Dylan McIlrath and Garrett Wilson drop the gloves in heavyweight tilt

The first period of tonight’s preseason game between the Washington Capitals and Philadelphia Flyers featured a heavyweight showdown, as Dylan McIlrath and Garrett Wilson dropped the gloves in what was a reminder that some rivalries in hockey never really disappear.

For McIlrath and Wilson, this is hardly the first time they have settled their differences with their fists. The two veteran heavyweights have a history that goes back to their years battling in the American Hockey League, where physical play and fighting have long been a major part of both players’ games.

One of their most memorable meetings came in April 2022, when Wilson and McIlrath dropped the gloves in the opening seconds of a game between the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and Hershey Bears. The fight was described as an extended heavyweight bout and immediately set the tone for what was a heated matchup between the two AHL rivals.

That fight made plenty of sense given the reputations both players had established. McIlrath, a former first-round pick of the New York Rangers, has carved out a lengthy professional career largely because of his physicality. By 2023, the Washington Post reported that he had accumulated 138 professional fights, including 95 during his first seven years as a pro.

Wilson has similarly built his reputation as one of the AHL's willing combatants. The longtime Lehigh Valley captain has routinely been among the league's leaders in fighting majors, making him one of the few players who is still willing to answer the bell against another heavyweight.

That makes tonight's rematch particularly fitting. Both McIlrath and Wilson have spent years competing in the same physical hockey circles, and their paths have crossed repeatedly as members of the Hershey and Lehigh Valley organizations.

While preseason games are often about evaluating prospects and experimenting with line combinations, there is apparently no room for easing into things when McIlrath and Wilson are on the same sheet of ice.

Tonight's fight adds another chapter to what has become a pretty entertaining heavyweight rivalry — one that began in the AHL and continues to produce fireworks whenever these two enforcers cross paths.