Last night's matchup between the Flyers and the Capitals was widely considered a preview of a possible meeting of the teams in the first round of the playoffs.
The Flyers put to rest any notion that they could not go toe-to-toe with the Presidents' Trophy winners, beating the Caps in a shootout despite some questionable - to put it kindly - officiating.
Yes, the Orange and Black finally won a shootout in South Philly, breaking a curse that has lingered for many seasons. Steve Mason's glove save was one for the books.
But that got me thinking about the Curse of the Presidents' Trophy. The award goes to the team with the best regular season record in the NHL and guarantees home ice advantage throughout the playoffs.
However, only 8 of the 27 Presidents' Trophy winners have gone on to win the Stanley Cup, with several of the most recent winners being eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.
A curse? The jury's still out. Yet the Caps certainly got a taste of what might be waiting for them in a few short weeks. Having the best regular season is nice but it's no Stanley Cup.
Here's hoping that the Presidents' Trophy becomes for the Caps what it has for so many other teams - a consolation prize.
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