Tom Wilson KOs Jamie Oleksiak in First Minute of Penguins-Capitals Game (VIDEO)

During last season’s NHL playoffs, Washington Capitals winger Tom Wilson was criticized for backing down from a fight with Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Jamie Oleksiak. But in Wilson’s first opportunity to play the Penguins this season, he wasted no time in showing that he wasn’t afraid to square up with Oleksiak.

Wilson and Oleksiak dropped the gloves less than a minute into Wednesday’s game between the two teams, with Wilson clearly getting the best of the encounter.

Wilson, Oleksiak Waste No Time in Dropping Gloves

The fight took place just 55 seconds into the first period. After the two exchanged punches near center ice, Wilson landed a flush right to the face of Oleksiak, dropping him to the ice. At that point, Wilson stopped throwing punches and was taken to the penalty box to serve his five-minute major for fighting.

Pittsburgh would go on to win the game 2-1, ending a five-game winning streak for Washington. The fight helped set the tone for the contest, which both sides said had more intensity than a typical regular season matchup.

“It was a good game, especially this time of year, one with playoff mentality,” Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby said afterwards. “We haven’t had one of those since Vegas.”

“It’s a divisional game, a rivalry, a team that we’ve seen a lot, so these kind of intense, emotional games seem to bring out the best in us,” said Penguins star Sidney Crosby. “We understand we need that same intensity, same desperation every night if we want to win.”

Fight Brewing Since Last Season

The impetus for the fight goes back to last season’s playoffs, when Wilson hit Pittsburgh’s Zach Aston-Reese in the head, an illegal check that would earn him a three-game suspension. Right after the hit, Oleksiak tried to fight Wilson in an effort to stand up for his teammate.

But Wilson backed away from the encounter with the much larger Oleksiak, a decision that Pittsburgh general manager Jim Rutherford criticized in the aftermath of the incident.

“When Jamie challenged Wilson, he couldn’t run quick enough to get away from him,” Rutherford told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “Until, of course, the referees get in close, then [Wilson] comes back and says something to him.”

While Wilson might be satisfied with showing Rutherford and others that he wasn’t about to back down to Oleksiak again, he wasn’t giddy about the damage he did to the Pittsburgh defenseman. Oleksiak needed help to go back to the bench, then received medical attention and did not return to the game. There was no update on his condition after the game.

“Obviously you never want to see a guy go down like that, but that’s hockey,” Wilson told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “I respect him as a player. It’s unfortunate to see that.”

The Capitals are currently atop the Metropolitan Division with 43 points, while the Penguins are tied for third in the division with 38 points. According to William Hill, Washington is a 14/1 pick to win the Stanley Cup this season, while Pittsburgh is listed at 25/1.