NHL Playoff Death Watch: Penguins gunning for home ice in Metro

Since we're down to the final moments of postseason life for teams in contention, Puck Daddy solemnly begins a daily countdown to annihilation.

Remember when the Pittsburgh Penguins lost Evgeni Malkin and the Philadelphia Flyers were surging and many felt there was a chance the Pens would tumble down the standings?

Well, expect the unexpected: The Penguins have won all five games without Malkin and have (technically) pulled ahead of the New York Rangers for second place in the Metro Division.

The Penguins handed the Washington Capitals one of their worst losses of the season on Sunday, while the Rangers were idle.

Here are the current standings. The Death Watch tracks the final Wild Card spot and the teams that are chasing it. Their “tragic number” is the number of points gained by the final wild card team or lost by the team chasing it.

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All playoff percentages are from Sports Club Stats; tragic numbers and other figures via the NHL. A team is eliminated from play-offs when their "Tragic Number" hits 0.

The Eastern Conference picture, via the NHL:

Here are the latest Eastern Conference playoff odds from Sports Club Stats:

*Wild Card Teams

The Rangers host the Florida Panthers on Monday.

The New York Islanders, meanwhile, face a critical game on Monday at home: Hosting the Philadelphia Flyers, who can pull within three points of the Isles with a regulation win.

Meanwhile, in the West:

The Avalanche defeated the Edmonton Oilers in regulation, while the Minnesota Wild defeated the Chicago Blackhawks in a shootout to keep pace. But every point counts for the Blackhawks, who get a little more breathing room ahead of the Nashville Predators. The Preds host the Los Angeles Kings on Monday.

Here are the latest Western Conference playoff odds from Sports Club Stats:

Both the Wild and the Avs have nine games remaining, and face each other on Saturday night in a critical game.

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Greg Wyshynski is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter. His book, TAKE YOUR EYE OFF THE PUCK, is available on Amazon and wherever books are sold.

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