Two wins still lock up playoff spot Life is decidedly uncomplicated right now for the Capitals.
If Washington wins its final two games, it will qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs. If it wins one of those contests, then its fate could rest with the Buffalo Sabres. Lose both and — while there’s still an outside chance the Caps could sneak in — they likely will be packing their gear Sunday for a long, bitter offseason.
But after a spirited practice at Kettler Iceplex on Wednesday morning, no one was thinking that far ahead. All that matters is Thursday night’s showdown with the Florida Panthers at Verizon Center.
“I have a belief we’re going to be in the playoffs, and that’s it. I don’t want to discuss any scenario that we’re not,” forward Brooks Laich said. “My belief is that we’re going to be in the playoffs. … I don’t know how you can be in this business if you think otherwise. You play with confidence always, and you always believe in your group.”
Florida is in first place in the Southeast Division and needs just one more point to clinch the division title and the automatic No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference. To catch the Panthers, Washington needs to win in regulation on Thursday, beat the New York Rangers on Saturday and have Florida also lose its season finale against Carolina.
That’s a long shot at this point. A better scenario? Win on Thursday and have the Buffalo Sabres lose their game at Philadelphia. That would clinch a postseason spot for Washington. The two teams are tied for the No. 8 seed in the conference at 88 points, but the Caps hold the tiebreaker.
“I don’t think you can really take anything for granted,” defenseman Karl Alzner said. “Just looking at [the standings], if we win one and [the Sabres] lose one in regulation, then we get it. … We always say that you hold your own fate in your hands, and now we actually know exactly what we have to do.”
Michal Neuvirth will start in goal for the Caps, according to coach Dale Hunter. Washington is 3-2 against the Panthers this season — but Neuvirth has started both losses. He stopped 25 of 30 shots in a 5-4 loss on Dec. 5. He made 34 of 37 saves in a 4-2 loss on Feb. 1.
Meanwhile, forward Troy Brouwer, who has appeared in all 80 games this season, missed practice Wednesday. It was officially listed as “a maintenance day” by a team spokesman. But Brouwer has been knocked around plenty the last three games. Hunter said he will play against Florida.
“You control what you do on the ice and how you come into the game, and then you’ve got to live with the results,” forward Mike Knuble said. “The good thing is that when it’s all said and done you’re either patting yourself on the back saying, ‘Great job. We got in. We took care of our business,’ or you have nobody to blame but yourself.”
