TAMPA, Fla. — Andre Burakovsky was a healthy scratch when the Washington Capitals last played at Amalie Arena. It was Game 5, a mere four days before Wednesday’s Game 7. The Tampa Bay Lightning controlled that game and went up 3-2 in the Eastern Conference finals, putting the Capitals on the brink.
Around that time, Burakovsky said he wanted to see a sports psychologist to overcome his tendency to be too hard on himself. But Wednesday morning, something was feeling right for him. Maybe that self-critical instinct gave him a break. He told Nicklas Backstrom he had a good feeling about how he’d play in Game 7.