The last time the Washington Capitals were on the ice at T-Mobile Arena, they were skating victory laps around the ice with the Stanley Cup and beginning what proved to be a months-long victory celebration with the most famous trophy in sports.
It’s a memory seared in the brains of the Golden Knights players who fell just short of completing one of the most unlikely championship runs in professional sports history when they were ousted from the Finals by the Capitals in five games.
It was a particularly jarring sight for Knights defenseman Nate Schmidt, who came over from Washington in the expansion draft and then had to watch his former teammates celebrate on his new home rink.