John Carlson’s Washington Capitals teammates know him for doing USA Today crossword puzzles in pen, for occasionally wearing colorful socks as one of the team’s best dressers, and for being a thoughtful friend, quick with invitations to coffee or breakfast.
Todd Reirden knew Carlson as one of the Capitals’ steadiest defensemen. He had watched him from the opposite bench, when Reirden was an assistant coach for the Pittsburgh Penguins and Carlson was a young talent for the Capitals. He had always wondered what it would be like to coach him.
When Reirden got that opportunity last season, hired onto Coach Barry Trotz’s staff to work primarily with the Capitals’ defensemen, he saw a new side of Carlson.