Photo: Isaac Brekken/Getty Images North America

Monday will be a special day for former Capitals head coach Barry Trotz and his assistant coaches, Mitch Korn and Lane Lambert, as the trio will finally receive their Stanley Cup championship rings. The Capitals face Trotz and his new team the New York Islanders Monday night at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Before the game, the Capitals organization will present the trio of former coaches with their much-deserved rings. 

In an interview with the Washington Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan (here), Trotz commented on his current relationship with his former team. “I love those guys over there,” Trotz said Sunday. “There’s a bond and a relationship with those players that will never go away.”

Trotz would go on to say that “People said they didn’t have it in them, but after the fact, they always did,” Trotz said. “They always had it in them; they just needed to continue down the path, and they were probably more resilient mentally. … They got it, and they’ll always have it now. That’s why when all the boys there said, ‘Let’s repeat,’ they got it. They’re not going to wither in the big moments anymore.”

Trotz still stays connected with his former team. Alex Ovechkin texted Trotz when the coach had his day with the Stanley Cup in Manitoba, and Trotz said he has reached out to some players when they’ve hit a milestone this season.

Photo: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

In an interview with Brian Compton of NHL.com, Trotz commented on the life-long quest to win a Stanley Cup. “You’re trying to win the Stanley Cup since you’re 7 years old,” Trotz said. “I got the opportunity to do it with a terrific organization and a terrific bunch of young men and athletes and I’ve become very close with them. They’ll always be very special.

“It’ll be awkward a little bit … I don’t know if it’s awkward; just a little bit weird because there’s so many good memories. I’ll get to see everybody from the trainers that you’ve been real good friends with and the coaching staff and the players. They’ve got only a couple of new guys; pretty well that whole team is back and they’ve got a tremendous hockey team. That’s a tremendous group of young men and a good organization that I was proud to be a part of and do something great with.”

Regardless of the way things stand today, Barry Trotz will always be a legend in Washington. He changed the hockey culture and helped bring the DMV a championship we had been chasing for 44 years. Thank you, Barry.

By Jon Sorensen