As the Vegas Golden Knights and Washington Capitals face off in the Stanley Cup Final, the NHL has a situation on its hands that has grown exceedingly rare over the past two decades.
There's a real heavyweight rivalry brewing between Tom Wilson and Ryan Reaves.
In Game 1 of the series Monday night, the duo shockingly traded goals, not punches. Wilson gave the Capitals a 4-3 lead early in the third period. Reaves answered less than two minutes later to lead the Golden Knights to a 6-4 victory.
Reaves, who was acquired by Vegas from the Penguins at the trade deadline, also scored in the final game of the Western Conference finals against Winnipeg.
"I am not a first liner, no," a grinning Reaves said after the game. "I've always been a goal scorer, just on the fourth line."
The punches, meanwhile, might come later in the series. After all, Wilson did his part to change the tone when he clobbered Vegas' Jonathan Marchessault with a late hit in third period.
"Both teams want the Cup really bad, so bad blood's going to start really quick," Reaves said.
The 6-foot-1, 225-pound Reaves said he offered to fight the 6-4, 218-pound Wilson several times during games between the Penguins and Capitals earlier this season but his invitation was not accepted. The pair have fought in the past, dropping the gloves once in 2013 and again in 2014.
Tom Wilson vs Ryan Reaves fight. #washcaps vs #STLBlues #NHL #Hockey . http://t.co/GxzBGdk9D2 http://t.co/wSucxA6Vun
— HDHockeyVideos (@HDHockeyVideos) November 16, 2014
Despite the obvious enmity between them, Reaves and Wilson have strikingly similar career numbers.
Reaves has scored 31 career goals in the regular season, registering an average of 0.47 per 60 minutes of ice time. He has 62 career fighting majors.
Wilson has scored 35 career goals for an average of 0.44 per 60 minutes of ice time. He has been in 55 career fights.
Jonathan Bombulie is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at jbombulie@tribweb.com or via Twitter @BombulieTrib.
