Asides from last year (and even at some points last year), we've been "giving up" on a perennial basis.
It's just mathematics; 68 points with 13 games remaining, 4 teams to catch, and the 8th place team 8 points ahead.
Say we dominate the rest of the season and go 11-2-0 (still only 90 points). Washington only needs to go 7-6-0 or 6-5-2 to beat us. Not to mention we still have to worry about Winnipeg, Buffalo, and Tampa.
Mathematically eliminated? Definitely not, but considering we're on a 2-12-2 streak (and just lost our 2nd leading scorer), even getting near something like a 11-2-0 finish is a pipe dream.
We're not being pessimists, just realists.