With time increasingly limited in the 2023-24 NHL season, many teams are locked into their spots in the post-season, but for some teams, the hunt is still very much ongoing.
Dylan Larkin scores the winning goal in overtime and celebrates with right Patrick Kane.Though the playoffs are close at hand, we aren’t hearing much about ‘load management’ this year.
That’s because so many teams and players still have so much to play for.
With five days left in the regular season, we’ve still got five teams duking it out for two playoff spots in the East. Of that group, Washington, Detroit and Philadelphia all got wins on Saturday, and the Islanders managed a point against the Rangers. Only Pittsburgh came up short.
Four teams are also still in the mix for the Presidents' Trophy — the Rangers, Stars, Hurricanes and Bruins. And while the Florida Panthers are no longer in the mix at the top of the standings, they are locked in a photo finish with Winnipeg for the fewest goals allowed, and the Jennings Trophy.
Many questions remain, but we finally started to see the playoff picture start to come into focus on Saturday.
Dallas became the first team to clinch a division title. We learned our first definite matchup. And we saw Toronto and Tampa Bay lock in their final standings positions in the East.
Jets Are Soaring
It’s been an incredible few days for the Jets, who completed a series sweep against Colorado with an emphatic 7-0 win on Saturday, two days after they also shut out the Stars. Winnipeg is now 7-0-0 in the month of April.
The Avs will also be their first-round opponent. But for the moment, home-ice advantage is still up for grabs.
After their beatdown on Saturday, Colorado is headed straight into another tough matchup — a Sunday matinee in Vegas at 3:30 p.m. ET. A regulation loss would lock them into third place and give Winnipeg home-ice advantage for the first-ever playoff meeting between the two teams.
Beyond that — Vancouver solidified its hold on first place in the Pacific with a good road win in Edmonton on Saturday. And while the eight Western Conference teams are set, three of the matchups are still very much in question.
Leafs, Lightning Know Where They Stand
In the East, the picture remains very muddy. The Rangers have the inside track in the Metro, but the Hurricanes aren’t going away. And after a complicated year in the crease, Carolina now has goaltending stability that rivals Boston's: Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov are alternating games, and both are playing great.
Over in the Atlantic, we now know that Toronto will be third and Tampa Bay will in the first wild card. But Boston and Florida are still fighting it out for first.
Here's a full look at the standings heading into Sunday's games, including the remaining matchups.
'RW' stands for regulation wins, the first tiebreaker if two teams finish with equal points.
Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
- Boston Bruins - 109 pts, 36 RW- at Washington on Monday- host Ottawa on Tuesday
- Florida Panthers - 108 pts, 41 RW- host Toronto on Tuesday
- Toronto Maple Leafs - 102 pts, 33 RW- at Florida on Tuesday- at Tampa Bay on Wednesday
With two points against Washington on Monday, the Bruins can clinch first place. That would lock in a tantalizing first-round rematch between the Panthers and the Maple Leafs.
Metropolitan Division
- New York Rangers - 112 pts, 42 RW- host Ottawa on Monday
- Carolina Hurricanes - 109 pts, 43 RW- at Chicago on Sunday- at Columbus on Tuesday
- New York Islanders - 90 pts, 27 RW- at New Jersey on Monday- host Pittsburgh on Wednesday
Eastern Wild Card
- Tampa Bay Lightning - 96 pts, 36 RW- host Buffalo on Monday- host Toronto on Wednesday
- Washington Capitals - 87 pts, 30 RW- host Boston on Monday- at Philadelphia on Tuesday
- Detroit Red Wings - 87 pts, 27 RW- at Montreal on Monday- host Montreal on Tuesday
- Philadelphia Flyers - 87 pts, 30 RW- host Washington on Tuesday
- Pittsburgh Penguins - 86 pts, 31 RW- host Nashville on Monday- at Islanders on Wednesday
After earlier wins by the Capitals and Flyers on Saturday, the Red Wings could have been eliminated with a loss in Toronto. They rallied to keep their hopes alive, capped off by a power-play goal in overtime from captain Dylan Larkin.
Philadelphia also stayed in the race thanks to a 1-0 win over the Devils. With only one game left, the Flyers can no longer catch the Islanders. Like Detroit, their only option is the second wild-card spot.
The Capitals and Penguins could still potentially pass the Islanders. On the calendar, circle Washington at Philadelphia on Tuesday and Pittsburgh at the Islanders on Wednesday.
Western Conference
Central Division
- Dallas Stars - 111 pts, clinched first place- host St. Louis on Wednesday
- Winnipeg Jets - 106 points, 44 RW- host Seattle on Tuesday- host Vancouver on Thursday
- Colorado Avalanche - 104 pts, 41 RW- at Vegas on Sunday (3:30 p.m. ET)- host Edmonton on Thursday
The Stars have done a great job of honing their game over the last four weeks, with a record of 11-2-0 to show for their efforts.
Meanwhile, Colorado is enduring a late-season slump, with a record of 3-5-1 since March 26. Also worrisome: the Avs are 0-3-0 against Winnipeg this season.
Pacific Division
- Vancouver Canucks - 107 pts, 43 RW - host Calgary on Tuesday- at Winnipeg on Thursday
- Edmonton Oilers - 102 pts, 38 RW- host San Jose on Monday- at Arizona on Wednesday- at Colorado on Thursday
- Los Angeles Kings - 97 pts, 37 RW- host Minnesota on Monday- host Chicago on Thursday
After beating Edmonton on Saturday, Vancouver's magic number for first place in the Pacific Division is down to one.
We know the Canucks and Oilers will have home-ice advantage in the first round, but their opponents are still to be determined.
Wild Card
- Nashville Predators - 99 pts, 44 RW- at Pittsburgh on Monday
- Vegas Golden Knights - 94 pts, 33 RW - host Colorado on Sunday- host Chicago on Tuesday- host Anaheim on Thursday
What a year for the Predators, who will have a chance to hit 100 points for the first time in six seasons if they can pick up a point against the Penguins in their finale on Monday.
If they do, they'll also clinch the first wild card. For now, the Golden Knights could still potentially move up to pass either Nashville or Los Angeles.
Sunday's game-to-watch is the Colorado-Vegas clash at The Fortress.