Penguins Begin Pivotal Week for Playoff Positioning

The Pittsburgh Penguins can significantly improve their playoff chances with a good performance this week.

Despite the turbulent performance of the Pittsburgh Penguins this season, they control their fate to clinch a 17th straight postseason appearance. However, the stars could align to catapult them into a more secure position in the Eastern Conference standings. 

The Penguins are currently the second wild card team in the East but trail the New York Islanders by one point in the standings with three games in hand and a matchup at PPG Paints Arena on deck. 

However, that's not the only New York team the Penguins can track down this week. The Penguins recent stretch of five wins in six games has aligned with the New York Rangers losing five of their last seven games. 

With a trio of matchups coming in the next ten days, the Penguins have a chance to significantly close the gap between them and the Rangers for the third seed in the Metropolitan division. As a result, the Penguins would likely face the New Jersey Devils in the opening round of the postseason. 

Playoff spots will be hard to come by this season, and multiple good hockey teams will be left out once the regular season concludes. This week may be the Penguins last chance to pull within striking distance of a top-three finish in the division for the eighth straight year.

With matchups against non-playoff teams in the Philadelphia Flyers and Montreal Canadiens sandwiched between these pivotal matchups, the Penguins face their best chance at moving off the playoff bubble and away from a first-round matchup against the juggernaut Boston Bruins. 

While every remaining game this season impacts the Penguins playoff chances, this may be their final chance to move into the top three of the Metropolitan Division.

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