Tag Archives: Playoffs

Predators clinch playoff spot with Avalanche loss

After the Nashville Predators, stuck on 91 points, wasted a trio of chances to punch their ticket into the Stanley Cup Playoffs this week, the Presidents' Trophy champions stepped up and did it for them.

Nashville has officially qualified for the playoffs for the second straight season and ninth time in franchise history as a result of the Washington Capitals' 4-2 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Friday.

The rest of the night's results will contribute to the Predators likely finishing where they currently stand, slotted in the Western Conference's first wild-card position. The Chicago Blackhawks won, tightening their grip on the third postseason seed in the Central while the Minnesota Wild lost in Detroit, keeping them four points back with just three games left.

The Predators have four games left on the schedule before likely opening second-season play against the Pacific Division winner.

Colorado remains alive, despite the loss, but missed its opportunity to close to within three points of the final wild-card spot.

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If the playoffs began Friday: Penguins march to home-ice advantage

Here's what postseason matchups look like after play on Thursday, March 31:

Eastern Conference

Team Team Season Series
A1 Panthers W1 Islanders 1-1-1
A2 Lightning A3 Bruins 2-1-1 Lightning
M1 Capitals W2 Flyers 2-0-2 Capitals
M2 Penguins M3 Rangers 3-1 Penguins
  • A win paired with a Rangers loss sees the Penguins move into the second seed in the Metropolitan Division and nab provisional hold of home-ice advantage in Round 1.
  • Florida seized a two-point lead atop the Atlantic Division with a win over the Devils, plus a Lightning loss.
  • The Bruins and Red Wings, vying for third in the Atlantic, were both idle.

Wild-Card Race

Team Points Games Remaining
1. Islanders 93 6
2. Flyers 89 6
Red Wings 87 5
Hurricanes 84 4
  • The Islanders strengthened their grip on the first wild-card slot and moved to within two points of the Rangers (with a game in hand) with their win over the Blue Jackets.

Western Conference

Team Team Season Series
C1 Stars W2 Wild 3-1 Stars
C2 Blues C3 Blackhawks 2-0-2 Blackhawks
P1 Kings W1 Predators 2-1 Kings
P2 Ducks P3 Sharks 3-1 Ducks
  • The Stars lobbed the ball back at the Blues, moving two points ahead in the Central Division after entering the night tied at 101 points through 77 games.
  • The Kings jumped back in front of the Ducks, taking two points from the Flames like Anaheim did Wednesday night. They also moved five points clear of the Sharks, who lost to Vancouver.

Wild-Card Race

Team Points Games Remaining
1. Predators 91 4
2. Wild 87 4
Avalanche 82 5
  • The Predators and Wild each lost in regulation, which keeps the door open for the Avalanche, but also keeps their positions fixed.
  • In failing to punch their ticket again, the Predators remain four points behind the Blackhawks with one fewer game remaining on the schedule.

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Woe, Canada: NHL Playoffs will be all-American for only 2nd time

For the first time in 46 years, there will be no Stanley Cup playoff hockey north of the border.

After a Philadelphia win over Washington on Wednesday, the Ottawa Senators were officially eliminated from postseason contention, meaning the NHL's Canadian hockey teams will be preparing for the draft rather than fighting for hockey's greatest prize.

A rare occurrence indeed, as this will mark only the second time in NHL history where every Canadian team will miss the Stanley Cup playoffs, with 1970 being the other.

Don't forget that only Toronto and Montreal represented Canada in the NHL back in those days.

Despite a win for Ottawa in Winnipeg, no Canadian team ranks higher than 21st in the overall standings:

Fittingly, this year's top prospect is American-born Auston Matthews.

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Nightly Playoffs Preview: Wild strengthen hold on wild card, could face Stars

Here's what postseason matchups look like after play after March 29:

Eastern Conference

Team Team Season Series
A1 Lightning W1 Islanders 1-1-0
A2 Panthers A3 Bruins 3-1-0 Bruins
M1 Capitals W2 Flyers 2-0-1 Capitals
M2 Rangers M3 Penguins 3-1 Penguins
  • As a result of Florida's loss to Toronto, idle Tampa Bay moved into first in the Atlantic, thereby acquiring a potential first-round date with the Islanders.

Wild-Card Race

Team Points Games Remaining
1. Islanders 91 7
2. Flyers 87 7
Red Wings 87 5
Devils 82 5
Hurricanes 82 5
  • With a win over Boston, New Jersey kept its faint playoff hopes alive, while Detroit's failure to pick up even a point in Montreal could be problematic.

Western Conference

Team Team Season Series
C1 Stars W2 Wild 4-1 Stars
C2 Blues C3 Blackhawks 2-2
P1 Kings W1 Predators 2-1 Kings
P2 Ducks P3 Sharks 3-1 Ducks
  • Nothing changed here Tuesday, but a Nashville loss to Dallas kept the Predators from moving to within two points of Chicago - who also lost - for third place in the Central Division.

Wild-Card Race

Team Points Games Remaining
Predators 91 5
Wild 87 5
Avalanche 82 5
  • A Wild over the Blackhawks win coupled with an Avalanche loss to the Blues has all but ended this race for good.

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Capitals ‘not spraying champagne’ after clinching Presidents’ Trophy

The Washington Capitals are making one thing clear: They're not done yet.

"There's not going to be a champagne party or anything like that," head coach Barry Trotz told reporters after his team secured the Presidents' Trophy on Monday with a 4-1 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets.

"There's a sense of fulfillment that we said we were going to do some things and we accomplished them so far and we've still got some things to accomplish. The season's not over because we wrapped this up."

The Capitals earned home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs and ensured they'll finish with the best record in the league, but defenseman Matt Niskanen knows their work is far from over.

"I think we all knew it was coming," he said. "We're not spraying champagne or anything, but I think guys are happy. It's a marathon. We won the marathon, and now we get to prepare for the seven-game sprints."

The Capitals improved to 54-16-5 and 113 points in the standings with seven games remaining. No other club has reached the 100-point mark.

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Nightly Playoffs Preview: Blues-Blackhawks could be 1st round’s best series

Here's what postseason matchups look like after play on Monday, March 28:

Eastern Conference

Team Team Season Series
A1 Panthers W1 Islanders 2-1 Panthers
A2 Lightning A3 Bruins 2-1-1
M1 Capitals W2 Flyers 2-0-1 Capitals
M2 Rangers M3 Penguins 3-1 Penguins
  • The Panthers, Islanders, Lightning, Bruins, Rangers, and Penguins are all separated by between only three and five points.
  • If the Flyers make the dance, they have a date with the Capitals. That's rough.
  • No team wants to play the Penguins in the first round - especially not the Rangers, who've won only one in four against Pittsburgh.

Wild-Card Race

Team Points Games Remaining
1. Islanders 89 8
2. Flyers 87 7
Red Wings 87 6
Hurricanes 81 6
  • The Islanders are by no means safe, and the Hurricanes need a miracle.
  • The Flyers play the Red Wings on April 6, and close their season on April 10 against the Islanders. Big games.

Western Conference

Team Team Season Series
C1 Stars W2 Wild 4-1 Stars
C2 Blues C3 Blackhawks 2-2
P1 Kings W1 Predators 2-1 Kings
P2 Ducks P3 Sharks 3-1 Ducks
  • The West is ultra-tight, too. Except for Stars-Wild, the other six teams slated to face each other are all separated by only four points.
  • Every series could be great, especially considering the way Devan Dubnyk is playing in net for the Wild, and how hot the Predators are. And an all-California battle is most welcome.

Wild-Card Race

Team Points Games Remaining
Predators 91 6
Wild 85 6
Avalanche 82 6
  • The Predators are all but officially in. They can clinch Tuesday in Dallas.
  • The Avalanche rebounded after a devastating 4-0 loss to the Wild on Saturday, but they need help. All six of Colorado's remaining games are against playoff teams: Blues (2), Capitals, Predators, Stars, and Ducks. It's going to be real tough, especially without Matt Duchene and Nathan MacKinnon.

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After 1-year hiatus, Sharks headed back to playoffs

It took a few tries, but the San Jose Sharks will have a chance to play for the Stanley Cup.

The club officially clinched a playoff berth Monday night when the Arizona Coyotes lost to the Calgary Flames, but San Jose also took care of business on its own. The Sharks registered a 5-2 win over in-state rivals the Los Angeles Kings in a hard-fought game that felt a lot like a postseason encounter.

After missing the playoffs last year, and parting ways with head coach Todd McLellan, the Sharks are headed back to the dance for the 11th time in 12 seasons, and 18th time in franchise history.

Monday night's win was only the Sharks' 17th at home. Peter DeBoer's troops have been road warriors all season, their 25 wins away from the SAP Center tying them with the Washington Capitals for most in the NHL.

The win was goaltender Martin Jones' 36th, in a season in which he's proven he's a No. 1 goalie.

Now the hard part: 16 more wins in the postseason.

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Capitals clinch Presidents’ Trophy, home-ice advantage through playoffs

The Washington Capitals are officially the best NHL team of the 2015-16 regular season.

That distinction was set in stone with a win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday, whereby the Capitals clinched both the Presidents' Trophy as the team with the best overall record and home-ice advantage in all four rounds of the Stanley Cup playoffs, should they indeed make it that far.

The win gives Washington 113 points with seven games remaining on the schedule. To date, no other team has eclipsed the 100-point mark this season.

The first-place finish comes with a caveat, however, as only eight Presidents' Trophy winners have gone on to win the Cup since the award was introduced in 1986.

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Blackhawks clinch 8th straight playoff berth with win over Canucks

The defending Stanley Cup champions are heading to the postseason for the eighth consecutive year, as the Chicago Blackhawks clinched a playoff berth Sunday with a 3-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks. It will mark their 61st postseason appearance in franchise history.

The Blackhawks needed just one point to book their ticket to the playoffs, but they picked up two thanks to Andrew Ladd, who scored the game-winning goal with under three minutes remaining. The trade-deadline acquisition now has three goals and four points in his past two games.

Tomas Fleischmann and Teuvo Teravainen also scored for the Blackhawks, while defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk finished the game with two assists.

With Corey Crawford sidelined for the sixth game in a row due to an upper-body injury, Scott Darling filled in and picked up his second win in as many days with a 26-save performance.

The win places Chicago four points ahead of the Nashville Predators for third in the Central, and four points behind the co-division leaders: the Dallas Stars and St. Louis Blues.

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