The end of an era in Edmonton, last place for the Maple Leafs and the Red Wings earn themselves a little bit of breathing room in the playoff race.
Here are four things we learned in the NHL on Wednesday night.
Maple Leafs in last
Toronto Maple Leafs fans have been eying last place in the NHL since the puck dropped on the 2015-16 season. After their 5-1 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets Wednesday night in their final home game of the year, they officially landed on the basement floor. With just two games left and sitting at (a somewhat poetic) 67 points, they could be there to stay.
As Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman points out, one more regulation loss could clinch the Leafs last place.
Going into Wednesday’s action, the Oilers held last place. But their victory over the Canucks to close up Rexall Place (more on that in a bit) bumped them up to No. 29.
The Leafs’ lottery hopes were also boosted by the fact that the loss came at the hands of the Blue Jackets, who are currently in 28th. Columbus ran away with the game with five unanswered goals, including three in less than five minutes.
Columbus was led by Brandon Dubinsky’s two goals, Matt Calvert’s three-point night and Sergei Bobrovsky’s 26 saves to become the Blue Jackets’ all-time leader in wins, with 98.
Morgan Rielly scored the Maple Leafs’ only goal.
Though Leafs fans were likely happy with the outcome, head coach Mike Babcock was not.
“There’s lots of really positive things that have gone on,” he said after the game. “I wouldn’t call tonight one of them.”
End of an era in Edmonton
Rexall Place officially hosted its final NHL game, marking the end of an era for the Edmonton Oilers.
Over the course of the last few days, current and former players, employees, and Sportsnet’s own columnists have been sharing countless memories from the old barn.
Edmonton was definitely the place to be Wednesday night as the Oilers suited up to take on the Vancouver Canucks.
Luckily for all in attendance, the Oilers didn’t disappoint when it came to the actual game…
McDavid & Co. close Rexall with a win
With so many alumni in attendance, the pressure was on for the young Oilers to put on a good show.
Mission accomplished.
“These Oilers, in this last game in this building, are getting to look more and more like those old Oilers we’re talking about and all those Cups,” said commentator Bob Cole after the Oilers scored twice in 18 seconds.
The Oilers wound up winning the game by a score of 6-2. And because sports are awesome, one of the biggest influencers of the final game came from one of the team’s freshest faces.
Yup, rookie phenom Connor McDavid, future of the franchise, scored once and added two assists.
With a new rink to start a new year next season, there’s plenty to look forward to in Edmonton.
But first… after the final whistle and before the doors would close for the last time, the crowd in attendance took a long look back.
Farewell, Rexall.
Detroit breaks the tie… for now
To say Wednesday’s matchup between the Detroit Red Wings and Philadelphia Flyers was a big one would be a huge understatement.
Both teams entered the game with 91 points and a spot in the playoffs, with the Red Wings in third in the Atlantic Division and the Flyers fourth in the Metropolitan and hanging on to the final wild card spot and one game in hand. Not pictured in tonight’s game is the Boston Bruins, who also have 91 points but find themselves outside the playoffs at the moment.
There’s plenty of history on the line for Detroit, whose 24-year playoff run (the longest such streak in major North American pro sports) is at risk of coming to an end.
Well, the Red Wings came away with a crucial two points to boost their point total to 93 with a 3-0 shutout win. (Pressure’s on, Boston.)
Jimmy Howard backstopped the victory with 30 saves to blank the Flyers.
The Red Wings showed plenty of veteran composure in the must-win victory, though the game’s prettiest highlight came from one of its rookies.
Rookie Andreas Athanasiou scored this pretty shorthanded goal in the second period to put his team up 2-0:
Now, as for the Bruins… they’ll take on the Red Wings at home Thursday night in essentially a do-or-die matchup.
That’s a must-watch, to say the least.
The Flyers have three games remaining (vs. TOR, vs. PIT, @ NYI), while the Red Wings (@ BOS, @NYR) and Bruins (vs. DET, vs. OTT) have just two apiece.
Get ready.
