Eastern wild‑card chaos
The NHL’s Eastern wild‑card picture is razor‑tight — the Islanders, Blue Jackets, Red Wings and Bruins are all within a point or two, and Saturday’s Toronto‑Ottawa rivalry game has big seeding implications. (espn.com)
Boston and Detroit sit level at 84 points while the New York Islanders and Columbus have 83 points — four Eastern clubs separated by a single point in the wild‑card table. (foxsports.com)) Columbus moved into a playoff spot after a 6‑3 win over the New York Rangers on March 19, with Adam Fantilli scoring twice and the Blue Jackets extending an 11‑game point streak. (nhl.com)) The Islanders’ position tightened after a 3‑2 loss at Ottawa on March 19, a result that directly contributed to the midweek shuffle in the wild‑card race. (espn.com)) Ottawa entered its March 21 home date with Toronto with a 35‑24‑9 record and 79 points, while the Maple Leafs came in at 29‑28‑13 and 71 points — an eight‑point gap that makes the rivalry game meaningful for seeding. (foxsports.com)) The regular season finishes April 16, 2026, leaving fewer than four weeks for teams to change positions and for tight wild‑card permutations to resolve. (usatoday.com)) Regulation-and-overtime wins (ROW) are already visible in the table and could break ties: Boston shows 35 ROW, Detroit 36 ROW and New York (Isles) 35 ROW in the current standings. (foxsports.com))
