Caps 1st to book playoff spot 1 year after being last team in
The Washington Capitals became the first team to punch their ticket to the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Thursday thanks to their 3-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers plus the matchup between the Montreal Canadiens and New York Islanders going to overtime.
Washington was the final club to qualify for the postseason in 2023-24. The Capitals did it with a wild victory over the Flyers in the last game of the campaign for both clubs.
No NHL team had gone from being the last to secure a playoff spot in one season to the first to clinch the following season since 1979-80.
The Capitals also became the first squad to notch 100 points in the 2024-25 standings. The Metropolitan Division leaders improved to 46-15-8.
Alex Ovechkin netted career goal No. 888 in Thursday's win, moving within seven tallies of breaking Wayne Gretzky's all-time record.
Washington is tied with the Pittsburgh Penguins for the most postseason berths (16) since Ovechkin's 2005-06 debut campaign. However, the Capitals have only advanced past the second round once in that span - when they won the Cup in 2018.
The New York Rangers swept the Capitals out of the first round last spring.
The playoffs begin April 19.