WASHINGTON (WUSA9)--The Washington Capitals are headed to yet another Game 7!
Haven't we heard that before?
I'm experiencing a little deja vu.
For the 16th time in Caps' history, the Washington hockey team will play in a series deciding game.
Needless to say, this is not the Caps' first time in this situation.
As much as I hate to say it, majority of the time this does not end well for our home team.
This horrible feeling of getting your hopes up, and then your soul crushed started in 1985, when the Caps were up against the New York Islanders in the first round.
At this time it was best of five.
But you get the point.
The Caps had a 2-0 lead in the series, but the Islanders came back to win the series 3-2.
In 1987 the Caps met the Islanders yet again, and experienced if not more of a heartbreak by going four overtimes and then losing, getting knocked out of the playoffs.
That same pain was felt in 1988, when the Capitals won in overtime in Game 7 to the Philadelphia Flyers, only to lose to the New Jersey Devils in the finals, 3-2.
Four years later when the Capitals made it to the semi-finals to face the dreaded rival, the Pittsburgh Penguins, I believe this is when fans started to say this was "our year" again.
The Caps had a 3-1 lead in the series and were on track to win.
But in Penguins fashion, they came back to win the series, and destroying the hopes of Caps' fans in Game 7.
1995 the Capitals would face the Penguins again, but this time in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.
The Capitals were up on the Penguins just like in 1992, but also just like in 1992, the Caps loss three straight games in a row, which included a 3-0 home loss.
The Capitals went 13 years before putting the fans through another game ending series.
In 2008, the Capitals loss to the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 7, preventing them from continuing in post season play.
A year later, things seems to be going different when the Capitals defeated the New York Rangers in in Game 7 to advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals.
However, fans should have known that history has a tendency to repeat itself.
The Caps went on to face the Penguins yet again in the post season, and loss to them in Game 7 with the final score being 6-2.
Have you had e nought heartache yet?
I'm not even a D.C. native, and for me it's been hard to watch through the years.
Yet, the losing in Game 7 continued to the following year, 2010.
The Capitals had a hard to forget final three games against the Montreal Canadiens, forcing them to be eliminated in Game 7 again.
Six years ago, in 2016 was the most recent game 7 that didn't end turmoil.
Caps had signed the unrestricted free agent, Joel Ward, and wouldn't regret it.
He scored the game-winning goal in overtime in Game 7 against the Boston Bruins, which advanced Washington to the semi-finals.
Although Washington would go on to lose to to the New York Rangers, that Game 7, is one the fans will never forget.
So what have learned class?
When it comes to a Game 7, the Caps have won some, and they've loss some.
The one fact that we can't ignore however, is that when it truly counts, the Caps just seem to come up short.
We're all hoping this year is different.
Contact Ashley on Twitter @AshleyHasSpoken
