the washington capitals have been to the stanley cup playoffs 27 times.
the washington capitals have been to the stanley cup playoffs 27 times.
how many times have the washington capitals been to the stanley cup playoffs?
27
with the merger of the pcha and wchl in 1925 and the merged league's collapse in 1926, the nhl took de facto control of the stanley cup. while the cup would not be formally deeded to the league until 1947, from 1926 onward the nhl playoffs and the stanley cup playoffs are considered synonymous. the nhl was subsequently divided into the canadian and american divisions for the 1927–28 season. for 1927, six teams qualified for the playoffs, three from each division, with the division semifinals and finals being a two-game total goals affair, and the stanley cup finals becoming a best-of-five series. in 1928, the playoff format was changed so that the two teams with identical division ranking would face each other (i.e. the division winners played each other, the second place teams play each other, and likewise for the third place teams). the first place series was a best-of-five affair, with the winner proceeding to the best-of-three stanley cup finals, while the others were a two-game total goals series. the winner of the second and third place series played each other in a best-of-three series, with the winner earning the other berth to the stanley cup finals. this format had a slight modification the following year, where the semifinal series became a two-game total goals affair and the stanley cup finals became a best-of-five series. the two-game total goals format was abolished in 1937, with those series being changed to best-of-three affairs.
stanley cup playoffs
more recently, with the drafting and emergence of alexander ovechkin in washington, and sidney crosby in pittsburgh, the rivalry has heated up again, with controversial comments that alexander semin made about crosby in the media and physical altercations taking place between ovechkin and malkin during games. one of the best series to date between the teams was the 2009 eastern conference semifinals, in which the capitals took a 2–0 series lead before letting it go once again to be downed in 7 games, ending with a 6–2 game 7 loss at the verizon center. just like in 1991 and 1992, the penguins defeated the capitals in the playoffs en route to the stanley cup. the two teams faced off at the 2011 nhl winter classic hosted in pittsburgh at heinz field, with the capitals emerging victorious 3–1, and a hit in the game resulting in crosby missing nearly all of two seasons with concussion-related issues. the capitals and penguins completed their second playoff confrontation in the ovechkin-crosby era in the 2016 stanley cup playoffs with the penguins winning in six games, again preceding pittsburgh's fourth stanley cup title. in 2017, the capitals and penguins met again in the second round. pittsburgh gained a 3–1 series lead only to see washington win the next two games. the penguins would shut out the capitals at verizon center in washington to advance to the eastern conference finals and eventually the franchise's fifth stanley cup. the two teams would again face off in the 2018 stanley cup playoffs in the second round for the third consecutive year. the washington capitals would defeat the pittsburgh penguins in six games to advance to the eastern conference final, and eventually win the stanley cup.
national hockey league rivalries