Critics Were Quick To Write Off The Capitals. Now The Underdogs Are In The Stanley Cup Playoffs: 'I Believed In This Group The Whole Way Through'

As the final seconds ticked down at Wells Fargo Center, Charlie Lindgren threw his fist in the air, and the Washington Capitals crashed the crease, jumping up and down as they proved their critics wrong and did what several thought was impossible just a month ago by sneaking back into the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Lindgren's stellar outing in net, as well as a late empty-netter for T.J. Oshie, helped Washington defeat the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 on Tuesday to clinch the final spot in the East and return to the postseason after missing out last year.

"I'd be lying if I didn't say it didn't feel really good," Dylan Strome grinned.

For Strome, it'll be his first real taste of NHL playoff hockey, as the only postseason experience he had came in the bubble back in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic. It'll be the same for the likes of Charlie Lindgren, Hendrix Lapierre and more members of the underdog group as they fittingly prepare to take on former head coach Peter Laviolette and the New York Rangers in the opening round.

"It means a lot," T.J. Oshie said. "Once you win one time, the regular season just doesn't have as much meaning as a playoff game. To get back there is super special, and I definitely won't take it for granted. So the boys will be ready to rock."

Related: Takeaways: Capitals Defeat Flyers To Return To Stanley Cup Playoffs, Oshie's Empty Netter Helps D.C. Clinch Final Spot In East

It wasn't easy to get to this point. The Capitals dealt with several injuries along the way while also losing Nicklas Backstrom eight games into the season and later trading away Evgeny Kuznetsov, completely changing up the forward corps.

"Yeah, I think it just shows to the character in the room. Not to say that the other teams in this race haven't gone through their fair share of ups and downs. Losing Backy, losing Kuzy, your one-two punch up in the middle of the ice, guys getting hurt recently, I don't know how many games we lost in a row... for the guys to fight back, it's good. Momentum's on our side," Oshie said.

Then, at the deadline, a mini sell-off indicated that D.C. just might be out of it. However, the Capitals refused to give up on that hope in the room.

“Unreal... (We dealt with the) deadline, injuries, Kuzy, but I think the belief inside the locker room was tremendous. We enjoy the process. It’s special, you know?" captain Alex Ovechkin said. "That’s why we play hockey. You want to be in that kind of atmosphere."

Lindgren, who boasted a .911 save percentage through 50 games to help lead Washington back to the playoffs, played a major role in that push. Since Feb. 12, no goaltender has faced a bigger workload or made more saves, and no voice in the room voiced more of that belief for his group.

“I believed in this group the whole way through. Obviously, there were times where maybe it looked like it was gonna be a little bit of a stretch, but certainly there was no give up at all in this group," Lindgren said. "Again, it says a lot about the guys in the locker room and all the credit goes to them.

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“I mean it’s unbelievable. The journey, it hasn’t been easy. There’s certainly been bumps in the road, there’s been adversity, but this team has answered the bell every single time," Lindgren added. "It’s such a privilege to play for these guys, we got guys out there competing as hard as they can, we got a great staff here, it’s been an incredible journey.”

The Capitals will enjoy the victory and moment now, but knows that it'll be a tall task ahead as they take on the Presidents' Trophy winners. However, with their grit and character, they have faith that they can rise to the occasion again.

"You never know what’s gonna happen in the playoffs. It's different hockey; it’s a different atmosphere. Everybody's gonna be on different level," Ovechkin said.

"I think there's a lot of players in this room that maybe haven't been deep in the playoffs or haven't played in the playoffs that are starting to learn the dedication and focus and intensity and selflessness that it takes to play playoff hockey," Oshie added. "We've been having to play playoff style.... it was a good stepping stone, good learning situation for the young guys and we gotta carry this into the playoffs."