Oshie healthy and hungry for another Stanley Cup run with Capitals

Washington Capitals forward T.J. Oshie can't wait to compete for a second Stanley Cup after an injury ended his 2019 postseason prematurely.

The 31-year-old was hit awkwardly into the boards during Game 4 of the team's opening playoff round against the Carolina Hurricanes and required surgery to repair a fractured clavicle. The Capitals were eliminated in seven games, but Oshie said he may have been able to return if the team advanced.

"I was cleared kind of (in) June, but definitely cleared in July," Oshie said Monday, according to NHL.com's Tom Gulitti. "So we were right on pace, I think, to being close (to playing) if we would have made it to the final. But I'm good. Now it's just all getting those muscles built back up as best as I can before the season and I'm ready to roll. I can't wait for it to get here."

Oshie felt a new sense of urgency after watching his former team, the St. Louis Blues, capture their first championship in franchise history by defeating the Boston Bruins in seven games.

"There's a different type of motivation," Oshie said. "Before it was like, 'This is ours. Let's keep it.' Now we didn't play St. Louis, they didn't take it from us, but that's kind of the feeling that you get. So our year will be, hopefully, a little bit more focused on getting that drive back to reclaim it and hopefully bring another Cup to D.C."

Oshie played a pivotal role in helping the Capitals earn their first-ever Stanley Cup in 2018. He contributed eight goals and 21 points in 23 playoff games, including one goal and five assists in the final.

The 5-foot-11 winger recorded 54 points in 69 regular-season contests in 2018-19 and added one goal and one assist in the postseason before being injured.