PHT already touched on the Florida Panthers falling to the Calgary Flames on Friday, but in tandem with the Ottawa Senators losing to the Carolina Hurricanes, it makes for a night of teams failing to gain valuable points out East.
With the Montreal Canadiens failing lately, the Senators had a chance to take first place in the Atlantic by tying the Habs in points while holding games in hand. Instead, they’ll need to wait.
For the sake of simplicity, here are the Atlantic rankings, with emphasis on the top five.
1. Canadiens - 72 points in 61 games played
2. Senators - 70 in 59
3. Maple Leafs - 68 in 60
Bruins - 68 in 61
Panthers - 66 in 60
Sabres and Lightning have 62 in 60, Red Wings have 58 in 60
You can see the Panthers hanging around the perimeter of the top three; a point or two would have made them a bigger threat to Toronto and Boston. Alas, even with a heavier slate of home games lately, Florida has lost two straight at home.
Here’s an updated look at the wild card races after the Panthers failed to make up some ground:
1. Blue Jackets - 79 in 58, more concerned with Metro races
2. Islanders - 68 in 60
Bruins - 68 in 61
Panthers - 66 in 60
Flyers - 63 in 60
Tiebreaker situations would have meant that the Panthers would have ended tonight technically outside of the playoffs anyway, but a win or even a “charity point” congests an already snug situation. Instead, they stayed put and wasted a game.
Ottawa’s still in a solid situation to overtake Montreal or at least maintain a round of home-ice advantage as the second seed in the Atlantic. So while both teams are kicking themselves for their losses, the Panthers have more to be upset about.
Ultimately, some of the biggest winners in the East were teams that didn’t play or that have a lot less to play for.
(Perhaps the Hurricanes feel a little more optimistic, by the way, as 58 points in 57 games played means they could at least theoretically fight their way back into the discussion.)