OVECHKIN, HOLTBY HELP CAPITALS WRAP UP PRESIDENTS’ TROPHY
Alex Ovechkin opened the scoring and Braden Holtby denied all 24 shots he faced to help the Capitals (54-18-8, 116 points) clinch the Metropolitan Division title, Eastern Conference, Presidents’ Trophy and the No. 1 overall seed in the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The Capitals, who own a 10-1-1 mark in their past 12 games, claimed the Presidents’ Trophy for the second straight season and third time in franchise history (2009-10 and 2015-16). Only two other clubs have won the Presidents’ Trophy at least three times since its inception in 1985-86: the Red Wings (6) and Rangers (3).
This marks the 10th division title for Washington and the fourth time that the club has secured the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference (2009-10, 2010-11 and 2015-16). Ovechkin scored his 96th career game-winning goal (eighth this season) to tie Mats Sundin for 11h place on the NHL’s all-time list. He shares ninth in the League with 34 goals overall this season. Holtby registered his ninth shutout of the season (62 GP) to regain the League lead and equal a franchise record originally set by Jim Carey in 1995-96 (71 GP) and tied by Holtby in 2014-15 (73 GP). He also moved into sole possession of the League lead with his 42nd win of 2016-17.
The Capitals posted their 12th shutout of the season as they continue their pursuit of the William M. Jennings Trophy, which is awarded “to the goalkeeper(s) having played a minimum of 25 games for the team with the fewest goals scored against it.” Washington has allowed only 179 goals against this season to lead the League, five fewer than the Blue Jackets (184). The Canadiens (194), Kings (195), Sharks (196) and Ducks (197) are the only other clubs with fewer than 200 goals against in 2016-17.
The Sabres closed their home schedule with a victory over the Canadiens, the top seed in the Atlantic Division . . . Sabres forward Jack Eichel (0-1—1) established career highs for assists (33) and points (57) in a season, despite playing in only 59 games in 2016-17 . . . Canadiens forward Alexander Radulov extended his point streak to five games (3-3—6) . . . Nino Niederreiter (2-1—3) and Zach Parise (1-2—3) each collected three points as the Wild (47-25-8, 102 points) clinched second place in the Central Division . . . Blackhawks forward Artemi Panarin scored for the fifth consecutive game (6-1—7) and has reached the 30-goal mark in each of his first two NHL seasons . . . Jets forward Mark Scheifele (1-1—2) reached the 80-point mark for the first time in his NHL career (31-49—80) . . . Kings forward Nick Shore (1-3—4) collected a career-high four points . . . Stars defensemanJulius Honka scored the first goal of his NHL career (14 GP) . . . Hurricanes forward Bryan Bickell skated in his first NHL game since being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in November . .
* Information provided via NHL Press Release
National Hockey League Press Release. Information provided from the NHL that describes various news releases that describe current events in the league.