New Avalanche center Lars Eller talks career, Stanley Cup-winning goal

The national television screens cut from the ice in Las Vegas to the streets in Washington, D.C., where throngs were already starting to celebrate 7:37 before it became official.

In the weeks and years that followed, Lars Eller would encounter fans in Washington who thanked him. He noticed a distinct increase in his local recognizability.

“I’d talk to fans that would say, ‘Oh, I’ve been a fan since ’75.’ You know, like, 15 years before I was even born,” Eller told The Post.

The Colorado Avalanche’s new third-line center was beloved at his previous stop for scoring the game-winning goal that clinched the Washington Capitals’ first Stanley Cup championship in franchise history, 43 years after their 8-67-5 debut season in 1974-75. But Eller argues it’s not even the most important goal of his 14-year career.

“I think you carry that with you,” he said. “It’s one of the best memories in your career. So that’s tough to beat, of course. I think it also just gives you a good confidence. A lot of guys here in the room have that. You’ve done it before. You can do it again. So there should be no doubt in anybody’s head that you’re capable of going all the way.”

He registered 18 points in 24 playoff games during the Capitals’ 2018 run to the Cup. But the first point stands out to him as much as the last. Washington trailed its first-round series 2-0 vs. Columbus when a third consecutive game went to overtime. Then double overtime. Eller was on the rebounding end of a Washington odd-man rush, earning the Caps their first win of the playoffs and swinging the series in their favor. They advanced in six.

The goal was similar to the one he would eventually score in the third period at Vegas — “Greasy playoff goals, second chances,” Eller said.

“I think that first one against Columbus was actually more important. Going down 3-0 in that series would have been really, really tough,” Eller reasoned. “In Vegas, if we didn’t score, if we didn’t win that game, we still had two other shots. So I think that one, the Columbus one was a real turning point for our team that got us going.”

Eller was the first Danish player to win a Stanley Cup. He’s from Rødovre, Denmark, a town just outside Copenhagen. He grew up with three brothers who also played hockey, but “Denmark’s not really a hockey hotbed, exactly,” as Eller put it. “I didn’t watch any NHL growing up. I didn’t have any Danish players playing in the NHL. So it wasn’t really on the map for me until later.”

His only exposure to the sport was through his family and the Danish league. His dad, Olaf, played for the local Rødovre Mighty Bulls for a decade before Lars was born, then coached the team when Lars was a child. “I pretty much grew up in the rink,” Lars said. He eventually played for the Mighty Bulls’ junior program before moving to Sweden at age 15.

His career has taken him to multiple top European leagues. During his third season playing junior hockey in Sweden, he earned a spot with Frolunda HC’s elite club. He played 14 games then blossomed the next season as a 19-year-old, registering 29 points in 48 games as the St. Louis Blues’ No. 13 overall draft pick.

Four years later, Eller returned to Scandinavia. The start of the 2012-13 NHL season was delayed by a lockout, but Eller couldn’t afford to not play. He was fresh off a breakout 2011-12 season with Montreal, having built on his already-solid defensive reputation while adding a new layer: 16 goals.

So Eller played a couple months in the top Finnish league, adding SM-liiga to a résumé that already featured the SHL, AHL and NHL.

“I didn’t remember that he was there,” laughed Mikko Rantanen, who was a teenager in Finland at the time.

“I’d say the Swedish league’s probably better. But it was fun,” Eller said. “It was a good start for me, because our season started late. So it was good for me to just play, instead of a lot of guys just sitting and waiting around. It set me up for a good season that year.”

Eller rejoined Montreal for the shortened NHL season then scored double-digit goals the next seven years. Offense has never been his calling card — he’s a big-bodied checking center, effective on the draw — but it helps to have scored two of the biggest goals in one franchise’s history.

“Every playoff series is special in its own way,” Eller said while reflecting on the “weird and emotional” feeling of his seven-year Capitals tenure ending. Still, even as he grapples with that, he feels exhilarated to be back on a championship-contending team. After landing in Denver and debuting for the Avalanche 90 minutes later, Eller used the next day to buy his children Avalanche merchandise from the team store.

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