The next challenge for the 5-foot-8 forward is to secure a full-time spot in the Capitals lineup now that he made the roster.

ARLINGTON, V.A. — Growing up, Matthew Phillips has always been the smallest player on his teams. It's no different now, only this time, he's playing in the NHL after cracking the Washington Capitals opening night roster and has officially made history as the lightest forward to play in the NHL — but he doesn't play like it.

Listed at 5-8, 160 pounds — he was listed at 5-foot-7, 140 pounds at the start of camp — Phillips holds the record as the lightest skater to make it to The Show. The lightest player to ever play in the NHL is goaltender Roy "Shrimp" Worters, who came in at 5-foot-3, 135 pounds and played 12 seasons.

"I'm definitely not the biggest guy, but I think I play a lot bigger than I am," Phillips told The Hockey News matter-of-factly, adding, "I don't feel small when I'm on the ice. I just love competing and love working for the puck and playing with the puck. It's something I've always done my whole life. I don't think too much about it, honestly. It's just something that comes naturally."

Phillips signed a one-year deal to join Washington this summer after ending his long tenure with the Calgary Flames organization, which originally drafted him in 2016. The 25-year-old spent years trying to make it to the NHL but only played in two NHL games. He spent the rest of his time in the AHL with the Wranglers, where he turned heads with a 76-point season for the top-ranked Calgary club in 2022-23.

That strong play carried over into camp and put not only the coaching staff but the entire team on notice as he sniped two goals and added an assist while showcasing his tenacious style of play through five preseason games.

"Happy for him, obviously," captain Alex Ovechkin said. "He's a hard-working guy. He's small but take contact and make some plays... [you see] speed. He control the puck well. He deserves it."

"Man, he can make plays. He's very, very smart and even though he's obviously a smaller guy, he's smart enough to put himself in a position to win puck battles, to create space for himself," T.J. Oshie added. "I mean, you watch him and i wouldn't want to cover him. Hats off to him... he's looked great all camp and in a lot of different situations too. He's been playing with some big dogs, he's been playing a lot of quality power play time."

That was enough for Phillips to make the opening night roster and earn an extended look up at the NHL level, and for him, it means everything.

"It feel really good. It's something that I was working all summer for, and frankly, I've been kind of working my whole life for," Phillips, who looks up to the likes of other smaller players like Pavel Datsyuk and Martin St. Louis, said.

The next step for Phillips is to secure a place in the lineup and keep it. He was playing with Dylan Strome and Sonny Milano for a majority of the preseason, but with Anthony Mantha appearing likely to draw back into the mix for opening night, he seems to be the 13th forward.

Head coach Spencer Carbery is looking forward to seeing what Phillips does with what he's given.

"That's the challenge. So you've made it, you're here. Now, what do you do? And that now becomes exponentially even more challenging... now you're gonna have to A, get in the lineup and B, stay there. And that's stacking quality performances, earning trust from the coaching staff, being productive with your opportunity, earning a little bit more and more and more," Carbery explained.

For Phillips, it's another part of the job, and one that he's used to, having been in multiple competitions for ice time over the course of his still-young career. And with the season kicking off Friday, he's ready to show what he can do.

"There's a lot of people that I would like to say that I proved right. I'm just really excited to be here," Phillips said. "They gave me a great opportunity and up ta lot of trust in me. I just try to do my best every day."