by Kevin Klein
Coming into tonight’s game against the New York Islanders— who had already bested them twice— the Capitals were on the outside of the playoff picture and looking in. Florida had the division lead, and Winnipeg, though having played 3 more games than the Capitals, enjoyed their modest perch in the 8th and final playoff position. Alas, as the night had come to its conclusion the Caps had earned a dramatic 2 points to keep pace with the Florida Panthers, who turned in a fell performance to defeat the Maple Leafs. The Jets were idle.
An item of some conversation today, whatwith the trade deadline offering scarce more than a day’s worth of items to discuss, was how many points the Caps would need if they were to earn the privilege to play into the spring.
Below we have a look at how things would shape up if Washington, Winnipeg, Toronto, and Florida all continued to earn points per home game and per road game, at the same rate they have throughout the season.
Washington 
| Home | 20-8-2 | 42 points | 1.40 points per game |
| Away | 11-18-13 | 25 points | 0.78 points per game |
Coming into the night the Capitals had 11 home games remaining, accumulating a projected value of 15.4 points. They had 9 road games remaining, accumulating a projected value of 22.42 points.
Combine these two values and the Capitals are projected to earn 22.42 additional points before season’s end. Add this to the 67 points they had coming into the night and Washington would finish the season with 89.42 points. Round down, because you can’t earn point fractions.
Washington Projected Point Total: 89
Toronto 
| Home | 16-11-5 | 37 pts | 1.15 points per game |
| Away | 13-5-2 | 28 points | 0.93 points per game |
Coming into the night, the Leafs had 9 home games remaining, accumulating a projected value of 10.35 points. They had 11 road games accumulating a projected value of 10.23 points.
Combine these two values and the Leafs are projected to earn 20.58 additional points before season’s end. Add this to the 65 points they had coming into the night and Toronto would finish the season with 85.58 points. Round down, because you can’t earn point fractions.
Toronto Projected Point Total: 85
Winnipeg 
| Home | 19-10-4 | 42 points | 1.31 points per game |
| Away | 11-17-4 | 26 points | 0.81 points per game |
Coming into the night, the Jets had 8 home games remaining, accumulating a projected value of 10.48 points. They had 9 road game remaining, yielding a projected value of 7.29 points.
Combine these two values and the Jets are projected to earn 17.77 additional points before season’s end. Add this to the 68 points they had coming into the night, and Winnipeg would finish the season with 85.77 points. Round down, because you can’t earn point fractions.
Winnipeg Projected Point Total: 85
Florida 
| Home | 15-8-8 | 38 points | 1.22 points per game |
| Away | 14-12-4 | 32 points | 0.94 points per game |
Coming into the night, the Panthers had 11 home games remaining, accumulating a projected value of 13.42 points. They had 10 road games remaining, yielding a projected 9.4 points. C
Combine these two values and the Panthers are projected to earn 22.82 additional points before season’s end. Add this to the 70 points they had coming into the night, and Florida would finish the season with 92.82 points. Round down, because you can’t earn point fractions.
Florida Projected Point Total: 92
So, if the final month of the season is to follow the trend created by all games prior, Florida will find themselves with the third seed, and Washington will beat out both Winnipeg and Toronto for a playoff spot.
Of course you, the intelligent and discerning reader, need no disclaimer, but here I will disclaim in any case. These are numbers. Fickle beasts. They tell us what has happened, not what is going to happen.
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