NHL playoff races tighten
With the regular season ending April 16, the Stanley Cup playoff picture still has multiple races alive and teams are jockeying for seeding as the field finalizes. ( ) Anaheim had a clear clinch path—NHL.com said the Ducks would clinch a playoff berth with any win over Vancouver on Sunday night—while other bubbles and first‑round matchups remain unsettled as the postseason approaches April 18. ( )
The National Hockey League’s playoff map is still moving with three days left in the regular season, and Sunday’s games kept both bubble races and seed lines unsettled. (nhl.com) Anaheim entered Sunday with a direct path in the West: the Ducks would clinch a playoff berth with any win over the Vancouver Canucks. In the East, the Washington Capitals began the day five points behind the Boston Bruins for the second wild-card spot, while the New York Islanders faced elimination scenarios of their own. (nhl.com) The standings show how little room is left. In the Atlantic Division, Buffalo and Montreal both sat on 106 points and Tampa Bay had 104, while Boston and Ottawa were tied at 98 points for the two Eastern wild cards. (espn.com) The Metropolitan Division was also unfinished below Pittsburgh. Carolina had 110 points and Pittsburgh 98, but Philadelphia held third place with 94, Washington had 93 and Columbus had 92, leaving the final Eastern bracket lines open entering the last week. (espn.com) In the Western Conference, Colorado led the Central with 115 points, Dallas had 108 and Minnesota 102, and the Pacific race remained compressed with Vegas on 91, Edmonton on 90 and Anaheim on 89. Utah had already clinched a wild-card spot, and Los Angeles held the other wild card with 87 points while Nashville chased at 86. (sports.yahoo.com) One first-round matchup is already locked in: Dallas will play Minnesota in the Western Conference first round. What remains undecided there is home ice, with the Stars and Wild still finishing the regular season before the league sets the series opener. (nhl.com) Boston’s spot is secure, but its landing place is not. The Bruins clinched on Saturday, April 11, after Detroit lost later that night, and Boston can still finish as either the first or second Eastern wild card, which would change a first-round draw between the Atlantic winner and the Metropolitan winner. (nesn.com) The league’s format is simple but unforgiving in the final week: the top three teams in each division qualify, plus two wild cards in each conference. That setup leaves teams chasing not just a berth but also a specific path, because one point can flip a club from a divisional matchup into a series against a conference leader. (nhl.com) The postseason begins Saturday, April 18, two days after the regular season ends on Thursday, April 16. By then, the bracket should be full; on April 13, the only certainty is that several teams are still playing for more than pride. (sports.yahoo.com)
