The Capitals rookie is embracing a key role as a center with Pierre-Luc Dubois out long-term.
WASHINGTON — For Justin Sourdif, the Washington Capitals' win over the Edmonton Oilers was chockful of "Welcome to the NHL" moments, from his first NHL assist to having to shut down Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
The rookie skated 15:33 minutes en route to the a 7-4 victory, centering Tom Wilson and Aliaksei Protas while helping lead the way at 5-on-5 and matching up numerous times against Edmonton's dynamic duo with Pierre-Luc Dubois and Nic Dowd both out.
"Sourdif got a heavy dose of 97, and I thought he did an excellent job," coach Spencer Carbery said. "Doing well when we didn't have the puck, (being) in good position and mkaing all the reads and doing the competitive things down low where they make it so challenging on you. Then, when they double up with 97 and 29, he had a lot of those minutes too, and I thought he did a pretty good job with it."
The production hasn't necessarily been there for Sourdif as he's struggled to finish his chances, but as he continues to embrace his role down the middle with Dubois on long-term injured reserve, he's doing more of the right things and gaining confidence in that aspect.
He led all Capitals in shots-for percentage at 5-on-5 in Wednesday's win, and gave up just three high-danger chances, the least among forwards with at least 10 minutes played, while not giving up any high-danger goals against, either.
"It's as tough a matchup as you can get as a centerman in this league, and I thought for him going through that, that's great experience right there on the job," Carbery added.
Sourdif will continue to play second-line center as he and the Capitals visit the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.