There's a reason why the Islanders and Capitals are the two teams that earned the final two playoff spots in the Eastern Conference.
There's a reason why the Islanders and Capitals are the two teams that earned the final two playoff spots in the Eastern Conference.
After the New York Islanders clinched the third seed in the Metropolitan Division on Monday night with a 4-1 win over the New Jersey Devils, the Washington Capitals defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 on Tuesday night to clinch the second wild-card spot.
That meant the Pittsburgh Penguins, Detroit Red Wings, and Flyers were eliminated.
It was a playoff race like no other, but there's a reason why the Islanders and the Capitals were the two teams that got in, and it comes down to "backup" goaltending.
Semyon Varlamov, who was the Islanders' backup for most of the season, went on a tear, going 3-1-1 in March with a 2.58 GAA and a .916 SV%, before going undefeated in April with a 5-0-0 record, sporting a 1.59 GAA and a .945 SV%.
Varlamov made 23 saves on 24 shots in their clinching victory over New Jersey.
His .930 SV% over his last 10 games ranks fifth in the NHL for goalies who have played six-plus games since March 1, while his 2.09 GAA also ranks fifth.
Charlie Lindgren, who started as the Washington Capitals' backup, has been a standout. In March, he went 9-4-1 with a 2.45 GAA and a .919 SV% before posting a 4-3-1 record in April with a .2.46 GAA and a .910 SV%.
He made 27 saves on 28 shots in their win over Philadelphia to clinch and has been a great storyline this season.
On the flip side, for the teams on the outside looking in, their goaltending wasn't at its best.
For the Red Wings, James Reimer, who started their elimination game and got the shootout win, owned a 3.46 GAA and an .898 SV% over his final nine games (5-4-0), while his counterpart Alex Lyon went 3-9-3 to close out his season, posting a 3.66 GAA with an .889 SV%.
After Carter Hart's departure, the Flyers had no choice but to run rookie Sam Ersson into the ground. It worked for a while, with the Flyers holding the third seed for quite a bit of time before they ultimately fell off.
In March, Ersson went 4-5-3, with a 3.50 GAA and a .868 SV%, before ending his season with a 2-3-0 record in April, sporting a 3.11 GAA and a .873 SV%.
He made 16 saves on 17 shots in the Flyers' elimination game against the Capitals on Monday.
Tristan Jarry went 2-6-1 in March for the Penguins, with a 4.44 GAA and an .870 SV%, before getting just one game in April, stopping 12 of 14 in a 6-4 loss to the Boston Bruins.
Alex Nedeljkovic, who came into the season as the backup, played 18 of their final 29 games, posting a 3.18 GAA with an .889 SV%.
Many criticized Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello for signing Varlamov last summer to a four-year deal worth $11 million ($2.75 M AAV), but he's proven his importance this season, elevating his game down the stretch.
Last season, Lindgren didn't have a strong campaign for the Capitals (13-11-3, 3.05 GAA, .899 SV%), but when the games were on the line this season, he rose to the occasion and became their MVP alongside Alex Ovechkin, who scored 15 goals over the final 24 games.
Varlamov and Lindgren gave their teams a chance to play playoff hockey, and now we will see if Varlamov can continue his strong play against the Carolina Hurricanes and Lindgren against his brother Ryan and the New York Rangers.