I think we've all made peace with the fact that, with a regulation loss tonight, Columbus is officially eliminated. We've been waiting for the math to be official since Halloween. Sigh.
Philly has been hot for most of the past four months--remember the beating we got a few weeks ago--but still has a thin margin for error. A regulation loss for them tonight--pending the results of Detroit and Tampa Bay--could do some damage to their playoff push.
That's really what it comes down to for the players. We, the fans, cling to the "Play Well And Lose" mantra.