The following year, he helped Canada to capture gold medals at both the World U-17 Hockey Challenge and the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament.

During the Capitals' Stanley Cup championship in 2018 was suspended three games for a controversial hit to Zach Aston-Reese in the second round against the Pittsburgh Penguins that resulted in a three-game suspension.

In 2021, however, Wilson's performance as a power forward and enforcer came under fire from opposing coaches again after causing two serious injuries to other skaters: first Brandon Carlo of the Boston Bruins, followed by Artemi Panarin of the New York Rangers.

The team was interested in Wilson's size – at the time, he stood 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) and weighted 190 pounds (86 kg) – and in his physical style of play.

[11] Injuries continued to follow Wilson in the 2011–12 OHL season, including a sprained medial collateral ligament in his knee and a fractured knuckle.

[19] In only his second NHL game, Wilson broke the blade on his left skate while attempting to forecheck a member of the Rangers, and had to be assisted back to the bench by forward Jason Chimera.

[21] Going into the 2013–14 season, the Capitals, who were struck by the NHL salary cap, appointed Wilson and fellow 19-year-old Connor Carrick to their roster in order to save money.

[23] Wilson took part in his first NHL fight on October 3, 2013, battling Lance Bouma of the Calgary Flames and receiving a five-minute major penalty.

[28] When he joined the team at the start of the season, it was only for non-contact practice, and he was briefly assigned to Hershey for a three-game rehab stint at the end of October.

After being warned for diving and embellishment on March 1 in a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Wilson was ordered to pay a $2,000 fine for the same penalty against Zach Parise of the Minnesota Wild.

Wilson did not receive any punishment besides a two-minute minor penalty, while Islanders captain John Tavares referred to the hit as "a complete target of a defenseless player".

[35] On December 10, 2015, Wilson received a five-minute major penalty and a game misconduct for boarding Florida Panthers defenceman Brian Campbell, a hit that led to calls for additional punishment.

The penalty was rescinded upon further review after the league found that Wilson had initially made contact with Lazar's hip, and the apparent head injury was the result of whiplash.

On April 29, 2016, during the 2016 playoffs, Wilson was fined $2,403.67, the maximum amount allowable under the NHLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement, for a knee-on-knee collision with Conor Sheary of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Despite this dip in individual production, the Capitals remained a dominant team as they clinched their second consecutive Presidents' Trophy and third in franchise history altogether.

[47] Then, on October 1, in the Capitals' preseason finale, Wilson received a four-game suspension as a repeat offender for a hit on Blues forward Sammy Blais.

Department of Player Safety decided not to pursue further disciplinary action as they could not determine, based on the available cameras, whether Wilson's main point of contact was Wennberg's head.

Wilson's history of suspension, combined with a growing controversy over headshots during the NHL postseason, further heated the incident,[53] which was eventually ruled an "unfortunate hockey play".

[54] In the next game on May 1, Wilson's shoulder collided with the head of Penguins rookie forward Zach Aston-Reese, giving the latter a concussion and a broken jaw that would require surgery causing him to miss the rest of the series.

[60] Following his strong performance the previous season and during the Stanley Cup run, the Capitals re-signed Wilson to a six-year contract extension on July 27, 2018, with an average annual value of $5.17 million.

[63] In the first game after his suspension on November 13, Wilson scored a goal, drew a minor penalty for goaltender interference, and engaged in a fight with Wild skater Marcus Foligno.

[67] One of the strongest hits that he delivered, elbowing Greg McKegg of the Carolina Hurricanes during game 5 the Eastern Conference semifinals on April 20, 2019, went without penalty.

[73] The pandemic-shortened 2020–21 season brought more controversy for Wilson's playing style, beginning with a "very big, and very late" hit on Mark Jankowski of the Pittsburgh Penguins at the end of a February 25, 2021 game.

[76] On May 4, the NHL and Department of Player Safety came under fire when they chose not to suspend Wilson for a fight against New York Rangers skaters Pavel Buchnevich and Artemi Panarin.

Panarin was forced to miss the remainder of the season due to a leg injury, while the Rangers released a statement declaring George Parros, the head of the Department of Player Safety, "unfit to continue in his current role".

[77] The controversy was amplified when, the following day, Shayne Gostisbehere of the Philadelphia Flyers was suspended two games for a hit against Mark Friedman of the Penguins.

[83] Wilson ended the season playing in 78 games with career highs in goals (24), assists (28) and points (52) while continuing his top line presence with Ovechkin and Kuznetsov.

Despite his drop in production, the Capitals returned to the playoffs as the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference (after missing the year prior) but were swept in the first round by the Presidents' Trophy-winning New York Rangers.

Playing on the gold medal-winning Canada Ontario team, Wilson injured his wrist on a breakaway, leaving Mathew Campagna to take a penalty shot in the 5–3 win over the United States.

[11] Wilson, standing 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) and weighing 218 pounds (99 kg), has been described as a power forward, with a strong scoring record and a highly physical approach to the ice.