wilson is not unrelated to the robustness of hockey. While the Olympic tournament will be presented on a skating rink of the same dimension as those of the NHL, the physical game that the winger of 6 pp and 225 pounds should be put forward.
But it is not that with shoulder shots that Wilson can stand out.
“He can fight you in any way,” said his teammate of Capitals Dylan Strome. Of course, he is intimidating on the ice, but he does not receive the credit he deserves for his offensive capacities. I look at him every evening and I can tell you that he is a full player, and that’s why I think he should be part of this team.
Question to quantify the strome argument: Wilson has just completed a 2024-25 season during which he established personal marks in the NHL in terms of goals (33), passes (32), points (65) and goals in digital advantage (11). His ability to settle near the goalkeeper’s semi-circle on the power game has certainly gave headache to several cerbers in recent months.
