The 2023-24 Washington Capitals continue to find ways to get two points out of big games.
Tuesday night was no different as the Capitals kept the Detroit Red Wings at bay with a 4-3 overtime win. With this win, Washington remains in second place in the playoffs and increases its lead over Detroit to two points while still holding a game in hand.
Now that the dust has settled — with several Eastern Conference games ending around the same time — here's what the race currently looks like.
The Capitals had a chance to leapfrog the Philadelphia Flyers into third place in the Metropolitan Division, but Philadelphia secured a late point against the Rangers in the game. With the regulation loss, they would have fallen behind the Capitals based on points percentage.
With their win over the Flyers, the Rangers became the first team in the league to clinch a playoff spot this year. They are also the first team to reach the 100-point mark. If both teams remain in their current playoff positions, the Rangers will become the Cubs' first-round opponent.
While Washington would have gained much more with a regulation win over Detroit, a win for Ontario still improved its playoff chances by about 7-8 percent via commonly cited statistical models. On the other hand, the Red Wings saw their likelihood of making the playoffs drop by about 5 percent.
After finishing 3-1, the Capitals will take a quick one-game road trip to Toronto to try to avenge their recent loss to the Maple Leafs. They will then alternate home and away games for the next five games before facing the Red Wings again on April 9.
The Capitals have won six of their last seven games (6-1-0) and enter Thursday's game at Toronto on a three-game winning streak.
— Capitals PR (@CapitalsPR) March 27, 2024
Per tankathonDetroit and Washington share the same difficulty staying on schedule when it comes to their opposition's combined points percentage (.576). Neither team has any opponents left in the Western Conference to face this season.
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