{"id":492003,"date":"2026-02-26T17:19:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T17:19:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/492003\/"},"modified":"2026-02-26T17:19:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T17:19:09","slug":"ryan-leonard-inspired-this-seasons-postgame-victory-song-ask-him-next-time-if-he-can-perform-for-you-guys","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/492003\/","title":{"rendered":"Ryan Leonard inspired this season\u2019s postgame victory song: \u2018Ask him next time if he can perform for you guys\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON, DC \u2014 The Washington Capitals started their post-Olympic schedule with a much-needed win, downing the Philadelphia Flyers 3-1 on Wednesday night. In the minutes between the final horn and the team\u2019s media availability, Bruno Mars\u2019 \u201cUptown Funk\u201d<\/a> was audible outside the locker room while players celebrated the victory inside.<\/p>\n

The song isn\u2019t a new fixture in the room, but Rasmus Sandin<\/a> gave some details postgame on how it became the team\u2019s pick.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe switched it after a good little rookie party that we had,\u201d Sandin said. \u201cShout out to Ryan Leonard. He had a great performance for us. So it\u2019s after that we switched it up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sandin didn\u2019t elaborate on why Leonard was performing for the team or what, exactly, he did. He did, however, have plenty of praise for Leonard\u2019s talent.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was fantastic,\u201d he said. \u201cHe had a great performance for us. So it was in the beginning of the year. I can\u2019t really remember, but he had a great performance for us. And you guys should ask him next time if he can perform for you guys.\u201d<\/p>\n

There was no repeat performance on Wednesday, at least; Leonard was not available to speak to the media postgame. Sandin wasn\u2019t sure of exactly when the song changed, but the Capitals held their annual rookie dinner in Tampa in November.<\/p>\n

Spencer Carbery was unaware of the song\u2019s backstory until asked about it postgame. Once told, he seemed plenty intrigued.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t (know anything),\u201d he said. \u201cI obviously hear it every time. I\u2019m like, \u2018That\u2019s interesting,\u2019 because it\u2019s not \u2014 usually it\u2019s a newer song. That\u2019s been around for a while\u2026He did, like karaoke? Okay, I\u2019m going to do some digging.\u201d<\/p>\n

He later offered his own opinion of Bruno Mars.<\/p>\n

\u201cI listen to it,\u201d Carbery said. \u201cI haven\u2019t been to any of his concerts, but I listen. I\u2019m a wide range guy. I go all over.\u201d<\/p>\n

More broadly, the Caps saw these sorts of moments as symbolic of their bond.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that\u2019s what\u2019s special about this team, how tight we are,\u201d said Trevor van Riemsdyk<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s a lot of fun to come to the rink, and I think it shows itself in these tight games where you can rely on one another. There\u2019s a lot of communication going on, and that\u2019s what it takes.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know coming to the rink is a lot of fun. You\u2019re not even trying to get off the ice. It\u2019s just fun hanging out there, going on the ice, competing with one another, having a lot of fun, and I think that\u2019s the recipe. You see all these teams that are super successful; it\u2019s guys that care about one another and love the game.\u201d<\/p>\n

Washington will need every point it can get in the final weeks of the season, now sitting two points out of a playoff spot with 22 games to go. Carbery hopes that the team\u2019s bonding rituals, however trivial, will help them remember what they\u2019re playing for.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey love each other. They\u2019re brothers,\u201d he said. \u201cBut you can go through phases and stretches where it\u2019s like, \u2018We got to play for one another. You\u2019ve got to make the right play for that guy and that guy. You\u2019ve got to get that puck out, or you\u2019ve got to make that decision that might not be the sexiest decision, but it\u2019s the right play for us to win this game. And you got to do it for him, and you got to do it for him.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd so I think that, it\u2019s always been a part of the fabric of our team, but just reminders of, when we get into games like this and finding ways to win, it\u2019s about making that play that that sometimes that requires you to dig in a little bit. And not for yourself, it\u2019s for the group, and it\u2019s for your brothers that are sitting next to you. So it\u2019s a good reminder for our guys.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WASHINGTON, DC \u2014 The Washington Capitals started their post-Olympic schedule with a much-needed win, downing the Philadelphia Flyers…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":492004,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[66],"tags":[385,99],"class_list":["post-492003","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nhl","tag-nhl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/492003","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=492003"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/492003\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/492004"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=492003"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=492003"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=492003"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}