With just one or two games remaining in the NHL regular season, the playoff picture is still uncertain for teams in the Metropolitan and Atlantic Divisions of the Eastern Conference. Let’s take a look.
Metropolitan Division
The New York Rangers hold a 3-point lead over the Carolina Hurricanes for first place in the division with one game remaining. The Rangers will clinch first place if they defeat the Ottawa Senators in their final game or if the Hurricanes lose either of their last two games against Chicago and Columbus.
The New York Islanders currently hold third place in the division with two games left to play against the New Jersey Devils and Pittsburgh Penguins. The Islanders can clinch third place with a win. If they don’t win, they would need either a regulation loss by the Washington Capitals or any type of loss by the Penguins.
Atlantic Division
The Boston Bruins have two games remaining against Washington and Ottawa. They currently hold a one-point lead over the Florida Panthers, who have one game remaining against the Toronto Maple Leafs. A Bruins win or a regulation loss by the Panthers would clinch first place for Boston. However, if the Panthers gain only one point, then the Bruins need just one point in their final two games to clinch first place.
Toronto is locked into third place and can not move up or down.
First Place – Eastern Conference
The Rangers can clinch first place in the conference and a playoff matchup against the second wild card team with a win. A single point would also clinch first place for the Rangers over the Bruins and set up a Boston/Florida-Tampa playoff matchup. If the Rangers lose their last game in regulation and the Hurricanes win their next two games in any fashion, the Hurricanes would clinch first place since they hold the tiebreaker over the Rangers and Bruins. If the Rangers lose in regulation and the Hurricanes lose at least one game in any fashion, the Bruins could clinch first with two wins. In that scenario, the Hurricanes would face the Lightning as the top Metro team while the Rangers would likely face the Islanders.
Wild Card
The Lightning are locked into the first wild card spot and can not move up or down.
The race for the final wild card playoff spot in the Eastern Conference is extremely tight. The Capitals, Red Wings, Flyers and Penguins are separated by just one point. The Capitals currently hold the last spot due to tiebreakers, but the Flyers have just one game remaining while the Capitals and Red Wings each have two games left. The Penguins trail by one point with two games remaining as well. With so many teams still in contention and the standings so close, this playoff race will likely come down to the final game of the regular season. Too many scenarios to cover here.
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Dom - Hockey 