I love a good guarantee, so kudos to Washington Capitals forward Brooks Laich for stepping up to the plate on Wednesday morning and dropping the hammer.Making his weekly appearance on a Washington Radio show (The Junkies on 106.7 the Fan), Laich was asked what he would regret the most if the Capitals ended up missing the playoffs this season, a possibility that Laich didn't seem interested in considering.
“We’re making the playoffs,” said Laich. “We’re not talking worst case scenario, we’re making the playoffs.
“It’s a long season. Over the course of 82 games your team identify is going to be revealed, and you either are or you are not a playoff team.”
As of Wednesday, the Capitals are one of three teams fighting for the two remaining playoff spots in the Eastern Conference, and with two games remaining in the regular season are tied with the Buffalo Sabres for the No. 8 playoff spot with 88 points, thanks to Buffalo's late comeback against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday.
Along with that, the Capitals still have a small opening to maybe, possibly, if everything goes absolutely perfect, win the Southeast Division and take it from the Florida Panthers.
The Panthers could have closed that window on Tuesday night with a win against the Winnipeg Jets, but allowed a three-goal lead to slip away and ended up losing in overtime. The Capitals and Panthers face on Thursday night in Washington, and if they win in regulation, and beat the Rangers on Saturday, combined with a regulation loss by Florida against Carolina in its season finale, the Capitals would win the Southeast.
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