Arthur Kaliyev celebrates after scoring a goal against the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first period (Aaron Doster-Imagn Images) [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/f64edb1e-c2a8-4669-a3ec-38af9b3a6982.jpeg] Arthur Kaliyev celebrates after scoring a goal against the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first period (Aaron Doster-Imagn Images) The NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off break is nearly over, and the focus will shift from Team Canada and Team USA Thursday night to the NHL’s Stanley Cup playoff race. And with about one-third of the regular season yet to play, there are going to be some teams that need a very good start coming out of the break. The Hockey News - How Canada Struck Gold At 4 Nations Face-Off 'For 40-Plus Million People' [https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/deweb-519a7.appspot.com/o/posts%2FTHNHOME%2Fcontent-images%2F9dd6ec7a-548e-419d-b482-61dd291ebe5a.jpeg?alt=media] The Hockey News - How Canada Struck Gold At 4 Nations Face-Off 'For 40-Plus Million People' BOSTON – The 4 Nations Face-Off did not disappoint.<u></u><u></u> [https://thehockeynews.com/shortUrl/Uw5LuIS] Below, we’re going to identify four such teams: 1. NEW YORK RANGERS After a brutal start that left them with a 16-19-1 record at the end of 2024, the Rangers battled back with an 11-5-3 stretch that now has them three standings points behind the Detroit Red Wings for the second and final wild-card berth in the Eastern Conference. They’ve got 27 games left to try and squeeze into the post-season, but the Blueshirts’ remaining schedule won’t be easy. Indeed, coming out of the break, the Rangers have to capitalize on a relatively-easy-ish schedule, including games against Buffalo, Pittsburgh and Nashville in their first five post-break games. But they’ve also got showdowns against tougher teams like the Maple Leafs, New York Islanders (twice), Capitals, Senators and Blue Jackets. And after that, they’ve got tilts against Winnipeg, Minnesota, Columbus (again), Edmonton, Calgary, Toronto (again), Vancouver and the Kings. Teams that need to have the best start following 4 Nations Face-Off Thus, the Rangers are going to need a .600 points percentage in their first 17 games to have any hope of making the playoffs – and to be frank, we’ve got our doubts they can do so. In their seven games heading into the 4 Nations break, the Rangers went 3-4-0, so this is still very much a flawed group. Rangers GM Chris Drury could be active at the March 7 trade deadline, but he’s going to need his team to put up a fight out of the break to be incentivized to make trades. And skeptics aren’t wrong to believe that may not happen. 2. COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS The Blue Jackets stumbled into the 4 Nations break on a four-game losing skid, but prior to that, they’d put up a 14–4-2 record to slip into wild-card contention. They’re currently one point behind Detroit (although the Red Wings have a game in hand) for the second wild-card spot and two points behind the Senators for the first wild-card spot. That said, Columbus’ post-4-Nations-break schedule is incredibly difficult. They get things started with a very winnable game against Chicago, but after that, it’s a murderer’s row of opponents, including Dallas, Detroit (twice), Tampa Bay, Florida, the Rangers (twice), New Jersey (twice), Florida (twice), Vegas, the Islanders, Pittsburgh, Vancouver and Ottawa. Only the Penguins are a ‘gimme’ game, and otherwise, they’re going to need all hands on deck to have a strong start to the final third of the regular-season schedule. The Hockey News - NHL Rumor Roundup: Will Seth Jones Be Traded? Plus More Trade Speculation [https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/deweb-519a7.appspot.com/o/posts%2FTHNHOME%2Fcontent-images%2F7279aae0-bb70-4ab1-afc1-adfeaa55f400.jpeg?alt=media] The Hockey News - NHL Rumor Roundup: Will Seth Jones Be Traded? Plus More Trade Speculation Three years into an eight-year contract with the Chicago Blackhawks, Seth Jones is willing to consider moving on to a contender. [https://thehockeynews.com/shortUrl/PjiWsZN] The Blue Jackets are playing meaningful hockey down the stretch, which is considerably different than their efforts in recent years. But getting agonizingly close to the post-season, only to fail, would be a painful way to end the year. If they can make a strong push out of the gate when games resume, they can have momentum on their side and hopefully, for their fans’ sake, find a way to get into the playoffs. 3. CALGARY FLAMES Few people believed the Flames would be challenging for a playoff spot this season, but here we are, and Calgary is sitting three points behind Vancouver for the second wild-card berth in the Western Conference. They’re not likely to catch the Colorado Avalanche for the first wild-card spot, so they need to focus on the Canucks coming out of the break. And they’ve got to do much better than what they did heading into the break when they dropped six of eight games. The Hockey News - NHL Calder Trophy Tracker: Sharks, Canadiens And Flames Still Have The Best Rookies Right Now [https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/rISEbN6W/poster.jpg?width=720] The Hockey News - NHL Calder Trophy Tracker: Sharks, Canadiens And Flames Still Have The Best Rookies Right Now There's a solid NHL rookie class, but the Sharks' Macklin Celebrini, Canadiens' Lane Hutson and Flames' Dustin Wolf have separated themselves from the pack. Here's why. [https://thehockeynews.com/shortUrl/wDHb1QM] The key to Calgary’s playoff hopes will be to improve their road record, which is a sub-par 10-11-4. They’ve got 16 road games left, including away games against Washington, Tampa Bay, Florida, Carolina, Dallas, the Rangers, Devils, Islanders, Oilers, Avalanche and Kings. If that sounds like an uphill battle, that’s because it is. Unless the Flames come out of the gate strongly, they’re probably not going to have enough in the tank to land a wild-card spot. Calgary may yet prove to be a playoff-worthy squad, but the manner in which they start the final third of the year will likely dictate what their destiny will be the rest of the way. 4. VANCOUVER CANUCKS The Canucks have been somewhat of a disappointment this season, but in their final eight games before the 4 Nations Face-Off, they won six of those games, including two three-game win streaks. They need to produce a similar standings points win percentage to outlast the Flames and Utah Hockey Club. That might sound like a tall order, but given that Vancouver has post-4-Nations-break games against Anaheim (twice), Seattle, Montreal and Chicago in their first 11 games, the Canucks have their fate in their own hands. However, a collapse out of the gate would provide an opening for the Flames in particular to pass Vancouver in the standings. The Hockey News - How Canucks' Kevin Lankinen Turned A Prove-It Deal Into A Five-Year Extension [https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/deweb-519a7.appspot.com/o/posts%2FTHNHOME%2Fcontent-images%2Ff5b2baf1-165b-442e-93b0-496e228bf8db.jpeg?alt=media] The Hockey News - How Canucks' Kevin Lankinen Turned A Prove-It Deal Into A Five-Year Extension Vancouver Canucks goalie Kevin Lankinen signed the biggest contract extension of his NHL career on Friday after being a late-summer signing before the season. [https://thehockeynews.com/shortUrl/ehoyRBY] But if the Canucks make some additions via trade – something that’s not only possible but probable – they should have enough competitive gas to not only secure a playoff spot but potentially overtake Los Angeles for third place in the Pacific Division. Vancouver can assure itself of a post-season appearance with a strong start to its post-4-Nations schedule, but if they don’t do so, the Canucks will only have themselves to blame. 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