The Flyers were drawing closer to that situation. Time was running out in regulation and, needing a win before the third period ended, the Flyers were going to have to pull the goalie. By the time they did, their playoff fate had already been decided.
The Detroit Red Wings tied up the Montreal Canadiens with 3.3 seconds remaining in regulation to secure a point and officially eliminate the Flyers from playoff contention. In the final three minutes, the Capitals scored into the empty net to secure the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference in a 2-1 loss for the Flyers.
The Capitals came out with the early pressure, but the Flyers appeared to get on the board at 8:17. A shot by Joel Farabee hit Charlie Lindgren up high and bounced in the air, before hitting off of Farabee’s glove and going into the net. The officials lost sight of the puck and blew play dead before the puck entered the net. After a lengthy review, it was ruled no goal.
The Capitals got the lead with 1:52 remaining in the first. A shot from the point by Dylan McIlrath was deflected by Alex Ovechkin for his 31st goal of the season to make it 1-0.
Through 20 minutes, shots were 7-7.
After a very low-event first 10 minutes of the second period, the Flyers finally broke through at 12:29 of the second. A shot by Egor Zamula was deflected by Erik Johnson for his fifth goal of the season.
The Flyers continued to apply pressure after the tying goal, eventually finishing the second period with a 15-12 lead in shots.
In the third period, time was on the Capitals side as they started to limit the chances for the Flyers. As time ran out, the Flyers had to go to the desperation move and pull Sam Ersson for the extra-attacker.
With three minutes left, T.J. Oshie scored into the empty net for his 12th goal of the season. The Flyers pulled Ersson again in the final minutes, but were unable to get the equalizer, ending their season with a regulation loss and sealing a 38-33-11 record.
Lindgren made 27 saves on 28 shots in the win. Ersson made 16 saves on 17 shots in the loss.
Oshie had two points for Washington in helping the Capitals clinch a playoff spot.
Box Score
| 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
| Capitals | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Flyers | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Scoring Summary
1st Period
- WSH Alex Ovechkin (31) (Dylan McIlrath, T.J. Oshie) 18:08
2nd Period
- PHI Erik Johnson (12) (Egor Zamula, Sean Couturier) 12:29
3rd Period
- WSH Oshie (12) EN (Nic Dowd) 17:00
Game Statistics
| Capitals | Flyers | |
| Shots | 18 | 28 |
| Power Play | 0/0 | 0/1 |
| Hits | 28 | 38 |
| Faceoff % | 52% | 48% |
| Giveaways | 8 | 7 |
| Takeaways | 5 | 9 |
| Blocked Shots | 32 | 26 |
| Penalty Minutes | 2 | 0 |
