With the NHL playoffs quickly approaching, every day of the regular season has gained increased importance. We’ll keep you updated with the latest playoff positioning, the teams in the hunt, the previous day's games and a look forward to tonight’s action.
Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
Y- Boston Bruins (110 pts, 7 games remaining)
X-Tampa Bay Lighting (93 pts, 6 games remaining)
X-Montreal Canadiens (93pts, 5 games remaining)
Metropolitan Division
X-Pittsburgh Penguins (101 pts, 7 games remaining)
New York Rangers (90 pts, 5 games remaining)
Philadelphia Flyers (87 pts, 6 games remaining)
Wild Card
Detroit Red Wings (84 pts, 7 games remaining)
Columbus Blue Jackets (83 points, 7 games remaining)
In the hunt
Toronto Maple Leafs (82 pts, 5 games remaining), Washington Capitals (81 pts, 6 games remaining), New Jersey Devils (80 pts, 6 games remaining)
Toast
Ottawa Senators (78 pts, 7 games remaining)
Western Conference
Central Division
X-St. Louis Blues (109 pts, 7 games remaining)
X- Colorado Avalanche (102 pts, 7 games remaining)
X-Chicago Blackhawks (99 pts, 6 games remaining)
Pacific Division
X-Anaheim Ducks (106 pts, 7 games remaining)
X-San Jose Sharks (105 pts, 5 games remaining)
Los Angeles Kings (94 pts, 6 games remaining)
Wild Card
Minnesota Wild (89 pts, 6 games remaining)
Dallas Stars (85 pts, 7 games remaining)
In the hunt
Phoenix Coyotes (85 pts, 6 games remaining)
Toast
Vancouver Canucks (79 pts, 5 games remaining ), Nashville Predators (77 pts, 6 games remaining)
Tuesday recap
Toronto Maple Leafs 3, Calgary Flames 2
Stop the presses! The Maple Leafs have won a game! After eight straight defeats, all it took was a visit from the lowly Calgary Flames to get Toronto back to the winning side of things. That victory moves Toronto to within one point of the Columbus Blue Jackets for the last wild-card spot in the East and two points behind the Detroit Red Wings for the top wild card. The Leafs have played two more games than both teams.
Buffalo Sabres 3, New Jersey Devils 2 (SO)
Yes, the Devils got a point. But when playing the Buffalo Sabres, the team with the worst record in the NHL, two points are mandatory. In the end, Buffalo triumphed in a nine-round shootout, dropping the Devils to 0-11 in shootouts this year. That’s fluky, and probably a big indictment of why many in the NHL are looking for ways to stop games from going to them.
Dallas Stars 5, Washington Capitals 0
This was a battle of two teams chasing the final spot in their respective conferences and one team showed up on Tuesday. The Stars trashed the Capitals in D.C. 5-0 to move into a points tie with the Coyotes in the West. But Dallas technically leads based on two tie-breakers- fewer games played and more games won in regulation and overtime. Meanwhile the Capitals fell two points back of the Blue Jackets in the East with Columbus owning a game in hand.
Colorado Avalanche 3, Columbus Blue Jackets 2 (OT)
Speaking of the Blue Jackets, Columbus could only net one point from a matchup with the Avalanche. The Blue Jackets owned a two-goal lead in the third period, but coughed it up and missed on a chance to put more daylight between them and the Capitals and Devils. Columbus still controls its own destiny however, owning the final wild-card spot with a game in hand on the Capitals and Devils while owning two on the Leafs.
Tampa Bay Lightning 3, Montreal Canadiens 1
Montreal went up early in this battle for home-ice advantage in the first round but the Lightning rallied for three unanswered goals to take it. The win moves Tampa into the second spot in the Atlantic, even on points with Montreal but with a game in hand. Both teams officially clinched playoff spots last night.
St. Louis Blues 1, Philadelphia Flyers 0 (SO)
Both goalies, Ryan Miller and Ray Emery, were perfect in regulation and overtime. In the shootout, T.J. Oshie did his thing and Kevin Shattenkrik sealed it for the Blues, who push on towards the top spot in the West. They are now three points clear of the Ducks. As for the Flyers, the point keeps them within striking distance of the Rangers for home ice in their likely first-round series.
New York Rangers 3, Vancouver Canucks 1
On a night where ex-Ranger Ryan Callahan netted his sixth goal with the Lightning, Martin St. Louis finally got his first with the Rangers (his 30th of the season) against his old coach John Tortorella. The win allowed the Rangers to extend their lead over the Flyers in the Metropolitan to three points.
But the big talking point will be Alex Burrows’ hit late in the third period on Ryan McDonagh.
Winnipeg Jets 2, Phoenix Coyotes 1 (SO)
The shootout strikes again, as the Jets claimed the second point through the skills competition. While Winnipeg remains realistically toast in the playoff hunt, Phoenix is very much alive. But its chances were hurt as only netting a point, combined with Dallas’ win, sent the Stars into the final wild-card spot.
San Jose Sharks 5, Edmonton Oilers 4
In danger of dropping points to a worse team again, the Sharks rallied with two goals in the final ten minutes to grab the full two points from the contest. The win moved the Sharks to within one point of the Ducks for the top spot in the Pacific Division. The Ducks still own a solid edge though, with that point lead and two games in hand.
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Wednesday preview
New York Islanders at Ottawa Senators
The Senators are still a playoff longshot, but as long as the other teams around them keep struggling to get wins on a consistent basis, Ottawa has a chance. Of course, the Senators need to get two points in most of their contests as well, especially when facing non-playoff teams. The Senators trail Columbus by five points in the standings.
Boston Bruins at Detroit Red Wings
The Bruins keep chugging along towards the top spot in the East and possibly the President’s Trophy. Meanwhile the Red Wings, winners of two straight, were rumored to be getting a big boost tonight in the return of center Pavel Datsyuk. The star center has not played since February 27 with a knee injury. But alas, it is not to be.
UPDATE: Pavel Datsyuk will not return tonight #RedWings
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) April 2, 2014
Unfortunately for the Red Wings, Daniel Alfredsson is also out tonight.
Edmonton Oilers at Anaheim Ducks
The Sharks took two points off the Oilers Tuesday and on Wednesday, the Ducks look to do the same. Win or lose the Ducks will remain in the driver’s seat for the Pacific crown, but their shot at the top spot in the West would take a big hit with a loss of any kind tonight.
Phoenix Coyotes at Los Angeles Kings
Level on points with Dallas but having played one more game already, a loss tonight would mean the Coyotes become extremely reliant on other teams to get them into the postseason. The Kings are going to play either the Ducks or Sharks, regardless of what they do the rest of the year.