from Kevin Allen of USA TODAY,

If Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals want to qualify for the NHL playoffs, today’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs (3 p.m., ET) feels like a must-win game.

The hard reality for the Capitals is that they probably need to go 11-3 in their final 14 games and finish with 94 points to have a shot at the postseason.

That would require ‘A’ work from a team playing at a ‘C’ level. The Caps are 5-4-1 in their last 10.

It would be an Everest-like climb for the Capitals to reach 94 points. After tackling Toronto, they face the Murderer’s Row California run of Anaheim, Los Angeles and San Jose.

Then they return to Washington to face the Kings again, plus the Boston Bruins. They need four wins, or at least seven points in those five games, and it is not implausible that they could end up with two to four points.

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