Canes lose, fall out of playoff picture

On Tuesday night, the Hurricanes failed to show up for their game against the Maple Leafs. They lost their game 6-1 (and it wasn't even that close). Both teams pretty much needed the win, but Toronto -- who was in 11th place -- needed it a little more. They also wanted it a little more.
Tampa did the Canes a favor by losing their game. Carolina is still just four points out of the SE division lead, and could theoretically overtake the Thrashers and Bolts. First things first, though. Carolina will have to win probably four of their last six games to earn the last wildcard spot. Tonight they'll have a chance to start their run when they visit the lowly Flyers.

While Carolina was stinking up the Air Canada Centre, the Habs took care of their own business by thumping the Rangers 6-4. With 86 points and five games to play, Montréal is in sole posession of the eighth seed. If Carolina wins tonight at Philly, nothing in the standings will change. They will match Montréal's 86 points, but the Habs have 40 wins, and the Canes would only have 39.

After tonight, Carolina will have five games and they will all be against Southeast Division opponents. One will be against first place Atlanta, two against second place Tampa and two against fourth place Florida. These "four point games" will provide the Canes with an excellent chance to control their own destiny.

Tonight's opponent, the Flyers, have already secured last place, and will have the most ping pong balls in the draft lottery. They don't have anything to lose, nor really anthing to gain. There's no telling what kind of intensity they'll have. If Carolina plays the way they did Tuesday night, all they'll need to win is five guys with a pulse.

On the bright side, Philly is a horrible team. They've given up an astounding 280 goals this year, which is an average of 3.73 per game. They've only won 8 home games all season. As mouth-watering as that seems, the Canes sometimes struggle with these types of games. This season against the Flyers, the Canes are 1-1-1, and they've been outscored 9-6 cumulatively.

Puck drop is at 7:30. I'll be working and DVRing.