Get Your Calculator Out

It's time to do some math. Tonight's game is not only the fifth of the season for the Capitals, it also marks the end of segment number one.

As majority owner Ted Leonsis explained yesterday on his blog, Ted's Take, the club has broken the season down into five game segments. The goal, Leonsis wrote, is to earn six standings points in each segment.

Another way of looking at it is like this, the Capitals aim to earn 24 standings points every 20 games, which equals 96 points over 80 games. (That also leaves two games unaccounted for.)

With a win tonight against the visiting Florida Panthers, the Caps (1-1-2) would meet their goal for the first segment.

Last season in the Eastern Conference, the Montreal Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning secured the seventh and eighth spots in the Stanley Cup playoffs, with 93 and 92 points, respectively. The Capitals finished 14th with 70 points.

Earning six points in each five-game segment doesn't sound too complicated, but it doesn't sound too easy, either. Take for example the next segment, which begins tomorrow in Atlanta and continues against the Lightning on Saturday (at home) and also includes road games against the Avs, Canucks and Oilers.

Six points suddenly sounds a little bit more challenging, doesn't it?