Washington Capitals: Tom Wilson deserves nice deal

With John Carlson’s future solved, the Washington Capitals should lock down winger Tom Wilson. A maturing player, his presence as a protector is huge.

Tom Wilson is a restricted free agent the Washington Capitals must bring back.

You need to have protectors on the roster and Wilson fits that description. His ability to deliver crunching hits is crucial. Although Alex Ovechkin and John Carlson can defend themselves, having someone like Wilson gives the Caps an extra layer of protection.

Yes, he can go too far and draw suspensions. Wilson can get too hot-headed but, especially with Brooks Orpik on waivers after his trade to Colorado, the Caps need Wilson to level hits. Devante Smith-Pelly is the other player from last year to register over 200 hits. Wilson dished a team-high 250.

Aside from being a thorn in the side of opponents, Wilson has found offense. His 14 goals and 21 assists gave him a career-high 35 points. An improvement of 12 from 2015-16.

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During the playoffs, Wilson made his presence felt. From the 15:59 he was on the ice in the regular season, he skated 17:45 a night in the postseason. In 21 games, he scored five goals and assisted on ten for 15 points. His 31 penalty minutes was down from the 34 from 2016-17. Add he played in eight fewer games and you can see his maturity.

Wilson leveled a whopping 100 hits or 4.8 a game. A substantial increase from his 3.2 regular season rate. He recorded 18 takeaways to nine giveaways this spring. Again, his knowledge and maturity grow on the Washington score sheets.

A three-year deal would fit Wilson well averaging between $3 and $3.75 million. Only T.J. Oshie scored more points on the right wing last season. Overall, Wilson was seventh in scoring for the Caps last year and fifth in even-strength goals.

His plus-minus of 10 ties Wilson for fourth with Dmitry Orlov. Center Chandler Stevenson’s 13 was the lone forward ahead of Wilson. As with his other statistics, 2017-18 was his first year in double-digits in plus-minus. In the playoffs, he was a whopping plus-11.

With Washington poised to make another serious challenge for the Stanley Cup, Wilson’s growing two-way play is an x-factor. Tough squads in Tampa and Pittsburgh give the Caps work to do. Improvements in Boston and Toronto deepen the challenge.

Next: Carlson signs winning deal with Caps

Yes, the day of the enforcer are gone in the NHL as fighting falls out of favor. But, you need someone not afraid to protect his stars. For the Washington Capitals that is Tom Wilson.

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