NHL Playoff Death Watch: Blackhawks clinch, Penguins solidify
Since we're down to the final moments of postseason life for teams in contention, Puck Daddy solemnly begins a daily countdown to annihilation.
The Pittsburgh Penguins continue to earn separation from the wild card bubble.
Their overtime win over the New York Rangers pushed their total to 92 points, three ahead of the New York Islanders and seven ahead of the Philadelphia Flyers. Both teams have a game in-hand.
The Rangers moved to 95 points, three ahead of the Penguins for home ice in the divisional playoffs’ first round.
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.
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:
A note about the Montreal Canadiens: Technically they’re not eliminated, by the NHL’s count. The Detroit Red Wings and Philadelphia Flyers have a game coming up, which makes it mathematically impossible for the Canadiens to finish ahead of the wild card winner. But that game hasn’t happened yet!
The Buffalo Sabres are in the same boat, but their tragic number is one and can be eliminated against the Red Wings tonight.
The Flyers return home to take on the Winnipeg Jets. So, in other words, these are points for both wild card bubble teams that can’t be squandered.
The Tampa Bay Lightning, meanwhile, host the Toronto Maple Leafs with a chance to knot the Panthers in points, although Florida will have a game in-hand. The Leafs are in Sunrise on Tuesday. Good to see Mike Babcock having a significant impact on the Atlantic race.
Here are the latest Eastern Conference playoff odds from Sports Club Stats:
*Wild Card Teams
The Capitals, by the way, win the President’s Trophy with a point against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Meanwhile, in the West:
The Chicago Blackhawks clinched a playoff spot with a win over the Vancouver Canucks, and moved four points up on the Nashville Predators, who have a game in-hand but don’t hold the ROW tie-breaker with the Blackhawks. So it’s looking more and more like Blues or Stars vs. Blackhawks in Round 1, which probably isn’t want the Blues or Stars wanted to hear.
Here are the latest Western Conference playoff odds from Sports Club Stats:
*Wild Card Teams
The Kings are in San Jose tonight with an opportunity to do the Sharks a solid and beat them, since home ice is the last thing SJ should want this season.
The Ducks host the Edmonton Oilers. No word if Yakupov will defect to Anaheim during the game.
Meanwhile, it’s the Colorado Avalanche visiting the Nashville Predators tonight, and they’re must-wins in perpetuity for the Avs. Look at the rest of that schedule. Yikes.
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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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