Atlanta out

One piece of the puzzle has been thrown out.

For the first and only time in my life, I was rooting for the Capitals, and they came through for me. They beat Atlanta 6-4 on Monday night, eliminating the Thrash from playoff contention.

Back on March 22, I wrote that they were going to make a run at a playoff spot and would be dangerous if they got it. Atlanta needed to win out AND get help from the likes of Tampa and Montréal, so their hopes were slim. They had been on the brink of elimination for about a week, but kept going strong. Their miracle run finally, and thankfully came to and end with the loss.

Now, Carolina will be rooting for a win by the Bolts AND a loss by the Habs on Tuesday. Coupled with a Carolina win, or any of six other combinations of outcomes involving Carolina and Ottawa, the Canes will have the #1 seed, and will face Montréal. Carolina has fared very well against the Habs this season, and want nothing to do with any of its division rivals in the playoffs.

Of course we're happy to be in the playoffs at all after two straight miserable seasons. We weren't expected to do nearly as well as we've done this season. Of course the Caniac faithful expected it, but nobody outside the Cheerwine distribution area had us finishing any higher than 14th.

It'll all be settled tomorrow. I imagine across the league, there'll be a lot of scoreboard watching.

Canes and Sabres have a 7:00 puck drop on OLN. Check it out.