Ducks beat Capitals, clinch Pacific Division
WASHINGTON (AP) Corey Perry and Nick Ritchie scored, Frederik Andersen stopped all 24 shots he faced, and the Anaheim Ducks clinched the Pacific Division on the final day of the regular season by beating the Washington Capitals 2-0 on Sunday night.
The Ducks will face the Nashville Predators in the first round of the playoffs, leaving the second-place Los Angeles Kings to play the San Jose Sharks. This is Anaheim's fourth consecutive division title under coach Bruce Boudreau.
Andersen looked sharp in his return from a five-game absence because of a concussion. He faced little resistance from a Capitals team that rested star forwards Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom and defensemen John Carlson and Brooks Orpik.
The Capitals also sat goaltender Braden Holtby after he tied Martin Brodeur's single-season wins record. Backup Philipp Grubauer stopped 19 of 21 shots.
