Four More Teams Clinch Playoff Berth in the NHL

It was a full weekend in the NHL, with many teams having their playoff dreams dashed, while others get even more pumped about moving on. And among the four teams that clinched their playoff berth over the weekend, most of them even made it look pretty easy.

New Jersey Devils
It was a shock to everyone in New Jersey last year when their team did not make the playoffs, a rarity for future Hall of Famer goaltender, Martin Brodeur. But he was in fine form on Saturday night when the Devils faced the Carolina Hurricanes, shutting out the Canes in a 5-0 victory. Brodeur said after the game that he really “missed the [playoff] environment” last year, and that “this year, it was an important thing for me to go out and try to get in the playoffs, to get back at it.” And on Saturday, that’s just what he did.

Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins clinched their playoff berth on Friday night, after the Buffalo Sabres suffered their loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday night. The Sabres then saw their playoff hopes dashed when they lost against the flailing Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday. The Bruins were then back at it on Saturday night when they played the New York Islanders — for a crowd that was mostly made up of Bruins’ fans. They got what they wanted as the Bruins dashed the Islanders’ hopes of a playoff spot with a 6-3 victory.

Ottawa Senators
The most surprising team in the league this summer clinched their playoff berth when they won both of their games this weekend. Playing against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday afternoon they won in a shootout; and after coming back for a Sunday afternoon game the next day, they easily defeated the New York Islanders, who were already out of the playoff running, in a 5-1 defeat. And they did it all without their captain, Daniel Alfredsson, and without their lead scorer, Jason Spezza.

Chicago Blackhawks
The Nashville Predators had already clinched their own playoff spot when they faced the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday night, but Chicago still had some work to do, and the Preds didn’t make it easy. When the Blackhawks went up 4-0 in the game, they seemed to become somewhat complacent and allowed Nashville to come back. They did get their playoff berth after all, but it was only with a very close 5-4 victory. That’s something they can’t allow to happen when they’re actually in the playoffs.

Categorized in: NHL