Two days later, he broke the thirty-three-year-old record with his 48th win in a 3–2 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers, which helped the Devils clinch their seventh Atlantic Division title and the second seed in the Eastern Conference. Luongo finished with a career-high 47 wins, one shy of Brodeur, and consequently finished runner-up in a close race for the Vezina. Luongo and Brodeur are considered, however, to have been given an advantage to Parent with the inauguration of the shootout that season by the NHL, allowing more games to be decided with wins, as opposed to ties. The Carolina Hurricanes became the first team since the 1995–96 New Jersey Devils to miss the playoffs after winning the Stanley Cup the previous season. The inter-conference division play had the Northeast visit the Central, the Central visit the Atlantic, the Atlantic visit the Pacific, the Pacific visit the Southeast, the Southeast visit the Northwest, and the Northwest visits the Northeast. Final standings Buffalo Sabres won the Presidents' Trophy and home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs. For the purpose of conference rankings, division leaders are automatically ranked 1–3. These three, plus the next five teams in the conference standings, earn playoff berths at the end of the season. Eastern Conference Western Conference Tiebreaking procedures If two or more clubs are tied in points during the regular season, the standing of the clubs is determined in the following order: The fewer number of games played (i.e., superior points percentage). The greater number of games won. The greater number of points earned in games between the tied clubs. The greater differential between goals for and against. Playoffs Bracket In each round, the highest remaining seed in each conference is matched against the lowest remaining seed. The higher-seeded team is awarded home ice advantage, which gives them a maximum possible four games on their home ice, with the other team getting a maximum possible three. In the Stanley Cup Finals, home ice is determined based on regular season points. Each best-of-seven series follows a 2–2–1–1–1 format. This means that the higher-seeded team will have Games 1 and 2, plus 5 and 7 if necessary, played on their home ice, while the lower-seeded team will be at home for the other games. The format ensures that the team with home ice advantage will always have home ice for the "extra" game if there are an odd number of