Dylan Strome heartbroken after wife Tayler gives birth to third child during Capitals game in Montreal: ‘There was nothing I could do to get there’

Dylan Strome had one of his best performances of the season on Thursday, but his mind was far away from the rink.

While the Capitals faced the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre, Dylan’s wife Tayler was giving birth to the couple’s daughter, Sutton Kimberley, back home in Washington. The birth came ahead of schedule: Dylan got word after warmups that Tayler was in the hospital, and Sutton was born by the end of the first period.

Strome was devastated as he delivered the news postgame, tearing up and at times struggling to get his words out.

“My warrior of a wife had our third daughter while we were on the ice,” he said. “Really proud of her. It’s tough. You obviously want to be there for the birth of your children. (We) didn’t know it was coming this soon, but can’t wait to go see her.

“So Sutton Kimberley Strome, my third daughter, was born at 7:30 pm today. It was really quick. She felt it two hours before, and it just happened. There was nothing I could do to get there. So super proud of her, and just definitely playing with a lot of emotions.”

Sutton’s early arrival meant Strome didn’t have time to make the 500-mile trip back to DC. Instead, he was forced to get updates via video call from afar, wanting nothing more than to be there with her. He praised Tayler for the courage it took to go through labor alone.

“I heard before the game and talked about what I should do,” he said. “I mean, there was nothing I could do to get back. Just really proud of her. It’s not easy. We go on the road a lot. And women go through a lot, and their bodies change so much, and for her to do that herself is unbelievable.”

Playing a hockey game while his wife was in the hospital was far from easy. With no way to get home any faster, Strome remained in the lineup for Thursday’s game, still hoping he’d make it back in time. He was devastated to miss the birth, both worried for the health of mom and baby as well as upset he couldn’t lend Tayler his support.

Understandably, his thoughts were elsewhere for much of the night, especially before Sutton’s arrival.

“There were just so many emotions going through my mind,” he explained. “Just first of all, you want to make sure everyone’s okay. It’s a pretty scary thing. Just at the time of the first period, I kind of thought I was going to make it home in time, maybe. Obviously that didn’t happen, but just try to focus on hockey…

“(Not being able to be there), it’s horrible. You know she’s in good hands at the hospital. And we’ve got two young ones at home, and she’s taking care of both of them while I’m gone. Had to call in some reinforcements for her to go to the hospital. Yeah, it’s a crazy thing — definitely hockey was not really on my mind going out there the first period…So just incredible, and I can’t stress enough just how super proud I am of her.”

The couple have two other daughters, four-year-old Weslie and two-year-old Emerson, and announced news of the pregnancy in May. The Capitals later confirmed that both Tayler and Sutton are doing well.

But if Strome struggled to focus, you couldn’t tell from his play. He recorded a trio of assists over the Canadiens in the 8-4 win, including a two-on-one pass to Alex Ovechkin in the second period that head coach Spencer Carbery said “essentially seals the game.”

“He is a hockey player through and through,” Carbery said. “He’s going to be in this game for a long, long time, long after he’s done playing, but this will be one night that he will never forget — and I’ll never forget — when his daughter was born. And to win the way that we did, and (for) the guys to rally around him at the Bell Centre, back-to-back, everything surrounding the game, good for him. Proud of him, and a night we won’t forget.”

The Capitals made sure to celebrate Strome’s milestone during Carbery’s postgame locker room speech.

“We’re gonna tell stories about this for years,” Carbery said before a round of cheers drowned him out, demanding a speech from Strome.

“Obviously you want to be there for the birth of your child, honestly,” Strome said. “No, I love you guys so much. Said a little prayer with [Jakob Chychrun] before the game for my wife.”

As he dealt with the stress of not being there with Tayler in labor, Strome was glad to have his teammates there to support him in Montreal.

“It’s just a brotherhood we have in here,” he said. “Everyone was making sure I was okay and good to go. And that’s why we’re a really close team. It’s something that I don’t think I’ll ever experience again — hopefully no one does — kind of just feeling helpless, but luckily I had the guys here.”

Still, the most exciting moment of the night was yet to come.

“I’m looking forward to getting on the plane and going home to see her.”