Burakovsky relegated to role of an observer
It was more than 30 minutes into the Washington Capitals’ practice when forward Andre Burakovsky was again relegated from participant to observer. The team ran through its line rushes, a preview of the next game’s likely lineup, while Burakovsky stood off to the side and watched as 12 other forwards took their turn on the ice. There wasn’t a place for him once again, and he is expected to be scratched for a second straight game.
Washington’s oft-injured lineup is getting healthier, and if right wing Tom Wilson plays tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes after missing three games with a concussion, the team will have its entire forward corps available for just a third time this season. That Burakovsky isn’t currently considered one of the team’s top 12 forwards when everyone is healthy is telling, and this being a contract year, the possible ramifications are obvious and don’t need explaining to him.
“I’m not worried about my future,” Burakovsky said. “I know what I can do out there. I think I’ve proven what I can do, and sometimes you just have to battle a little bit harder than you wanted to. That’s going to happen. Right now, it’s kind of what I’m doing, and I’m just going to be positive about this and learn from it and come back strong.”
Here is the Capitals’ conundrum with Burakovsky: he’s due to become a restricted free agent at the end of this season, so to retain his negotiating rights, Washington would have to tender him a qualifying offer, at minimum matching his current salary of $3.25 million. But with how Burakovsky’s production has steadily declined over the past three seasons, the team might not want to continue paying him that much, and if the Capitals don’t qualify him, he can become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, which could leave Washington losing an asset that was the organization’s 2013 first-round pick, for nothing in return. General manager Brian MacLellan could choose to trade Bu- rakovsky before the late February deadline, but he’d be selling low with any potential return on a fast, skilled young forward not expected to be impressive.
Maybe what’s even more frustrating for Washington is that it’s seen what Burakovsky could be, and quitting on that isn’t an easy call when he’s still just 23, especially considering the organization is lacking high-end forward talent in its prospect ranks. Burakovsky scored two goals in Game 7 against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference final, a performance that helped put the Capitals in a position to win a franchise-first Stanley Cup. Just three seasons ago, Burakovsky scored 12 goals with eight assists in 26 games from January through March to finish the year with 17 goals and 21 assists, his best season since he made his debut as a 19-year-old. The next year, he played 15 fewer games because of a broken right hand, his production dipping slightly as a result, and Washington signed him to a two-year, $6 million deal, confident that Burakovsky’s year was just hampered by the injury. The belief then was he would continue to establish himself as part of the organization’s future, perhaps warranting a long-term contract once that bridge deal was finished.
But Burakovsky broke his left thumb last season, and he played in fewer games and scored fewer points again. The flashes of obvious talent come less frequently now, even as Burakovsky, to his credit, has been working with a mental coach in search of more consistency in his attitude and play. After Wilson got hurt last week, Burakovsky was promoted to the top line beside center Nicklas Backstrom and captain Alex Ovechkin. In his first game there, Burakovsky acknowledged he played poorly, but his performance was redeemed by scoring the game-winning goal against the Arizona Coyotes. He remained in that first-line right wing spot against the Columbus Blue Jackets, but after he took two penalties in the third period, Burakovsky was a healthy scratch before Washington’s game against the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday.