Photo: Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images
The Washington Capitals clinched a berth in the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoff berth after the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the New York Islanders by a score of 4-2 at Scotiabank Arena on Sunday night. It marks the Capitals’ eighth consecutive postseason berth and 14th in the past 15 seasons.
The team is currently in the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. They will enter Monday three points behind the Pittsburgh Penguins (with two games in hand) for third place in the Metropolitan Division and the Boston Bruins (with each team down to seven regular-season games left) for the first wild-card spot.
According to @PR_NHL The Capitals’ run of eight consecutive playoff appearances is the second-longest in franchise history behind a stretch of 14 straight from 1983 to 1996.
— CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR) April 18, 2022
The Capitals’ most likely first-round opponents include the Florida Panthers (who are first in the East), Carolina Hurricanes (first in the Metropolitan Division), or New York Rangers (second in the Metropolitan Division). They finished the regular season 1-1-1 with a -1 goal differential in three games against the Panthers (who they have never faced in the postseason) and 3-1-0 with a +1 goal differential in four games against the Hurricanes (whom beat them in seven games of the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs).
The Rangers have won five of nine Stanley Cup Playoff series against the Capitals, including each of the past three in seven games (most recently in the 2015 second round). The two teams have split two games of their regular-season series so far with the last meeting set for April 29 at Madison Square Garden. The Capitals recorded a +1 goal differential in the first two games against the Rangers this season.
Washington’s roster includes 13 Stanley Cup champions including nine who won with them in 2018: Nicklas Backstrom, John Carlson, Lars Eller, Michal Kempny, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Dmitry Orlov, T.J. Oshie, Alex Ovechkin and Tom Wilson.
— CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR) April 18, 2022
The Capitals, who are 10-9-2 against 2022 Stanley Cup Playoff teams from the Eastern Conference this season, will almost certainly play Games 1 and 2 of the first-round on the road, where they are a league-best 23-8-5.
The Capitals have gone 4-13-1 in their last 18 postseason games since taking a 2-0 lead over the Hurricanes in the 2019 first-round. They have not won a series since winning the Stanley Cup for the first time in 2018.
By Harrison Brown
Let’s goooooo!