Penguins somehow find themselves in playoff race with 2 weeks left in season

When the Penguins boarded a plane bound for Pittsburgh the night of March 24, after blowing a 4-0 lead and losing 5-4 in overtime to the Colorado Avalanche, they had lost eight of 10 games and were nine points out of a playoff spot.

Their goaltending was faltering, their power play remained abysmal, and, about three weeks earlier, they had sold off their best goal-scoring winger for parts at the NHL trade deadline.

They were done like dinner.

Ten days later, almost inexplicably, the Penguins find themselves right back in the middle of the playoff chase.

They’ve put together a 4-0-1 heater, including back-to-back road victories over the New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils, teams they were a combined 0-4 against so far this season coming into this week.

They’re three points out of the second and final wild-card position in the Eastern Conference, and they face the team that currently holds down that position, the Washington Capitals, in a suddenly big game Thursday night.

“Just keep doing what we’re doing. That’s the message, I think,” captain Sidney Crosby told reporters in Newark on Tuesday night. “We feel like we’ve done some good things. We’re working hard. Everybody’s contributing, especially in a big-time of year like this. Just try to continue the momentum here.”

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No one would label the Penguins as favorites to claim a playoff spot, but they’re one of seven teams with a legitimate chance with two weeks left in the regular season.

Here is a look at the teams they are battling for either third place in the Metropolitan Division or the final wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.

PHILADELPHIA FLYERS

Record: 36-29-11, 83 points

Where they stand: Third place in the Metropolitan Division

Remaining games: at Buffalo (April 5), at Columbus (April 6), at Montreal (April 9), at Rangers (April 11), vs. New Jersey (April 13), vs. Washington (April 16)

Outlook: The Flyers have largely overachieved throughout the 2023-24 season considering they entered the campaign in a rebuilding mode. But with five consecutive losses and a 5-7-4 record since March 1, they have faded in the final stretches of the season.

WASHINGTON CAPITALS

Record: 36-29-10 82 points

Where they stand: Second place in the Eastern Conference wild-card standings

Remaining games: vs. Penguins (April 4), at Carolina (April 5), vs. Ottawa (April 7), at Detroit (April 9), at Buffalo (April 11), vs. Tampa Bay (April 13), vs. Boston (April 15), at Philadelphia (April 16)

Outlook: The Capitals entered the NHL’s trade deadline March 8 as sellers by jettisoning veteran forwards Evgeny Kuznetsov, Anthony Mantha and defenseman Joel Edmundson. Despite taking that trajectory with their roster, they have pushed themselves into a playoff position with a 7-5-1 record since the deadline.

DETROIT RED WINGS

Record: 37-30-8, 82 points

Where they stand: Third place in the Eastern Conference wild-card standings

Remaining games: vs. Rangers (April 5) vs. Buffalo (April 7), vs. Washington (April 9), at Penguins (April 11), at Toronto (April 13), vs. Montreal (April 15), at Montreal (April 16)

Outlook: The Red Wings largely stood pat at the trade deadline, making only one transaction in adding reserve forward Klim Kostin. Since then, they have been in the red with a 4-7-2 mark and have slid out of a playoff position. Closing the season with two vs. the Canadiens might be an ace in the hole.

NEW YORK ISLANDERS

Record: 33-27-15, 81 points

Where they stand: Fourth place in the Eastern Conference wild-card standings

Remaining games: at Columbus (April 4), vs. Nashville (April 6), vs. Rangers (April 9), vs. Montreal (April 11), at Rangers (April 13), at New Jersey (April 15), vs. Penguins (April 17).

Outlook: A 2-1 home win against Chicago on Tuesday kept the Islanders ahead of the Penguins in the wild-card standings. The hiring of Patrick Roy as head coach on Jan. 20 hasn’t quite had the effect management would have hoped for. Since Roy took over, the Islanders have posted a room temperature 14-12-4 record.

PITTSBURGH PENGUINS

Record: 34-30-11, 79 points

Where they stand: Fifth place in the Eastern Conference wild-card standings

Remaining games: at Capitals (April 4), vs Tampa Bay (April 6), at Toronto (April 8), vs. Detroit (April 11), vs. Boston (April 13), vs. Nashville (April 15), at Islanders (April 17)

Outlook: The Penguins have two teams to jump and the schedule is no picnic, but they’ve got a hot captain (Sidney Crosby has four goals and 13 points in his last five games) and a hot goalie (Alex Nedeljkovic is 3-0-2 with a .921 save percentage in his last five games).

BUFFALO SABRES

Record: 36-35-5, 77 points

Where they stand: Sixth place in the Eastern Conference wild-card standings

Remaining games: vs. Philadelphia (April 5), at Detroit (April 7), at Dallas (April 9), vs. Washington (April 11), at Florida (April 13), at Tampa Bay (April 15)

Outlook: Having missed the playoffs for the previous 13 seasons, the Sabres look bound to round that number up to 14. A lopsided 6-2 home win against the Capitals on Tuesday kept them relevant to the playoff race.

NEW JERSEY DEVILS

Record: 36-35-4, 76 points

Where they stand: Seventh place in the Eastern Conference wild-card standings

Remaining games: at Rangers (April 3), at Ottawa (April 6), vs. Nashville (April 7), vs. Toronto (April 9), at Toronto (April 11), at Philadelphia (April 13), vs. Islanders (April 15)

Outlook: Expected to be one of the NHL’s top teams entering this season, the Devils have been one of the league’s biggest disappointments. The decision to fire head coach Lindy Ruff and replace him on an interim basis with Travis Green has not provided a sufficient spark as the Devils are 6-8-0 since that transaction.