NHL Western Conference Playoff Picture
Central Division
The St. Louis Blues defense has been nothing short of exceptional over the last few games. (Getty)
Dallas Stars
Record: 45-22-9, Record: 99, Playoff Picture: The Stars are in, it’s just a matter of where. Dallas has already clinched a playoff spot, but currently sit tied at 99 points with the St. Louis Blues. The rest of the season is no picnic though. Dallas has two more matchups against the Nashville Predators and the final two road games of the season are against the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks.
St. Louis Blues
Record: 45-22-9, Points: 99, Playoff Picture: Another team that has already clinched a postseason berth, the Blues are playing some absurdly good hockey right now. St. Louis, who is tied with the Stars in the division standings, haven’t given up a goal since March 16. It’ll be tough to maintain that kind of defensive trend, but it certainly was impressive while it lasted. So, what’s the squad’s reward? Well, if the season ended right now the Blues would play the Blackhawks.
Chicago Blackhawks
Record: 44-25-7, Points: 95, Playoff Picture: The Blackhawks are on a two-game win streak! After the kind of March this team has had, that really does seem like an accomplishment. It’s also a big-time boost in the standings and now Chicago sits a comfortable four points ahead of the Predators and, more importantly, out of the wild card.
Nashville Predators
Points: 39-24-13, Points: 91, Playoff Picture: It’s not an easy road to the postseason for Nashville. The Predators, who seemed to just come out of nowhere a few weeks ago, take on the Dallas Stars on the road tonight and then face off against the divisional foe in the regular season finale as well. In between those games are matchups against the Penguins, Sharks, Avalanche and Coyotes. Yeah, that’s a pretty tough draw, but a few wins in that stretch could lock up a wild card.
Minnesota Wild
Record: 37-28-11, Points: 85, Playoff Picture: Saturday’s win over Colorado was huge for the Wild and their postseason hopes. Minnesota is currently sitting at 85 points, six behind Nashville, but there’s the silver lining; the Pacific isn’t really that good. So, the next closest team to Minnesota in the wild card standings? Colorado at 82 points.
LIKELY NOT IN: Colorado Avalanche
ELIMINATED: Winnipeg Jets
Pacific Division
The San Jose Sharks are jockeying for playoff position in the final weeks of the regular season. (Getty)
Los Angeles Kings
Record: 45-26-5, Points: 95, Playoff Picture: The Kings are sitting one point ahead of Anaheim in the division standings with one game in hand and a postseason berth already clinched. So, yeah, the April 7 matchup against the Ducks is probably going to be pretty important to the standings.
Anaheim Ducks
Record: 42-23-10, Points: 94, Playoff Picture: The Ducks have a major opportunity in front of them right now. Sure, Anaheim has already clinched a playoff spot, but they can still move a bit in the standings – even up to the No. 1 spot in the Pacific. The final three games of the season, road games at Los Angeles, Colorado and Washington, will help decide if that’s possible.
San Jose Sharks
Record: 42-28-6, Points: 90, Playoff Picture: Monday night’s 5-2 victory over the Kings was a major step in the momentum-turning direction and the Sharks now sit just four points behind the Ducks for second in the division. The rest of the season is fairly favorable as far as matchups go, so it will be interesting to see how San Jose wraps this one up.
LIKELY NOT IN: Arizona Coyotes
ELIMINATED: Calgary Flames, Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers