Player Discussion Andre Burakovsky

[txpd]

One thing i can't fully buy into is, how can a guy have no hockey sense and survive this long?

Was he carried by linemates, riding the coattails on a strong team... and why can't a GM see who doesnt understand the game, and not draft them.

A guy cant go on the hot streaks that he has gone on and not be able to play the game all the way thru. He doesn't ride coattails. Its not like a cold spell is a one time thing. It happens every season. If I had to guess, I would suggest his issue is off the ice and/or in his head. Who knows how dedicated he is to his profession or how fragile his mental approach can be? Maybe he rides the coattails of his natural tools and when that isn't enough he doesn't have the game face to fight thru it.

 

[Brian23]

I genuinely think Dre's issue is two parter. The first is how he handles adversity/things not going his way and the second is a limited repertoire of "options" when his go to isn't working.

The first is just due to coaching staff's here not being successful in identifying what is ailing/happening with a player and going through steps to correct it. They've very much been a "you keep going till it works, or you sit and reset and try again" for a long time now and that doesn't really breed a healthy response to adversity. The second issue is Dre himself has never really developed anything outside his quick wrister to lean on when he does start to struggle. He doesn't put in the effort to really play a good steady 200 foot game, he doesn't go for slappers, and he doesn't play physical enough to get dirty goals to get some confidence. If he could just work on placing his wrister alone more I think he'd see a lot more success.

But there's a reason that when he's on he's a puck magnet. Dre has been apart of some of our most dominate possession lines when he's on point, it's just about figuring out how to get him through struggles and identifying whether or not that's possible. I personally don't think the franchise has showed they can do that with forwards to be honest.

 

[Sam Spade]

I think BMac has shown a really good sense of knowing when to get out on a player in his short tenure here, so I'm going with Burka will be gone by next season.

Either by trading or just not qualifying him.

 

[KingsOfCali25]

Kings fan coming in peace...what's the price for this kid? I think he'd bring good skill to LA and fit in well.

 

[kicksavedave]

Kings fan coming in peace...what's the price for this kid? I think he'd bring good skill to LA and fit in well.

No charge. No warranty either.

 

[Carlzner]

Meh. Not itching to trade him for pennies on the dollar, that 3rd line worked real well in the playoffs and has in the past as well.

 

[KingsOfCali25]

No charge. No warranty either.

So free?

Edit: but realistically, what would Washington be looking for in a trade to LA?

 

[kicksavedave]

So free?

Edit: but realistically, what would Washington be looking for in a trade to LA?

Hard to say, a 2nd round pick or decent prospect, or another young, under achieving guy who hasn't yet figured it out but could benefit from a change in scenery.

Bura will tease with talent sometimes but his effort is just not there enough. Super streaky, if we sold high I could see maybe a couple good picks or a decent prospect but I also don't really know for sure what the rest of the league thinks. Carlzner above may not have given up on him, but a lot of Caps fans have, myself included.

 

[Silky mitts]

So free?

Edit: but realistically, what would Washington be looking for in a trade to LA?

I can’t imagine we’d turn down a 3rd, when Wilson comes back he’d be the 12th or 13th forward, not sure how much lower.

 

[KingsOfCali25]

Would a Clifford/Thompson+3rd be okay?

 

[maacoshark]

Hard to say, a 2nd round pick or decent prospect, or another young, under achieving guy who hasn't yet figured it out but could benefit from a change in scenery.

Bura will tease with talent sometimes but his effort is just not there enough. Super streaky, if we sold high I could see maybe a couple good picks or a decent prospect but I also don't really know for sure what the rest of the league thinks. Carlzner above may not have given up on him, but a lot of Caps fans have, myself included.

I'm sure teams know all about Burakovsky history. I can't see anyone offering a 2nd round pick. To get a 2nd round pick we would have to give up Burakovsky and something else. I dont think he has a lot of value right now. Just getting rid of the Cap hit would be a gain for us.

 

[maacoshark]

So free?

Edit: but realistically, what would Washington be looking for in a trade to LA?

Who knows what Caps management wants. Maybe their price us too steep. Maybe that's why we havent dealt him yet.
Maybe a 3rd or 4th round unless its a multi player deal.

 

[kicksavedave]

I'm sure teams know all about Burakovsky history. I can't see anyone offering a 2nd round pick. To get a 2nd round pick we would have to give up Burakovsky and something else. I dont think he has a lot of value right now. Just getting rid of the Cap hit would be a gain for us.

If we can't get anything better than a 3rd for him then there's little point in trading him, just let him ride this year out as insurance in case of injury in the bottom six. Hard to see him playing worse, and he -could-, maybe, turn it on for a bit this year as well. And as bad as he's been, he's still gotten a sweater every night, unlike Walker, Dowd, or any of the kids we hoped might crack the lineup, so TR hasn't completely given up hope yet.

 

[Langway]

If we can't get anything better than a 3rd for him then there's little point in trading him, just let him ride this year out as insurance in case of injury in the bottom six. Hard to see him playing worse, and he -could-, maybe, turn it on for a bit this year as well. And as bad as he's been, he's still gotten a sweater every night, unlike Walker, Dowd, or any of the kids we hoped might crack the lineup, so TR hasn't completely given up hope yet.

I could see him being moved at the deadline for something more immediately helpful ala Namestnikov. He still has a sliver of opportunity even when Wilson comes back unless he's passed by Jaskin & Stephenson.

Thompson would offer them a more proven 4C option but who knows if that's a trade priority. Clifford is an okay depth fit but maybe not much of an upgrade over Jaskin. As far as prospects go, Wagner would be a decent target (albeit maybe not way better than their many developing bottom sixers). The Kings don't have much cap space so it'd need to be a hockey deal. Pearson's name has been out there, though his AAV might be tough to swap. Lewis is the other fit perhaps.

 

[HTFN]

For as disappointing as Burakovsky is/can be, I think you'd be lucky to turn a third into anything of comparable value. I know there are contracts to consider and all but I think you'd be better keeping Burakovsky if the best you can get is a third.

 

[Hivemind]

For as disappointing as Burakovsky is/can be, I think you'd be lucky to turn a third into anything of comparable value. I know there are contracts to consider and all but I think you'd be better keeping Burakovsky if the best you can get is a third.

For me, it comes down to if they have a better plan to use that cap space. If it was the off-season, it would be easy to use the $3M he frees up. During the season that may be tougher. Empty cap space doesn't help you at all once the playoffs roll around, so shedding the contract purely to shed the contract doesn't really help until after the season ends.

 

[Ovechkins Wodka]

Yeh, if GMBM had a 4th round value he would have gotten rid of Bura in the Offseason rather trade a star backup goalie for cap space

 

[Kuz]

He is still a RFA so unless there is a quite good offer theres no need to trade. He can still be traded after the playoffs. He might give an extra effort when the playoffs arrive this year to and be valuable. Only reason for the Caps to trade is if they can improve the team this year.

 

[maacoshark]

If we can't get anything better than a 3rd for him then there's little point in trading him, just let him ride this year out as insurance in case of injury in the bottom six. Hard to see him playing worse, and he -could-, maybe, turn it on for a bit this year as well. And as bad as he's been, he's still gotten a sweater every night, unlike Walker, Dowd, or any of the kids we hoped might crack the lineup, so TR hasn't completely given up hope yet.

Hate to rain on your parade but he really doesnt deserve that sweater. He has been our worst forward at both ends of the ice and that includes the guys that have been scratched for games. It seems like Reirden keeps him in the lineup hoping he will finally breakout. How long can we keep this going?
Even if we can't get more than a 3rd which I think is the case, he is worth trading just to dump the salary. He is a liability. He hurts this team far more than he helps.

 

[895]

I still think he goes to Edmonton.

Bura scoring his single goal of the season against them is just too fitting.

For Strome? One failed prospect for another. Same cap hits too, since both teams are up against the cap.

 

[Hivemind]

Yeh, if GMBM had a 4th round value he would have gotten rid of Bura in the Offseason rather trade a star backup goalie for cap space

I don't see any real link between Burakovsky and the Grubauer trade. Grubby was being traded regardless of what happened. He deserved his chance to be a starter elsewhere, and commanded serious value. That value was diminished somewhat by offloading Orpik in the same deal, but the cap savings from Orpik were significantly higher than those from Burakovsky (this team isn't cap compliant with a $5.5M Orpik still on it).

 

[maacoshark]

I don't see any real link between Burakovsky and the Grubauer trade. Grubby was being traded regardless of what happened. He deserved his chance to be a starter elsewhere, and commanded serious value. That value was diminished somewhat by offloading Orpik in the same deal, but the cap savings from Orpik were significantly higher than those from Burakovsky (this team isn't cap compliant with a $5.5M Orpik still on it).

Grubauer still hasn't gotten his chance to be a starter. Once Varly gets his yearly injury it could happen.

 

[kicksavedave]

Hate to rain on your parade but he really doesnt deserve that sweater. He has been our worst forward at both ends of the ice and that includes the guys that have been scratched for games. It seems like Reirden keeps him in the lineup hoping he will finally breakout. How long can we keep this going?
Even if we can't get more than a 3rd which I think is the case, he is worth trading just to dump the salary. He is a liability. He hurts this team far more than he helps.

It ain't my parade and if I were coach Bura would be eating nachos already. All I said was TR hasn't given up on him yet and thats entirely true. I have no idea how long TR will keep it going but Bura, being the perpetual tease, always seems to step up a wee bit when he get demoted, and that surge lasts a few games tops, before he goes back to being lazy Bura again. My hope is, he gets no more than one more demotion/motivational kick in the pants, before TR pulls the plug and sits him.

Keep in mind, we got Kempny for a 3rd and he was a regular scratch, so that's about the right price range for a guy who can't crack the lineup but who has NHL credentials.

 

[amjay13]

The Oilers would make sense, hope it happens because it seems as though his development has stopped here. Win some, lose some, will always be remembered in my mind for those game 7 goals.

 

[maacoshark]

Burakovsky played less than 7 mins tonight. The lowest of any Caps player. He is clearly our bottom forward right now. What does Reirden do with him when Wilson returns? Management might not want a 3 million dollar man as a healthy scratch.