NEW YORK — Philadelphia coach Rick Tocchet knew the importance of the moment, but he didn’t want to add pressure on his players before they took the ice.
“They know,” Tocchet said. “They see the standings.”
The Eastern Conference standings have undergone a dramatic transformation since late March. Most notably, Tocchet’s Flyers have broken into playoff position for the first time since January 12.
At the top, the Boston Bruins, Pittsburgh Penguins and Montreal Canadiens have secured their postseason spots, while Detroit has tumbled from what appeared to be a safe position to outside the playoff picture. The situation became so dire for the New York Islanders that they dismissed coach Patrick Roy, and Washington appears to be running short on time to potentially give Alex Ovechkin another playoff run at age 40.
“It’s just frustrating,” Washington coach Spencer Carbery said following an 8-1 defeat to the New York Rangers. “It’s frustrating because we fought as hard as we have to get back into this spot where we’re within striking distance.”
When play commenced on March 26, just four points divided Montreal (88), Columbus (87), Pittsburgh and Boston (86), Ottawa and the Islanders (86), and Detroit (84). With Philadelphia sitting at 80 points, it appeared seven clubs were competing for five playoff berths.
Montreal captured six straight wins and secured their playoff spot on Sunday before their eight-game victory streak that started March 21 finally ended. Pittsburgh claimed five wins in seven contests, and Boston posted a 4-2-1 record to eliminate any uncertainty about spring hockey in those cities.
“With where the league’s at, our division, there’s pressure every night on every team,” said Montreal winger Cole Caufield, who is approaching becoming the team’s first 50-goal scorer since 1990. “That’s what makes this thing so fun. It’s just the guys in this group, in this room that are pushing each other and the staff that we have is unreal. We’re just going to keep this thing going.”
Philadelphia’s overtime victory against Boston on Sunday, featuring top prospect Porter Martone’s debut NHL goal, propelled the Flyers past the Islanders into third place in the Metropolitan Division. Well before Martone joined the team after completing his college career at Michigan State, Philadelphia sat 13th among 16 Eastern teams following the Olympic break and has since captured 14 victories in 21 contests to emerge as a contender.
“These past 10 or so games, they’ve been playoff games and we’ve been playing the right way,” forward Noah Cates said. “It’s been the simple things, the little things that just kind of get us over the hump and in the win column.”
Detroit held the Atlantic Division lead and was tied for the most points in the East on January 15. Their advantage over the conference’s ninth-place team stood at 12 points.
Following a game where they trailed by three goals, rallied to tie, then lost 5-4 in regulation to Minnesota on Sunday, the Red Wings have compiled an 8-9-3 record since that high point and now trail by two points with five contests remaining.
“Obviously, we would have loved to be in a playoff spot, but that’s not the case,” forward Lucas Raymond said after a disappointing 4-1 defeat to the Rangers on Saturday. “We’ve got a great opportunity here. We’ve got these games left here to really do something special with this team. The faith is high in here. We have a lot of faith in ourselves, in our team, so it’s just about going out there and getting it done.”
Raymond and his Red Wings teammates have been shut out in the opening period in 43 of 77 games, leading the league in that unwanted category.
“I wish I had the answer,” coach Todd McLellan said. “We can get out of the gate quicker: don’t dip our toe in the water.”
Columbus switched from Dean Evason to Rick Bowness behind the bench in mid-January and proceeded to win 19 of 27 games to climb to second in their division. The Blue Jackets have since dropped seven consecutive games.
Since March 18, when they appeared headed for a comfortable playoff berth during Matthew Schaefer’s outstanding rookie campaign, the Islanders have managed just three wins in 10 games, including a four-game losing streak. First-year general manager Mathieu Darche fired Roy and brought in Peter DeBoer on Sunday with four games remaining, hoping a coaching change could spark their playoff push.
Washington is not considering any coaching moves with Carbery, the current Jack Adams Award winner who is expected to guide the franchise through its eventual post-Ovechkin era. Veteran defenseman John Carlson and depth center Nic Dowd were dealt at the trade deadline as part of a youth movement, but an 8-3-2 stretch from March 9 through Saturday had made the playoffs seem achievable.
Their lopsided loss to the already-eliminated Rangers exposed defensive weaknesses that Carbery believed had been present for approximately a dozen games but were masked by solid goaltending, offensive production and fortunate bounces. Washington now needs considerable luck and assistance, sitting three points behind with four games left.
“It’s tough we put ourselves in this spot,” forward Aliaksei Protas said. “But those big games, I feel like they can really show who we are as a team and where we’re at as a team.”
