best teams in the League, finishing as the top 2 teams in the Eastern Conference in back-to-back seasons from 2016 to 2017; also, 2017 both teams finish the top 2 teams in the entire National Hockey League for 2016–17 season, and just the division in 2018. Despite their high regular season finishes in the first 2 seasons, they have been paired as second round opponents all three times. 2016 In the 2015–16 season, Washington and Pittsburgh finished as the top 2 teams in their division as well as the Eastern conference. Washington won the Presidents' Trophy with 120 points. In the first round, the Capitals beat the Flyers in six games, while the Penguins beat the Rangers in five games to set up the ninth playoff meeting between the Capitals and Penguins, and the first one in seven years. In Game 1, Capitals left winger Andre Burakovsky opened the scoring off a rush a little over halfway through the first period only for Pittsburgh to bounce back in the second period with goals by defenseman Ben Lovejoy and centre Evgeni Malkin. Right winger T. J. Oshie then tied the game for Washington later in the period and then scored less than nine minutes into the third to give his team a 3–2 lead. Their lead was relatively short-lived as Penguins centre Nick Bonino evened the game about five minutes later sending Game 1 into overtime. In the extra session, Oshie skated around the Penguins' goal with the puck for a wraparound chance, but goaltender Matt Murray got a piece of it. In referee Dan O'Rourke's eyes, the puck had crossed the line, so he signaled a goal the play then was under review, and after a closer look, the puck had gone over the line by the length of a stick blade, and the referees awarded the goal to the Capitals giving Oshie the hat-trick and Washington a 1–0 series lead. Game 2 was a tight, low-scoring affair and it was Pittsburgh who evened the series with a 2–1 win. Pittsburgh's goals were scored by left winger Carl Hagelin and former-Capital Eric Fehr, and Washington's only goal was scored by centre Marcus Johansson. Capitals goalie Braden Holtby made 35 saves, while his counterpart Matt Murray made only 23. The series shifted to the Consol Energy Center for Game 3. The Penguins opened the game with first period goals from right