The Florida Panthers clinch the Atlantic Division, Erik Karlsson makes history, the West is set and more.
Here are five things we learned in the NHL on Tuesday night.
Islanders win, and they’re in
There were two big storylines in Tuesday’s matchup between the New York Islanders and Washington Capitals:
A win for the Islanders would book them a ticket to the post-season. A win for the Capitals would mean goaltender Braden Holtby tying Martin Brodeur’s single-season wins record. (He currently has 47 wins on the season, just one shy of Brodeur’s feat.)
Up 3-1 in the third period thanks in large part to Alex Ovechkin, it looked like the Holtby and the Capitals would prevail.
Nope. The Islanders battled back to tie it up, then took it in overtime to officially clinch a playoff berth.
Forward Thomas Hickey netted the impressive overtime winner — impressive especially because of what happened just prior.
Just under a minute into extra time, Hickey’s face was struck by the blade of Marcus Johansson‘s skate as the latter fell awkwardly by the net. Thankfully, Hickey was just fine — the blade just grazed his chin. But a scary incident like that is enough to shake you up. Phew.
The Islanders weren’t the only team to clinch a playoff berth Tuesday night…
Lightning and Wild clinch despite losing
Neither the Tampa Bay Lightning nor the Minnesota Wild came up with two points Tuesday night, but the hockey gods were smiling down on them anyway.
The Lightning lost 3-2 to the New York Rangers, but the Boston Bruins‘ shootout loss to the Carolina Hurricanes means they clinch a spot anyway.
Tampa Bay Lightning on Twitter
WE’RE IN! Third-straight year going to the #StanleyCup Playoffs! pic.twitter.com/ezLEUJ2Yq2
The Bruins are in serious need of some luck themselves — their 91 points have them tied with Detroit and Philadelphia, but both the Red Wings (third in Atlantic) and Flyers (second wild card) have played fewer games, which means Boston remains on the outside.
The same situation came into play for the Wild, whose shutout loss to the San Jose Sharks is excused due to the Colorado Avalanche‘s loss to Filip Forsberg and the Nashville Predators.
The Wild’s berth means the West is now officially set, as all eight spots have been filled.
All that’s left to be determined now is the seeding.
Speaking of the West, the Los Angeles Kings set a franchise record with their win over the Calgary Flames. Watch out, NHL.
Can’t beat Karlsson
The Pittsburgh Penguins are the hottest team in the league right now after winning their seventh straight game with a 5-3 win over the Ottawa Senators.
As for the hottest defenceman these days? Well, that title belongs to Senators captain Erik Karlsson.
His team isn’t heading to the post-season, but Karlsson isn’t letting that stop him from having a career year.
The captain registered his 100th career NHL goal against the playoff-bound Penguins Tuesday night when the puck pinballed its way into the net. It also marked his 80th point this season.
Karlsson is the first defenceman to reach the 80-point mark in a single season since fellow Swede Nicklas Lidstrom did so in 2005-06. He’s also the 18th blue-liner in league history to reach the milestone, joining names like Bobby Orr, Paul Coffey, Al MacInnis, Brian Leetch and more.
The next highest point total among defencemen this year is 74, thanks to Brent Burns’ 27 goals and 47 assists.
Karlsson’s previous career best came in 2011-12 with 19 goals and 59 points for 78 points. He won the Norris Trophy that year, and received the award in 2014-15 too. Now with 16 goals and 54 assists on the season, he might want to make room in his trophy case for one more.
Jagr, Panthers land atop the Atlantic
When you’re on a winning team, you can afford to have a little fun. Florida Panthers veteran Jaromir Jagr‘s recent pregame antics are a perfect example of that.
Monday night saw the 44-year-old stop for a selfie with a fan. Tuesday, he took it up a notch, interrupting teammate Jonathan Huberdeau‘s pregame interview with Sportsnet’s John Bartlett.
“Pass me the puck, please. Thank you very much,” said Jagr with a smile before skating off to continue his warmup.
Well, less than 10 seconds into the game, Huberdeau took his advice, passing the puck to Jagr, who went on to assist on Aleksander Barkov‘s goal.
Thank you very much indeed.
With the 4-1 over the Habs, the Panthers officially clinched the Atlantic Division, surpassing 100 points for the first time ever.
Jagr would end up with two assists in the game to help his club to victory.
Also of note: Panthers defenceman Brian Campbell played his 1,000th NHL game, which was also his 375th consecutive game for Florida — a franchise record. (He has never missed a game over his five seasons with the club.)
As for the Habs: Everyone’s favourite All-Star MVP, John Scott, had been called up by the Canadiens and suited up in the starting lineup. While it wasn’t the greatest way for Scott to begin his single game with the Habs, he received plenty of love from the fans throughout the game.
Are the Sharks worth a bet this post-season?
‘Tis the season for playoff predictions, and with a fully filled-out Western Conference playoff picture, we’re going to join in.
Aside from last year’s blip, the Sharks have long been playoff contenders — but not always a serious post-season threat.
This year, however, things are looking a little bit different. Their deadline acquisition of goaltender James Reimer has been paying off in the form of six wins and three shutouts (including Tuesday’s) in eight games. (Here’s a breakdown of his time with the Sharks so far.)
San Jose Sharks on Twitter
Third shutout out of just eight games with the #SJSharks. #OptimusReimpic.twitter.com/xJU9GkoVS1
In addition to solid goaltending, the Sharks are firing on all cylinders right now. Brent Burns is leading all NHL defencemen in goals by a pretty hefty margin with 27, forcing his way into the Drew Doughty-Erik Karlsson Norris debate.
Joe Thornton (and that beard) seems to be getting better with age and shows no signs of slowing down.
Veteran Patrick Marleau scored twice in the game, and could be heating up at the best time.
Pete DeBoer and his coaching staff have certainly made their mark on the squad this season. They could be one to watch this post-season.
Now, we’ll leave you with what we think is definitely the best goal-call of the night. Despite the fact that neither the Buffalo Sabres nor the New Jersey Devils will be playing next week, Sabres play-by-play man Rick Jeanneret reminds us that no matter what the standings say, a gorgeous goal is always worth getting excited about.
