A Wild Last-Minute One-Point Finish Between Four Teams Was Needed to Establish the NHL Playoffs

While there are still two days remaining on the overall NHL 2023-24 schedule, Tuesday night saw the determination of the final playoff seedings, as the last slots for the postseason were established. With the Western Conference teams already locked in, over in the East everything was in question as four teams were in a position to seal up the final playoff spot.

In each conference, eight teams play in the NHL’s “The Second Season” with the top six divisional teams playoff-bound, while the next highest points earners determine the final two wildcard slots. By Tuesday the Pittsburgh Penguins, Philadelphia Flyers, Washington Capitals, and Detroit Red Wings were not only still competitive for that position, but all four were within a solitary point.

This led to numerous permutations that could develop with the games played concurrently. The Penguins won their penultimate game Monday, as they went undefeated in their last 10 matchups, but they would need things to shake out correctly and win their last contest to have a chance. So the mystery was – who would prevail after Tuesday evening?

The Red Wings were in Montreal and were in the need-to-win-and-need-help position. Trailing going into the final period, they twice tied the game, including a goal in the final five seconds, forcing a shootout where they prevailed. By earning that extra point, they were then in position for the playoffs. The difference would be decided in Philadelphia, where the Flyers were hosting the Capitals at the same time.

With the score tied 1-1 and one minute remaining, Flyers coach John Tortorella called his goalie to the bench to have an additional shooter in the desperate hopes of stealing the victory. The math worked out that Philadelphia needed a win in regulation to remain in contention, but the move not only failed to deliver the needed result, it impacted Detroit’s fortunes. Washington managed to hit the empty net goal which delivered both the win and the needed points to match the Red Wings’ point total.

So to summarize Detroit scores with 3 seconds left to stay alive....until Philly pulls its goalie in a 1-1 tie needing a regulation win, and the Caps score, eliminating the Flyers, Wings, and Penguins.
— James Duthie (@tsnjamesduthie) April 17, 2024

This meant, by virtue of the first deciding tiebreaker (most victories in regulation), the Capitals go on to the playoffs. Making things all the more frustrating for Detroit, the move by coach Tortorella was a fruitless one as the Flyers had already been eliminated, one minute earlier, by the goal scored in Montreal.

The Capitals are now in the post-season with the worst goal differential seen by a playoff team in over 30 years – they have been outscored all season by a -37 goals total.

THE WASHINGTON CAPITALS (-37) HAVE QUALIFIED FOR THE PLAYOFFS WITH THE WORST GOAL DIFFERENTIAL SINCE 1991 🤯 pic.twitter.com/y1ANgpOuKx
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) April 17, 2024

This also means the New York Rangers now face the Curse of the President’s trophy; this is awarded for the highest points earned in the regular season, and most often leads to that team experiencing an early exit from the playoffs. In the 37 years since this trophy was established, the winning franchise has only made it to the finals 11 times, and only eight times have they also won the Stanley Cup.

The Florida Panthers faced the Toronto Maple Leafs, in what was shaping out to be their preamble to a first-round matchup, but after dropping to a 0-2 deficit Florida managed to net five straight times to win, tying them for second-highest wins on the season. This earned them a division title by one point, as the Boston Bruins lost at the TD Garden to the lowly Ottowa Senators.

The playoffs are set to commence on Saturday, April 20, with scheduled times to be determined Thursday evening. The likely pairings for the playoffs look like this as of today:

EAST