Hockey star turns Nats pitcher into giddy fan
Jessica Camerato
@jessicacameratoJake Irvin is a Major League pitcher. He¡¯s also a major hockey fan. When Irvin met goaltender Braden Holtby, a Stanley Cup winner with the Washington Capitals, on the field before a game at Nationals Park this past week, he exuded his passion for the sport.
¡°[I was] a little bit [nervous],¡± Irvin said. ¡°It was cool. It seemed like he was a very down-to-earth dude. The nerves subside once you realize he's just another person.¡±
Irvin, 26, grew up in Bloomington, Minn., following the Minnesota Wild. He played hockey as a right winger through his first year of bantam hockey (around eighth grade), stopping to focus on baseball. Last winter, Irvin attended a handful of Wild games and hopes to go to more this offseason.
¡°I still love hockey,¡± Irvin said. ¡°Hockey is just a very physical sport. It's very personal, too, because you're skating next to the opponent for the entire game. A lot of action, fast paced. Just a very unique and fun sport.¡±
With that love for the game also comes an appreciation for Holtby¡¯s career. Holtby, a 33-year-old free agent, played 10 seasons with the Capitals from 2010-20. During that time, he won the 2015-16 Vezina Award, the 2016-17 Jennings Award and the 2017-18 Stanley Cup.
¡°Hockey was a big part of my life,¡± Irvin said. ¡°Growing up watching Alex Ovechkin, [Holtby] was a part of so many of those teams with him. [He was a] Vezina Trophy winner too, which is really cool because it's kind of comparable to what pitchers do -- being a goalie or on an island all by yourself, kind of like the goalie Cy Young [Award]. He's a stud, and it was cool to meet him.¡±
Irvin¡¯s dream hockey meet-and-greet would be with childhood idol and fellow D.C. athlete Ovechkin. The storied left winger attended a Nationals game in April, a few weeks before Irvin was called up from Triple-A to make his Major League debut.
¡°[I would want to say to Ovechkin,] thanks for the memories,¡± Irvin said. ¡°[Thanks for] having a huge impact on this generation of hockey players. ¡ [Wild left winger] Kirill Kaprizov is Russian as well, and I know that his idol¡¯s Ovechkin. I would say, thanks for giving us Kirill and inspiring our superstar.¡±