The Washington Capitals fell to the Boston Bruins 5-2 on Tuesday. The victory gave the Bruins the most points in a single season in NHL history. The loss was also “important”, please note the scare quotes, for the Capitals.
Combined with a Vancouver Canucks win over the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night, the Capitals moved back into the eighth spot in the NHL Draft Lottery position where they would have a six percent chance to win the first overall pick.
Heading into Washington’s final game of the season against the New Jersey Devils, the Capitals could still end up anywhere from eighth to 11th in the Draft Lottery, but — they control their own destiny. And they worked hard, or maybe not hard enough (I’m still debating this), for the opportunity.
Draft Lottery standings
As of Wednesday, April 12
| Place | Team | Record | Points | Reg. Ws |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8th | WSH | 35-37-9 | 79 | 27 |
| 9th | DET | 35-36-10 | 80 | 28 |
| 10th | VAN | 37-37-7 | 81 | 24 |
| 11th | STL* | 37-36-7 | 81 | 27 |
* STL has two games remaining in the schedule.
The clinching scenarios are as followed:
If the Capitals secure a regulation or overtime loss against the New Jersey Devils on Thursday, the Capitals would clinch the eighth spot in the Draft Lottery.
A Capitals’ regulation victory would land them anywhere from eighth to eleventh in the final standings and would depend on the other teams’ results in the final two days of the regular season.
A Capitals’ victory after regulation would land them anywhere from eighth to tenth in the final standings as the St. Louis Blues would hold the third tiebreaker (total wins).
So any type of result against the Devils matters and could change their position. It’s a big game.
Per Tankathon, the Capitals have the hardest strength of schedule left with their game remaining against the New Jersey Devils, who will be motivated to try and win the Metropolitan Division crown over the Carolina Hurricanes. The St. Louis Blues have two difficult games against the Dallas Stars. Detroit has a matchup with the Tampa Bay Lightning in Florida while the Canucks have the easiest game: an away tilt against the Arizona Coyotes.
Remaining games
| Place | Team | Remaining Games |
|---|---|---|
| 8th | WSH | vs. NJD |
| 9th | DET | @TBL |
| 10th | VAN | @ARI |
| 11th | STL | vs. DAL, @DAL |
As a reminder, the Capitals’ chances of winning the lottery are the following from each of those possible spots.
8th – 6.0%
9th – 5.0%
10th – 3.5%
11th – 3.0%
May the odds be ever in your favor.
Headline photo: Alan Dobbins/RMNB
Share On