NHL Playoffs: The Final Races In The Standings – And Why They Matter

The NHL’s playoff picture grows clearer by the day, with 12 teams now clinching a spot. 

There’s still much to be decided, however. The final playoff spots are up for grabs, and one spot in the standings could make a big difference in a team’s first-round opponent.

Let’s break things down:

The Montreal Canadiens are on a six-game win streak at the most important time of the regular season. They’re now just three points behind the Ottawa Senators for the first Eastern Conference wild-card spot, with a game against them on Friday. 

Montreal has probably done enough to keep the New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings, New York Islanders and Columbus Blue Jackets from getting into the post-season, as the Canadiens are eight points ahead of those teams. 

There’s also an outside shot that the Senators catch the Florida Panthers for third place in the Atlantic Division, as Ottawa is four points behind the Panthers.

In the Western Conference, the Minnesota Wild are back in the first wild-card spot but are tied in points with the St. Louis Blues, which sit in the second spot. At 93 points each, they’re five points ahead of the Calgary Flames.

St. Louis has only two games left in the season, while Minnesota has a game in hand, and Calgary has two in hand. But the Flames can only finish with a maximum of 96 points, so they need a lot to go right to make the post-season.

The Dallas Stars are four points behind the Winnipeg Jets for the top spot in not only the Central Division but the Western Conference and the NHL as well.

The Stars and Jets have four games left to play. Whichever squad finishes first will face either the Blues, the Wild or the average Flames instead of the hot Avalanche. 

Dallas and Winnipeg do play each other one more time before the playoffs, so the Stars can cut the Jets’ lead in half. But what is most likely for the Stars is another showdown with the Avs. 

Dallas beat Colorado in the second round of the playoffs last season, so these teams are very familiar with each other in a post-season setting. It might be the most competitive series of the first round, and it would assure one very good team will go home early this spring.

The Toronto Maple Leafs rebounded from a 3-1 loss to the Panthers on Tuesday, beating the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-3 in overtime Wednesday night. 

It was the Maple Leafs’ seventh win in their last 10 games, and it solidified their hold on top spot in the Atlantic Division. They’re three points ahead of the Lightning and six points ahead of Florida.

The Leafs, Lightning and Panthers each have only four games left to play before the playoffs begin. The Lightning will also take on the Panthers in one of their final four games, so one of them will have at least one more loss. The race really boils down to Toronto versus Tampa Bay right now.

The Maple Leafs look good to at least get home-ice advantage, but avoiding a first-round showdown against the Panthers or Lightning will motivate them to play well against Montreal, Carolina, Buffalo and Detroit.

Toronto wants to get to a place where first place in the Atlantic is wrapped up, and they can rest some regulars, but that probably won’t happen until the final game of the season, if it happens at all.

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