Sixteen teams in total make the NBA playoffs, eight teams from both the Eastern and Western Conferences. The top six seeds in each conference advance based on the regular season record. The final two seeds in each conference are wild-card spots based on the best remaining records in each conference.

The Capitals had a standout season, too.They finished first in the Eastern Conference and posted their most points in a season since 2016-17, a year before they won the Stanley Cup. It's also the first 50-win season since the 2016-17 campaign.

St. Louis won the Stanley Cup in 2004 as a Hall of Fame-bound forward with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He has fond memories of his boyhood, watching the Canadiens bring the city to life in the playoffs. It was the only time he was allowed to stay up past his usual bedtime to watch televised games.