You guys are out of your mind if you think Thornton slipped. That dude went down like a tree. Wilson said he was a fan of Thornton as a kid which is probably why he took off the helmet. He wears a visor and Thornton doesn't. Showed some respect to the vet.

Earlier Jumbo Joe delivered a butt check on T. J. Oshie's noggin along the boards and knocked him out of the game. Minutes late Wilson called him out and Joe responded. In the ensuing fight Wilson got in one shot that got through Joe's thick beard that resembles packing material. A later replay showed that it didn't really connect. What was more entertaining was the shouting match that followed between the two benches as Pete DeBoer was exchanging profanities with Caps asst. coach Lane Lambert. DeBoer was not amused that "a 38 year old Hall of Famer" should have to be fighting a punk gunslinger like Wilson. Agreed.

It has to feel nice punching that beard. Probably like punching a cloud. Willy enforces against Joe, Joe is willing to stick up for himself Young pup lands a nice shot to get the obvious win.

While Wilson took him down, props to Thornton for being one of the best all-around players to lace up the skates. Looked good on both of them. This is hockey.

So wilson ducks Ryan Reaves but takes on old timer Thornton in a crap fight. Does anybody other than Caps fans think timid Tom has any stones to hang with the big boys. No balls and no class.

Thornton landed a couple of taps before Wilson drops a bomb on him. Wilson big time. No slip by Jumbo. He ate a big right that parked his ass on the ice.

Finally the cheap shot thornton gets his.

every one what they were suppose to. THORTON landed some .WILSON falling him does .THORTON .hate when slip can make those with an agenda scream he got punched out

2 guys of same size but 15 years difference.thornton used to be good with his gloves off but last time he did it was back in 12/13.wilson challenged thornton for his hit on oshie's head with his butt looked like thornton was controlling the fight but then wilson knocked him down....sad ending edit:i found opposite angle video which is mention below and thornton saw wilson's last punch coming and reacted to it moving backwards to avoid it.wilson hit outside of thornton's shoulder but thornton lost his balance from moving backwards...draw

Jumbo Joe got dropped but it didn't look like he was hurt. KD win Wilson. Edit; I saw another angle of the fight and Thornton slipped or bailed. Changing my vote to a Draw.

This is why I don't like the NHL visor rule. All Tom Wilson does is fight. He should not have to wear a visor. NHL should add a 2:00 minor penalty to players that wear a visor and start fights with players that don't wear a visor.

Saw the fight live yesterday, this replay doesn't show it clearly but Wilson missed Thronton's face and hit his shoulder, easily a draw

Good short fight. I give it a draw for Jumbo losing his edge. He was trying to dodge Wilsons hit but slipped. Both got some good punches in. Kudos to Wilson for standing up for a team mate. Kudos to Jumbo for answering the bell. Kudos to both fighters for throwing the lids.

Very close. The last punch by Wilson was aided by Joe being off balance. Not a real knock down.

You guys are crazy if you think that dropped Thornton. Watch the video from another angle and slowed down. slipped https://youtu.be/GcWBxZTM9t0

No respect for the 38 year old hall of famer? Wilson is a goof. Goof's get what they have coming. His next opponent will knock the goof silly, if the hockey gods are watching...

good on Thornton for dropping the gloves in the first place good on Wilson for not killing him

I'm a Sharks fan, and a Thornton fan, but that was a clear win for Wilson. Idk who would claim that Thornton won. Pure partisanship!

is thornton the oldest in the league ? but kudos for accepting Wilson challenge

Wilson's right proves too much for Joe and his poutine-stained beard.

It ain't a slip if you lost your edge due to being off balance from the impact of a hit. It might not be a big hit but the inability to stay upright makes it hard for me to give you the W.

Jumbo Joe gets jumbo rocked.

Looked like Wilson landed a good punch on jumbo Joe. Win Wilson kudos to both for dumping the helmets before hand. Reminded me of yesteryear.

Not a lot to the fight, Joe answers the call and has the early noggin shots before Tom gets two in, the latter ending the bout w a strong straight right. I actually enjoyed the banter between DeBoers and Lambert more - to which LAne would beat his ass easily if it came to that

Props to Thornton for answering what was clearly a late hit. The guy is huge, why are so many crying foul like he's a butterfly? Seen plenty of cheap stuff from "Jumbo Joe". Wilson playing on the top line, not really a 4th line fill in. Respectful bout.

Good!!

Props to Thornton for dropping the gloves and settling things with Wilson. The hit on Oshie wasn't incredibly dirty, but given Oshie's position at the time and size difference Thornton should have held up. The fight was close until Wilson caught Thornton with a strong right to the jaw. Clear TKO win for Wilson.

How does anyone see Thornton as the winner in this fight? I don't get people with that mindset.

Thornton got a few licks on Wilson's back, and Wilson responded with a couple of nasty face-punches. Thornton must have been a bit dazed; he went to the wrong penalty box and had to be shown to the correct one.

knockout of the year right there. What a beauty!

Wilson with obvious KO

Thornton lands more shots, but Wilson's is the one that counts. Jumbo lives by the sword and dies by the sword on this one.

Jumbo Joe throws down, then goes down. Great to see a fight that starts with no lids. Kind of an old school feel.

No slip, Joe buckled.

I'm tellin' you, kids today have no respect for the elderly!

Thorton had this coming after the hit on Oshie.

Quick pop by Wilson caught Thornton and down he went. Win to Wilson. 5

Good on Jumbo for answering, although I thought the "ass-check" on Oshie was more of an accident. Wilson with the W and a 5.

I half expected Jumbo Joe's beard to break Wilson's hand.

wise move by Jumbo Joe to get Tom to ditch the lid & not risk breaking a knuckle over possibly getting a broken cheekbone...(?) whatevs, Tommy-boy greases Joe easily as Oshie's stand-in.. Wilson still picking on the 'heavies' I see... (eye roll) #43 FTW

Generally even, decision to Wilson b/c his hit ended it.

Can't remember the last time we saw the knuckle saving mutual lid dispensing. I gave it a 5 just for that. Punch or slip? hard to tell - leaning toward punch though as the homeless man seemed to collapse with no attempt to grab on or anything. Edit: What's with this Princess Joe crap? Like he blessed us for fighting after delivering a late hit. Either the Princess got punched or he had a Lindros flashback and bailed. Or his glass slipper broke.

F*ck yeah boys no buckets lets goooo, too bad nobody landed a punch

Why did the Caps wait til the 3rd period to send a 4th liner after Thornton? Someone on the ice should’ve gone after Joe if they thought the hit on Oshie was that bad. Kudos to Thornton for accepting the challenge. Caps should’ve got an extra for instigating

Good for Joe, answering the bell and doing it right old school.

That's how it should be. Throw a late hit, answer for it yourself. Gotta respect Joe Thornton, he's a star he doesn't have to do it himself, but you have to respect that he's willing to. And when's the last time we had a scrap where they ditched the buckets before hand? Can't remember one this season.

Thornton pulled a punk ass move on Oshie and paid the price. Proud to have Wilson's name scribbled on my Jersey.

Not sure if that last swing made contact but if Thornton slipped , he's happy as hell he did . Wilson and 3

Swiiiiinnnnng and a miss for Wilson. Jumbo slipped.

I really don't know what those announcers are talking about, looked like Thornton just lost his balance and fell

This was a total douche-bag move by Tom Wilson and the Capital's coaching staff. A forth line plug going after a Hall of Famer to fight, what ever happened to fighters only fighting fighters? Answer: Too many douche-bags had no code, so all were sent down to the minors. This lack of character is why Washington will never go anywhere, and why Joe is respected around the league.

Be very careful rating this fight without watching the reverse view. It looks like Wilson clocked Thornton but he missed him and Thornton fell on his own. Thornton is the only one that really landed any punches. Decisive win by Thornton in a mediocre fight.

I know I am in a minority, but I like Wilson. A later view, not shown here, shows Wilson's "shot" totally missed. I will call it a draw, but it looked a whole lot worse than it was. From an earlier post, Wilson was playing on the first line last week. I only caught part of the game and did not pay attention to where he was playing last night. And it is crazy talk to say Thornton does not have to answer for his dirty hit because he is old or a future hall of famer. He knocked a guy out of game on a dirty hit.