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Alex Ovechkin's Capitals vs Sidney Crosby's Penguins: NHL playoff odds explored ahead of Game 82
The Pittsburgh Penguins are heading to Long Island on Wednesday night with their season and playoff aspirations on the line. After a grueling 81 games, Sidney Crosby has dragged his team to the finish line with a 38-31-12 record for 88 points.
Crosby's longtime rival, Alex Ovechkin, and the Washington Capitals stand in his way. They are the second wild-card team with 89 points and play the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night.
Wedged between these two generational talents and their respective teams are the Detroit Red Wings, who also have 89 points and have one more contest to go against the Montreal Canadiens.
Who is going to get into the Stanley Cup Playoffs? The Penguins, the Capitals or the Red Wings?
Dissecting the Stanley Cup Playoffs odds for Penguins, Capitals and Red Wings
The only playoff spot left to clinch in the NHL is the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. On Monday night, the Capitals shut out the Boston Bruins 2-0, the Red Wings rallied overtime to beat the Canadiens 5-4 and Pittsburgh edged the Nashville Predators 4-2.
Although the discussions have centered around these three teams, the Philadelphia Flyers are still in the mix with 87 points and, according to Money Puck, still have a 5.8% chance of clinching.
The Capitals have the best odds at 42.8%, followed by the Red Wings (36.8%) and the Penguins (14.6%).
Considering that these teams have been playing playoff hockey for almost a month, Pittsburgh has played the best desperate hockey lately, with a 7-1-2 record in its past 10 games.
Yet, somehow, the team hasn't leapfrogged any other clubs in the wild-card race since the Capitals are 3-5-2, the Red Wings 4-3-3 and the Flyers 2-6-2.
Heading into the final contests of the regular season, the Penguins are 2-0-1 against the Islanders, who clinched their playoff position on Monday night. New York is one of the hottest teams in the NHL, currently on a 7-0-1 run.
Meanwhile, the Capitals are heading to Philadelphia for Game 82 and are 1-0-1 against the Flyers, who have an outside chance of making the playoffs. For Washington, it's simple: win the final game and punch a postseason ticket with 91 points.
As mentioned, the Red Wings refuse to go quietly and will reengage with the Canadiens, whom they just rallied to beat in overtime on Monday. They are 2-0-1 against Montreal and will be in a challenging situation with a rowdy crowd at Bell Centre on Tuesday night.
Whether you are a Pittsburgh fan, want to see Ovechkin chase another Stanley Cup or want to see the Red Wings rally back to get into the postseason, there are plenty of storylines to follow in the final 72 hours.
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