The Pittsburgh Penguins might be figuring things out, now. With just one loss in their last 11 games, they are now in second place in the Metropolitan Division, and seventh in the NHL Power Rankings, with just one week remaining in the regular season. In other updates, the Washington Capitals have clinched the Presidents’ Trophy, and the Minnesota Wild are on the verge of clinching the final spot in the Western Conference playoffs.
1. Washington Capitals (116 points)
Last week: 1 (111 points)
Presidents’ Trophy? Check. All they needed was one more win, and they got it when Columbus came to town. It is a concern, however, that they lost to Philadelphia, a team they could face in the first round of the playoffs. TJ Oshie had missed two games with an illness, but has otherwise been on a tear. With an empty-net goal against Colorado, he now has three goals in his last four games.
2. Dallas Stars (103 points)
Last week: 2 (99 points)
With St. Louis’s loss to Boston, Dallas now has sole possession of first place in the Central Division with one week left. Their light schedule involved easy wins over Nashville and Arizona. Jamie Benn has taken over without Tyler Seguin. He had four goals this week, and his score on the Coyotes was his 40th of the season. Only Alex Ovechkin has more.
3. St. Louis Blues (101 points)
Last week: 2 (99 points)
They became the third team to reach the century mark in points this season, but their loss to Boston at home was poorly timed. They now have a two point deficit behind Dallas with just four games to play, and both Chicago and Washington are on the schedule. Kyle Brodziak had goals in consecutive games in wins against the Canucks and the Capitals, which is the first time he has had more than one goal in a month and goals in two straight games this season.
4. Los Angeles Kings (97 points)
Last week: 3 (93 points)
Their loss to San Jose could really hurt them in playoff seeding. They lead the Ducks by one point and have a huge matinee against Dallas on Saturday. Of course, no one should forget the game against Anaheim for game 81. That could potentially decide the Pacific Division champion. A crazy stick save on San Jose could not save Jonathan Quick from having a bad night, but he had no problems smothering the Flames in a 3-0 shutout on Thursday.
5. Chicago Blackhawks (97 points)
Last week: 6 (93 points)
After having no problems in Western Canada, things got sticky. Literally. Duncan Keith was ejected in Minnesota for intent to injure Charlie Coyle when he smacked him in the face with his stick. The result? A six-game suspension that will carry into game one of the playoffs. Chicago’s disappointing second half to the season just got a whole lot messier. On the bright side, Artemi Panarin scored two goals on Winnipeg and set up Brent Seabrook for the overtime winner.
6. Anaheim Ducks (96 points)
Last week: 8 (92 points)
Their offense did juuuuuuust enough to fend off Edmonton, but those grudge matches sandwiched an eight-goal outburst on Calgary. After they were shorthanded and took a hard fall against Vancouver, they are one point behind Los Angeles in the Pacific Division. Jacob Silverberg had two more goals in the blowout over the Flames, and he had an astonishing ten goals in March after just eight beforehand.
7. Pittsburgh Penguins (96 points)
Last week: 10 (90 points)
They were in danger of missing the playoffs a month ago. Now? They have won four straight and ten of eleven. They even have a hold on second place in the Metropolitan Division with one week left. Wow! Tom Kuhnhackl had a shorthanded goal and an assist in Pittsburgh’s four-goal outburst on Buffalo this past Tuesday (They won in a shootout). The German now has four goals and seven assists since making his NHL debut in January.
8. New York Rangers (95 points)
Last week: 5 (94 points)
The Rangers are no strangers to inconsistency, but this week could really hurt them. After getting just one point against Pittsburgh and Carolina, New York surrendered second place to the Penguins. Assuming they clinch a playoff spot next week, it would be unfortunate for the Stanley Cup hopefuls to start the playoffs on the road. Before Sidney Crosby ripped the New York fans’ hearts out…again, Eric Staal scored both of the Ranger goals in the oh-so-important battle for playoff positioning.
9. Florida Panthers (95 points)
Last week: 7 (89 points)
Few moments will be as memorable as the Panthers fans throwing plastic rats on the ice and getting penalized, twice, for it. Few moments, however, will be as mysterious as Florida’s home loss to Toronto with playoff positioning on the line. Jonathan Huberdeau is doing an excellent job at preparing for the postseason. He has scored in four straight games, including two rat-unleashing goals against New Jersey.
10. Tampa Bay Lightning (93 points)
Last week: 9 (91 points)
They had two 3-0 games this week. Unfortunately, only their home match against Toronto ended well. Montreal, on the other hand, had a rare perfect night in Tampa. The Lightning are now two points behind Florida in the Atlantic Division standings. Ben Bishop shut out the Maple Leafs for the first time in his career, and it was also his sixth of the season.
11. San Jose Sharks (92 points)
Last week: 13 (88 points)
With no other Pacific Division team anywhere close to the playoffs, San Jose clinched the final playoff spot for the division. Barring everything going their way next week. They will wait to see if they will be going to Anaheim or Los Angeles for the first round of the playoffs. Justin Braun had a great night in what was the playoff clincher against LA. The defenseman had two goals to double his season goal total.
12. New York Islanders (93 points)
Last week: 12 (89 points)
Once again, the Islanders have to wait until the final week of the regular season to lock up a playoff spot. That trend may have to change if they want to win their first Stanley Cup in over 30 years. They need a big week if they want to avoid settling for a Wild Card spot. Anders Lee scored in consecutive games, including the game winner against the Blue Jackets. Despite being 11 goals short of last season’s total, he has set a career high in assists in a season with 21.
13. Nashville Predators (91 points)
Last week: 11 (91 points)
Their terrible week may have cost them a chance at catching the Blackhawks, but they clinched at least a wild card spot with Colorado’s loss on Friday. The Avalanche happened to be one of the teams that defeated them this week, and Filip Forsberg had two of his three assists this week in that game.
14. Boston Bruins (88 points)
Last week: 14 (86 points)
The Bruins are threatening to crash and burn for the second consecutive season. They are currently third in the Atlantic Division, but they only have a one point lead on division rival Detroit and eighth-place Philadelphia. Therefore, their win in St. Louis on Friday was vital. David Krejci was the MVP in that game, with two goals and two assists in a wild 6-5 victory.
15. Detroit Red Wings (89 points)
Last week: 16 (85 points)
The suddenly scorching Canadiens prevented a perfect week for the Red Wings, which is bad for Detroit because they are deadlocked with Philadelphia for the final wild card spot and do not have the tiebreaker. In eight days we will find out if their historic playoff run is snapped or extended. Riley Sheahan has been unstoppable this week and will get heavy honors if Detroit clinches. With a goal and an assist in the win over Minnesota, he now has four goals and two assists in his last five games.
16. Philadelphia Flyers (89 points)
Last week: 15 (85 points)
Detroit’s huge win against the Wild caused another deadlock for the eight spot, but Philly still has the tiebreaker. Their shootout win over Washington is their biggest of the season, especially with two games against Pittsburgh and one with Detroit down the final stretch. The Jets gave them a scare, but Claude Giroux scored in overtime. Wayne Simmonds also scored in that game, and it was his first goal in seven games.
17. Minnesota Wild (87 points)
Last week: 17 (85 points)
With playoff implications all around on Friday, Detroit got the better of the Wild. Thankfully, Colorado fell to the Capitals, so Minnesota has a five-point lead for the second wild card spot, and games against Winnipeg and Calgary could seal the deal. Charlie Coyle took a stick to the face against Chicago, but Nino Niederreiter had two points late in the third period to save the victory.
18. Colorado Avalanche (82 points)
Last week: 17 (80 points)
Dagger. It is not over yet, but Colorado has one week to dissolve a five-point deficit on Minnesota. Considering Minnesota’s last three games are is not that tough, Colorado will likely miss the playoffs for the second straight season. Jarome Iginla scored his 20th goal of the season in the loss to Washington, and it was his first goal in a full month (13 games).
19. Carolina Hurricanes (84 points)
Last week: 20 (79 points)
Carolina is the last team on this list that is still in playoff contention, but like Colorado, the odds are not in their favor. They at least got points in five consecutive games after getting five points this week. Eric Staal made his return to Carolina for the first time since being traded to the Rangers, but Patrick Brown stole the spotlight with his first NHL goal and assist to help the Hurricanes win. He was undrafted out of Boston College and signed with Carolina in 2014.
20. New Jersey Devils (82 points)
Last week: 19 (80 points)
Not long ago, the Devils and Penguins were deadlocked for eighth in the Eastern Conference. While the Penguins rose, the Devils fell into elimination. They at least played spoiler with a win over the Bruins. Reid Boucher has been excellent for New Jersey over the past two months. He had a goal and an assist against Boston, and he now has six goals and ten assists in February and March after just three points beforehand.
21. Ottawa Senators (81 points)
Last week: 21 (77 points)
Ottawa was also eliminated this week, meaning there will be no Canadian teams in the playoffs. That has not happened in nearly 50 years. Jean-Gabriel Pageau had a great night in Minnesota, as he had responsibility for all three of Ottawa’s goals (one goal and two assists) in the win.
22. Montreal Canadiens (78 points)
Last week: 24 (72 points)
It is a little late to be getting hot, but the Canadiens have looked good this past week. They had impressive wins over Detroit and Tampa Bay in an attempt to mess around with the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Paul Byron enjoys playing against the Red Wings. He has two goals against them in as many meetings.
23. Arizona Coyotes (75 points)
Last week: 22 (75 points)
Arizona will be playing what could be their final home game at Gila River Arena on Saturday against Washington. Contract negotiations will certainly be watched this offseason. Not much went right for the Coyotes this week, except for Anthony Duclair. He scored the only two Arizona goals in the loss to Calgary, and he was part of a tic-tac-toe goal from Martin Hanzal in the loss to Dallas. He now has a five-game point streak and needs one more goal to reach 20 for the season.
24. Buffalo Sabres (74 points)
Last week: 23 (72 points)
Not a good week for Buffalo, but they at least beat the team they were supposed to beat. They won their first regulation game against the Maple Leafs on Thursday, clinching the season series in the process. Johan Larsson had a fantastic week. After getting two assists against Pittsburgh, he scored twice on Toronto and needs one more goal to hit double figures.
25. Vancouver Canucks (71 points)
Last week: 28 (67 points)
The fans want the #1 pick, but the Canucks went to California and upset both San Jose and Anaheim. Markus Granlund sealed the victory over the Sharks with an empty net goal, his second since being traded from Calgary.
26. Calgary Flames (70 points)
Last week: 25 (68 points)
After a nice win in Arizona, the floodgates opened up. California was not nice to the Flames, as they gave up eight goals to the Ducks and were shutout in Los Angeles. The loss to Anaheim proved that Joni Ortio is the only goalie with experience that deserves to be on this team next year (unless Karri Ramo returns to Calgary next season). Jonas Hiller needed just 6:51 to get pulled after giving up three goals on his former team, and Niklas Backstrom came in and gave up five.
27. Columbus Blue Jackets (68 points)
Last week: 26 (68 points)
Maybe they can finish worse than they started. They have lost four in a row, and they can finish the season losing nine in a row after beginning the season 0-8-0. At least they came close against the Islanders, and Boone Jenner continued to do the heavy lifting for their depleted offense. He now has five goals in his last seven games and needs one more goal to reach 30 on the season.
28. Winnipeg Jets (70 points)
Last week: 27 (68 points)
The Jets failed to win, but they got a point in hard-fought losses to Philadelphia and Chicago. They finish their home schedule on Sunday against Minnesota before ending the season in California. Blake Wheeler has been a consistent offensive threat all season, and has helped Mark Scheifele break out in Winnipeg. He has failed to record a point in just 25 games this season, and he had two goals and one assist to give the Jets one point against the Blackhawks.
29. Edmonton Oilers (67 points)
Last week: 29 (67 points)
The worst team in the NHL does not always get the #1 pick. However, the Oilers had just one game this week and lost (to Anaheim). Toronto has caught up to them in the points column, and with Columbus, Winnipeg, Calgary, and Vancouver not far ahead, it will be interesting to see who finishes 30th. Cam Talbot made 23 saves on Anaheim’s 25 shots, an impressive performance considering their impressive offense lately.
30. Toronto Maple Leafs (67 points)
Last week: 30 (65 points)
It is not their fault that Edmonton has just one game this week. Despite winning just once in their last four games, the Maple Leafs now have a share of last in the NHL. They have three games against teams that have yet to clinch a playoff spot, so the final week may be more interesting than perceived. Nazem Kadri had one of two hat tricks for the week, getting three goals on the Florida Panthers (San Jose’s Logan Couture had the other one).