WASHINGTON — When Dylan McIlrath was drafted 10th overall by the New York Rangers, his appearance in a postgame interview on national TV wouldn’t have been a surprise. A highly touted prospect with size and strength and a streak of nastiness, McIlrath was expected to be the shutdown defenseman of the future for the Rangers.

That was 14 years ago. McIlrath played only 38 NHL games with the team that drafted him — he didn’t even make his NHL debut until Dec. 12, 2013, three years after he was picked — and was traded in 2016 to the Florida Panthers, with whom he played just five games. McIlrath was then traded for the second time in the same season to the Detroit Red Wings, landing with their American Hockey League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins. McIlrath won the first Calder Cup of his career that spring with Grand Rapids, but he played just 23 NHL games across four-plus seasons in Detroit’s organization.

In 2021, he signed as a free agent with the Washington Capitals as a veteran expected to anchor the blue line for the Hershey Bears, Washington’s AHL affiliate. McIlrath was named Hershey’s captain a year later.

It all has been a bit of a whirlwind for McIlrath since. He led the Bears to Calder Cup championships in 2023 and 2024 — the latter coming after a stint with Washington during the playoffs, a first-round sweep at the hands of the Rangers. The whirlwind picked up speed when McIlrath made Washington’s opening night roster this month, his first time making the NHL out of training camp since 2016.

“It’s a pretty cool moment for him and his family and how his career has progressed from being a first-round pick and being in a couple different organizations in New York and Detroit,” Capitals coach Spencer Carbery said earlier this month. “Finding a home here in Washington’s organization, the Calder Cups that he’s won. I just have such an appreciation for veteran players that, even though their path may have gone a little askew or maybe not the way they had drawn it up originally when they were drafted, but they just keep grinding and trying to find a way to get better and don’t give up.”

An injury to defenseman Matt Roy in the season opener Oct. 12 gave McIlrath an opening to get into the lineup. He has played every game since, and after a two-assist game against the Philadelphia Flyers last Wednesday — the first multi-point night of the 32-year-old’s NHL career — he joined TNT for a postgame interview.

“It’s been quite the journey, that’s for sure,” McIlrath said on TNT. “Obviously a lot of ups and downs, from getting drafted to the Rangers. High pick. You kind of have a vision of what you think your career should be. That wasn’t the case. I just always had a belief in myself. I mean, there were days, long years in the [AHL] where you have your doubts. But I just kept believing that I could play at this level at some point in my career.”

On Tuesday at Capital One Arena, McIlrath faced the Rangers again. He said the feelings from his less-than-ideal time with New York no longer linger after all these years, but it remains a special game on his calendar. His teammates know that, too.

The Capitals embraced McIlrath when he was called up late last season, and they were delighted for the 6-foot-5, 232-pound blue-liner they call “Big Mac” when he made the big club out of camp.

“He’s a legend, I feel like,” defenseman Rasmus Sandin said. “He’s just a fun guy in the locker room. … It’s just really impressive. Since the first game, I think everyone’s just listening. He’s a leader in the way he is in the locker room. He’s a fun guy to be around.”

Added Hendrix Lapierre, who played with McIlrath in Hershey: “The other day I [told him]: ‘I’m honestly, like, really happy for you. Like, sincerely happy for you.’ I’ve seen all the work he’s put in. It’s crazy the work he’s put in from now to two years ago. I’m just super happy for him. I think he’s enjoying every day, embracing the moment. He’s the same Mac as we see in Hershey. He’s the same good guy.”

Lapierre and McIlrath were responsible for a pregame routine that fueled part of Washington’s five-game winning streak before Saturday’s loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. McIlrath was tapped by assistant coach Mitch Love to read the starting lineup against the Vegas Golden Knights, the Capitals’ second game of the season, and he decided to add a twist.

Before calling out the starters, McIlrath turned to Lapierre and asked calmly, ‘Lappy, are you ready to go?’ Lapierre, sensing what might be to come, replied equally calmly, ‘Of course.’ McIlrath then asked the question again — at maximum volume. Lapierre matched the energy in his response.

Washington beat Vegas that night, and McIlrath kept the routine going. The Capitals captured the scene before the Oct. 22 game in Philadelphia, and the video — and its encapsulation of what McIlrath brings to the dressing room — caught fire on social media.

“Mac brings in the energy, and I just try to complement him a little bit,” Lapierre said Saturday morning. “It’s been fun so far. We’re just trying to give the boys good vibes before the game. … Even if I try to push him or move him, he doesn’t move much. That’s how she goes.”