User:Kalel2007. Wikipedia.
It's no surprise that when the New York Rangers, Carolina Hurricanes, Boston Bruins, and Florida Panthers are your possible playoff matchups, that that would be pretty scary. However, for some teams, they are so intimidated that they don't even want to bother trying.
In 2022-23, the Florida Panthers shocked the entire hockey world by knocking off the record setting Boston Bruins after falling behind 3-1, who outdid them by 44 points in the regular season. But if you take a closer look, that team was just coming off of a President's Trophy win of their own from the year before, and this year they are proving that last year's trip to the finals was no accident.
But this year is different, with 5 different teams on the outside that could realistically make it, but they seem more intent on giving up on the season. The Detroit Red Wings are once again questionable for the playoffs, knowing very well that they lost 7 straight to some teams like the Islanders, the Coyotes x2, and the Sabres that they should've beaten.
Interestingly enough, Washington has a -31 goal differential, but has a better chance than Detroit at the playoffs. This year's race for WC2 is not the same as last year's, where Pittsburgh was trying to extend the streak, where the Sabres seemed to be on the upswing, the Islanders had something to prove, and the Panthers just needed to get in. Instead, it's a free giveaway to those who want Boston the least.
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