Andre Burakovsky had what was probably his best game of the season against the Chicago Blackhawks Wednesday night. He scored on a power play in the first period, his third goal of the season and had three shots on goal.
During a postgame interview of Burakovsky’s, Tom Wilson took credit for the change.
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After Burakovsky answered a question about his approach to the game, Wilson chimed in with his own explanation for Burakovsky’s improved play: “All he needed was his older brother back.”
“Oh, you take credit for everything, huh?” Burakovsky replied.
Wilson apologized, calling Andre “Mr. Serious.” Somehow, we don’t think that nickname’s going to stick.
To be fair, a lot of people are giving Wilson credit for helping the team improve, especially while Evgeny Kuznetsov and TJ Oshie are out with injuries. Head coach Todd Reirden agreed that Wilson brought an “emotional lift” to the team during a postgame interview (which no one interrupted). He went on to say he “can’t describe the impact [Wilson] has on our room and on the ice for us.”
Part of Wilson’s impact on his team is through lighthearted teasing and trolling. He’s quick with a quip when chirping on social media. On the first day of training camp, he wore a t-shirt with Andre’s face on it. He also pranked Jakub Vrana during his suspension by putting his hockey pants on Vrana’s head.
Not all the pranks are onesided. Andre interrupted an interview of Wilson’s back in February, when Wilson was on a hot streak, by flicking his ear and ruffling his hair.
Turnabout’s fair play, especially if they’re going to keep playing like this.
Full RMNB Coverage of Caps vs Blackhawks
Headline photo: Cara Bahniuk
