Community Picks: Philadelphia 0% vs Carolina 0%

Nic Dowd's slight redirection led to the winning goal as the defending Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals clinched a playoff spot with a 3-2 victory against the host Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday night in Raleigh, N.C. Dowd's seventh goal of the season came with 4:56 remaining when defenseman Nick Jensen delivered the puck from outside the right circle. Dowd put his stick on the puck, which slid between goalie Curtis McElhinney's pads. Washington wrapped up an Eastern Conference playoff spot and remains in the lead in the Metropolitan Division. Continue to Article

March 28, 2019 9:55:pm EST

Carolina Hurricanes captain and hockey celebration innovator Justin Williams took to Twitter to announce that the team will perform its final Storm Surge of the season after Thursday's game versus the Washington Capitals. Regardless of the outcome tonight, this will be our last storm surge of the season. Without providing a rationale as to why they are shying away from the fun and hilariously disruptive routine, Williams' tweet does answer the question of whether or not the “Bunch of Jerks” would continue with it in the Stanley Cup Playoffs — and therefore risk having the fun pointed back in their faces when (or if) they meet the end of the road this season. Continue to Article

March 28, 2019 1:30:pm EST

Nothing is nailed down quite yet, but it's really starting to look like the Washington Capitals will be the No. 2 seed in the East. This comes with the caveat that Carolina obviously started the year horribly, both in terms of scoring and stopping the puck. As recently as Dec. 29, which isn't so long ago really, the Hurricanes were two games below .500 — 15-17-5 — in almost half the season. Continue to Article

March 28, 2019 1:05:pm EST

Get to know the Capitals' possible playoff opponents: The Carolina Hurricanes originally appeared on nbcsportswashington.com The Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes meet on Thursday in a preview of a potential first round matchup. If the season ended Thursday morning with the standings locked as they are, Washington would in fact be playing Carolina in the first round as the Caps lead the division and the Hurricanes sit in the first wild card spot. Here's a brief preview of what you can expect in a Washington-Carolina first round series. Continue to Article

March 28, 2019 6:57:am EST