If it weren\u2019t all documented on the internet, there are a lot of things from the Washington Capitals\u2019 2018 Stanley Cup celebration that could\u2019ve been lost to the drunken haze of history.<\/p>\n
Former Caps winger Alex Chiasson<\/strong> remembers all of it \u2013 well, most of it \u2013 and still cherishes those memories.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s still a little bit blurred from back then,\u201d he joked to reporters on Thursday while serving as a guest coach for Capitals\u2019 Development Camp<\/a>. His only lamentation was how quickly those celebratory months went by and how brutal the hockey business is.<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, I remember everything,\u201d he continued. \u201cI think what was hard is obviously we enjoyed ourselves. We had a good time, rightfully so. And then the summer started, everyone went kind of like their separate way. And I went, I signed with Edmonton. So, I didn\u2019t get a chance to come back and kind of like catch up with everyone. It was kind of like on the go\u2026 That\u2019s how hockey works. But every time I see anyone, it\u2019s always something [that] comes up. And we talk about, you know, that week there and how much we celebrated, the parade\u2026 I have some pictures from back then. And you look back, you\u2019re like, wow. I guess I wish I soaked it in a little bit more. It was quite a great time.\u201d<\/p>\n But the 34 year old has plenty of mementos from that playoff run and his time in DC, including one from captain Alex Ovechkin<\/strong><\/a>, as originally reported by RMNB.<\/p>\n \u201cI got a lot of stuff [from him],\u201d Chiasson told RMNB\u2019s Katie Adler. \u201cI don\u2019t know if I want to share it because a lot of that stuff is special. But I have one of, I don\u2019t know if you remember, after we won [the Cup], we went to a [Nationals] baseball game and they gave Ovi, you know, a jersey to throw the first pitch. And he actually signed that jersey and gave it to me. So, not going to say where it is.\u201d<\/p>\n Chiasson was, indeed, referring to the famous day in Caps lore when the team was hosted by the Nats<\/a> shortly after painting Las Vegas red for their post-Game 5 triumph over the Golden Knights<\/a>. That afternoon was followed up by several players including Ovechkin, TJ Oshie and Tom Wilson taking a soak in the Georgetown fountains \u2013 now marked by a commemorative plaque<\/a> \u2013 where video of The Great Eight doing a keg stand out of the Stanley Cup went viral<\/a>. Ovechkin was wearing the same custom white Nationals jersey Chiasson said he signed and gifted him.<\/p>\n \u201cI have a lot of stuff like that, that I\u2019ve collected. But, yeah, for O to take the time, and he wanted me to have it, yeah, it means a lot,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Even just playing a single year with Ovechkin means Chiasson was a part of history. He contributed exactly one secondary assist to The Great Chase during a 5-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Nov. 22, 2017<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n After Ovechkin passed Hockey Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky for the most career NHL goals all-time on April 6 of this year, Chiasson said they got to share a congratulatory moment.<\/p>\n \u201cI reached out to him. I sent him a text and [he] replied right away, and we got to exchange a little bit,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s special, you know. Just for me to play the year with, you know, the greatest goal scorer that\u2019s ever played, but also have won the Stanley Cup that he\u2019s won with, you know. I think [it] gives you a little bit of perspective\u2026 He\u2019s a special man.\u201d<\/p>\n Just about every player who has laced up skates in the Capitals locker room since the 2018 Stanley Cup run has kept or been gifted some piece of Ovechkin memorabilia. Players this year were, of course, quick to snag artifacts from the Gretzky-passing game<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<\/blockquote>\n
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