Feeling just like playoff hockey

File this one under Great Moments in Washington Sports History, this 3-1 victory over the Florida Panthers last night that put the Comeback Caps in the playoffs. Granted, they didn’t win the Stanley Cup — only the Southeast Division — but it sure felt like it. The sheer improbability of their overtaking Carolina, two years removed from a Cup itself, in the dying weeks of the season made it as sweet a feat as any the franchise has pulled off.

Talk about an evening to remember. Verizon Center fairly vibrated from beginning to end, so supportive was the sellout crowd (clad almost exclusively in red, as has become its custom). And after some occasional raggedness early, the Capitals pulled away on goals not by The Russian, MVP candidate Alex Ovechkin, but by the Other Russians, Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Semin.

If you’re looking for a freeze frame, how about the sight of Ovechkin leaping onto Semin after 2-1 became 3-1 — and knocking his teammate to the ice, creating the most joyous of dogpiles in the right corner? That was certainly a Kodak moment.

Then, too, there was the blue line-wide smile on Fedorov’s face after he took a pass from Semin late in the second period, swept in all alone on the left wing and blasted a wicked shot past Craig Anderson to break a 1-1 tie — a smile that seemed to say, “I might be 38, comrades, but I can still score the huge goal.” That was one for the photo album as well.

Yes, the once unstoppable Fedorov is now the old man in The Room, the future Hall of Famer who’s seen it all and done it all. But he’s still “as excited as the younger guys,” he said. The team’s — and the town’s — instant embrace of him has caught him by surprise, rejuvenated him.

“To become a part of this team so quickly …” he said, his voice trailing off. “Everybody has welcomed me.”

What a night. What a season. And there’s more to come. For openers, a playoff series against To Be Determined (Ottawa? Philadelphia?) There’s no more glamorous first-round opponent than To Be Determined.

Not to worry, said the Caps’ beaming boss, Ted Leonsis. The roster might be full of players barely old enough to drink, “but it’s already playoff-tested. Tonight was like Game 7. The last 12 games have been like Game 7.”

The noise was so loud as the final seconds ticked away that I’m pretty sure I saw the roof quiver. The sight of Leonsis up on the Big Screen, blowing kisses to the masses, got an ear drum shattering cheer; and when the camera zeroed in on Cristobal Huet, the goalie who simply refused to be beaten these last few weeks, well, it’s fair to say Mr. Huet, the erstwhile Canadien, has found himself a new home.

It’s not just that the Caps made the playoffs, though, it’s the way they made them: with one of the great stretch runs of this or any other season. Actually, it was more like a 4½-month run — made necessary by a near-disastrous 6-14-1 start — one that ended with them winning 11 of their last 12. More impressive still, their closing streak followed their two most depressing defeats of the year, a game at Boston they gave away with foolish penalties and a next-day heartbreaker against Pittsburgh decided by Nicklas Backstrom’s own-goal.

In fact, of all the Capitals, Backstrom might be the one I’m happiest for. Now the kid won’t be haunted — all offseason and perhaps beyond — by the Gaffe Heard ’Round Capsland. He can just go on and have the terrific career everybody has predicted for him.

There are any number of conclusions you can draw from the Caps’ prolonged period of inspired play. One, of course, is that the team has finally arrived. (And it likely has, as long as Huet can be convinced to stick around.) Another is that it might be capable of making some noise in the playoffs — not just because it’s hotter than any other club right now but because it’s been able to perform at such a high level for so long. The postseason, as we all know, is a marathon — and in their last 61 games, the Comeback Caps have been Frank Shorter.

It was a difficult birth, this recreating of the Capitals. It cost two coaches their jobs, the club a chunk of its fan base (just now coming back) and Leonsis some of his, uh, liquidity. After the Caps’ 28-40-14 finish last season, when they failed to improve on the previous year’s point total (70), there was serious concern about whether Ted and George’s Excellent Plan would ever work. And the anxiety certainly wasn’t alleviated by the team’s sorry start this season.

Which made the sudden turnaround under Bruce Boudreau — and the just as dramatic improvement after the deadline deals for Huet, Fedorov and Matt Cooke — all the more miraculous. Who saw it coming?

“There’s something about this group, something special about Bruce,” George McPhee said. “It just wouldn’t have felt right if they’d gotten shortchanged and not made the playoffs.”

And so the Caps are finally off Skid Row. No longer are they sharing a steam grate with the Blue Jackets (who haven’t made the playoffs in their seven seasons of existence), the Panthers (non-qualifiers since ’00), the Blackhawks, Coyotes and Kings (all out since ’02). Their hair is combed, their skates are polished and they’re ready for their close-up.