Rookie Martin Fehervary shares a different side of Tom Wilson.

Washington Capitals enforcer Tom Wilson is a highly controversial figure around the National Hockey League. Wilson has often been embroiled in physical altercations that have sent rival fan bases into a frenzy, and has even served lengthy suspensions for some of the more serious infractions during his career.

In the grand scheme of things however that is only one small aspect of Tom Wilson's game and as it turns out it sounds like it may also be a relatively small part of his personality as well. Enforcers have always been respected by their peers in the NHL for their role as protectors on any given roster and Wilson, it seems, takes that role very seriously both on and off the ice.

The Capitals have had to call up a number of players this season due to injuries impacting the regular members of their roster, and Wilson has been instrumental in welcoming some of those younger players into the fold. They are players that Wilson will be called upon to protect once they hit the ice, so perhaps it should come as no surprise that he is quick to build a rapport with them.

"They are such good kids, so it is easy to build that bond … just getting to know them is helpful," Wilson said as per the Washington Post. "When they are young they got lots of questions, and it’s just being there to help them out. It is nothing crazy. There is no formula. It’s just being a good teammate and being there for them."

Wilson has earned high praise from some of his younger teammates for his efforts. Rookie defenseman Martin Fehervary has taken on a bigger role this season, the 22 year old has 20 games under his belt this season already after playing just 6 career NHL games prior, and he credits Wilson for serving as a bridge between players like himself and the more established veterans on the roster.

"Tom Wilson is really nice to us, all of us — it’s like he is taking care of us a lot," said Fehervary. "He talks to us a lot about how things are going for us in the league, and it is just nice to have him around us. He’s between that age of the oldest one and us, so it is nice to have him."