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Two of the hotter teams down the stretch of the NHL’s regular season meet in the Nation’s Capital Thursday night when the Washington Capitals entertain the New York Rangers in a playoff series for the fourth time in the last five years. Both teams heated up at precisely the right time in order to qualify for the postseason – the Rangers went 10-3-1 while the Caps went 11-1-1.
The Toronto Maple Leafs, perhaps the biggest surprise in the NHL this season begin their first playoff series in nearly a decade Wednesday night when they travel to Boston to play a Bruins team that limped into the playoffs.
The Pittsburgh Penguins are right where they thought they would be – the #1 seed in the East and looking like the team to beat in the Conference. The New York Islanders on the other hand surprised many by qualifying for the playoffs since 2007.
The President’s Trophy winning Chicago Blackhawks look to carry their stellar Regular Season play into the post season when they kick off the Stanley Cup playoffs Tuesday night against the Minnesota Wild – a team that most thought would be significantly better that they were this year.
The Detroit Red Wings and Anaheim Ducks begin their first round playoff series Tuesday night having taken completely different paths to the postseason. For the Ducks, they cruised into the playoffs looking average the last couple weeks of the season.
It’s hard to believe that the season is over and that it started with such strife and low expectations. A shortened season certainly wasn’t short on intrigue, on surprises and on disappointments. Ya – I’m talking to you Philadelphia Flyers!
It is hard to believe that the Regular Season hasn’t ended and we are talking about the New Jersey Devils’ last home game of the season but that is the situation Thursday night as they host the injury-riddled Pittsburgh Penguins, a team that they have owned at the Prudential Center the past few seasons.
Kings Look to Spoil Red Wings Playoff Aspirations
It has been 21 years since the NHL world was talking about the Detroit Red Wings not being a part of the Stanley Cup Playoffs but the possibility exists that the impressive streak of post season appearances could be coming to an end.
Flyers in Unfamiliar Spoiler Role Versus Bruins
There aren’t a whole lot of people that thought the Philadelphia Flyers would enter the final week of the Regular Season with nothing to play for except for jobs for next season but that is exactly where this team stands with four games left.
Desperate Coyotes Face Equally Desperate Wings in Crucial Clash
Two teams with absolutely zero room for error meet in the Motor City Monday night with their playoff lives on the line. Both the Phoenix Coyotes and the Detroit Red Wings are currently on the outside of the Western Conference playoff picture looking in – losing is not an option.
The Boston Bruins play in what is the first major sporting event in Massachusetts since the Boston Marathon tragedy Monday. Heightened security and heavy hearts will unfortunately be a big part of the game between the Bruins and the Buffalo Sabres – sad that the focus won’t solely be on the joy that professional sports brings to New England.
Two weeks left in the NHL’s Regular Season and things are really heating up as the Power Players flex their muscle, the bubble teams scramble for a playoff spot and the weaker teams in the NHL look toward next year.
Flyers Look to Keep Slim Playoff Hopes Alive – Host Rangers Tuesday Night
The Philadelphia Flyers broke out in a big way on Monday night with a 7-3 win over the Montreal Canadiens. In turn they kept their razor-thin playoff hopes alive. The next challenge for the Flyers? A date with the New York Rangers, a team that has won 11 of the last 12 meetings between the two clubs and has looked vastly different since reshaping their lineup at the trade deadline.
A pair of five game winning streaks will be on the line Monday night when the Dallas Stars visit the Chicago Blackhawks. The mood for each team will likely be very different however – the Hawks have all-but sewn up top seed in the West while the Stars have scratched and clawed their way back into playoff contention on the heels on their own five game win streak.
With eight games remaining in the NHL’s regular season for the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks both teams find themselves in very different fights. For the Wings, they are scrapping just to make the playoffs on the heels of a 2-4-1 stretch while the Hawks are on top of the NHL standings, trying to hold off the Anaheim Ducks for the President’s Trophy. .
The Pittsburgh Penguins, in true championship style keep getting it done despite the absence of key players up and down their lineup. On Thursday night, the Pens will be without Sidney Crosby, James Neal and Paul Martin when they travel to Tampa Bay to take on a Lightning team that has gone 5-0-1 in their last six home games.
