Capitals forward T.J. Oshie out indefinitely with fractured clavicle

The Washington Capitals will have to win back-to-back Stanley Cups without star forward T.J. Oshie, who is out indefinitely with a fractured clavicle.

During the Washington Capitals‘ Stanley Cup parade last June, forward T.J. Oshie chugged a beer through his jersey. He also gave the jubilant fans a new chant – “back to back”. The reigning Stanley Cup champions will have to fulfill that promise without Oshie, as he is out indefinitely with a fractured clavicle. He will not return for the remainder of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Oshie suffered the injury during Game 4 of their first-round series against the Carolina Hurricanes. He was hit by Hurricanes forward Warren Foegele, who received a penalty for the hit.

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Foegele avoided supplemental discipline, but the Caps seemed to be committed to sending a message to Carolina in Game 5. Washington won that game 6-0 to take a 3-2 series lead.

Without Oshie, the Caps will need other guys to step up. Tom Wilson took over his spot on the power play and immediately put a goal in. Brett Connolly will likely fill Oshie’s top-six forward role. During the regular season, Connolly scored a career-high 22 goals and 46 points.

However, with his promotion to the top six forward core, the Caps need other guys to fill in for him. Specifically, someone’s got to replace his production from the third line. Devante Smith-Pelly, a postseason hero from last year, was recently called up from the Hershey Bears, so he could be a part of the solution, along with Andre Burakovsky, Carl Hagelin, and Lars Eller.

Oshie’s an important part of the Capitals power-play, so Wilson has huge shoes to fill there. His ability to redirect shots and serve as a secondary shooting option to Alex Ovechkin makes the Caps power-play lethal. For what it’s worth, Washington converted three of their power plays in Game 5.

The Caps have the depth to overcome Oshie’s injury thanks to Wilson and Connolly. But still, he’s an incredibly important player to them both on and off the ice. Losing a player of Oshie’s caliber is never easy.

During the Caps’ Stanley Cup run last season, he posted 21 points (eight goals and 13 assists) in 24 games. This season, Oshie put up 54 points in 69 games.

In Game 5, both the fans and the team rallied around him. The Capitals will need to continue to play that motivated in order to fulfill his promise to the team last June.