Alex Ovechkin entered these playoffs having never made it to the conference finals.
And, after last night’s 2-1 loss to the Rangers in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals at Madison Square Garden, the Capitals star still hasn’t.
“It’s a terrible feeling right now,” Ovechkin said, slumped at his locker with his uniform still on. “All I can say is we did our best, and it’s probably the best team I’ve played with. It’s a good group of guys, and a good atmosphere.
“It’s unbelievable to play [with them], and I hope everyone is going to stay here next year. … It’s hard.”
A large reason why Ovechkin and the Capitals saw their season end in front of a sellout crowd was the stellar play of the Rangers defensemen.
That group was led by Marc Staal, who finished with a game-high five blocked shots in 26:55 of ice time.
“Any time you can come out of a Game 7 on top, it’s a great feeling,” Staal said. “There are not too many other feelings like it as a hockey player.
“We didn’t want to let it go the distance, but I’m glad we came out on top.”
Staal, along with many of his teammates, are all too familiar with facing the Capitals in the playoffs. But after being sent home for the summer by Washington in the first round twice in the last three seasons — in seven games in 2009 and five games last season — Staal couldn’t help but smile when asked if it felt good to finally get past them.
“They’ve given us trouble in the past, so it’s nice to beat them. … It feels great to get by those guys, that’s for sure,” Staal said.
“I’m sure if we lost the game, there would have been a ‘Washington curse’ we’d be talking about, or something like that. To come out on top in a Game 7, a big game like that, to beat them, is a good feeling.”
Now, Staal and his teammates will move on to another team they are all too familiar with in the Devils. It is a series Staal is happy to be taking part in after sitting out the early part of the season battling the after-effects of a concussion he sustained last season.
“Every win and every round you go, it’s that much better,” he said. “I think I’d feel the same way if I played the whole season. … It’s just a great feeling to keep moving on in the playoffs, and we want to keep it going.”
tbontemps@nypost.com