Here's how the Red Wings can clinch a playoff spot tonight

The race for the NHL playoffs typically is an 82-game marathon, and the Red Wings are coming down the final stretch, in the regular season's final game, with a chance to clinch the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference standings.

After Monday night's dramatic 5-4 overtime win over the Montreal Canadiens, the Wings kept pace with the Washington Capitals, with both teams tied at 89 points and each having one game remaining. The Capitals hold the tiebreaker, and if both teams win tonight in regulation, Washington gets the playoff spot.

To get in the playoffs, the Red Wings need to win at Montreal and hope for the Capitals to lose their game at the Philadelphia Flyers. Both games start at 7 p.m., so there will be plenty of scoreboard-watching by both fan bases.

The Red Wings are looking for their first playoff berth since the 2015-16 season, and have a chance to notch a marked improvement over last season's finish of 80 points.

"If you had told us you have one game, Game 82, on the road to improve 11 points over the previous year and have a chance to make the playoffs, every single one of us would have signed up for it," Lalonde said after Monday's win. "It'll be a challenge for us; they're (the Canadiens) are a very good team and very aggressive offensively. They take a lot of pride for their home ice and it's their Fan Appreciation Night, but we need to turn the page and give ourselves an opportunity."