The NHL Trade Deadline is behind us, and teams are set for the push to the playoffs. This meeting of two Western Conference battleship teams is a rematch of last spring’s Western Conference Final, with the Oilers moving on to the Stanley Cup Final after besting the Stars in six games. This time around, both of these teams will be participating in the post-season yet again, the question being which teams they face in the opening round. Recently, the Oilers have cooled off a bit while the Stars continue to play good hockey.
It’s a New York City-style traffic jam for the two Eastern Conference wildcard spots. After free falling out of the playoff picture, the Rangers added feisty forward JT Miller, and he’s helped push New York back into the post-season discussion. The Blue Jackets aren’t only grabbing for a wildcard spot, they could move up into the top three in the Metropolitan Division, particularly with the New Jersey Devils losing star forward Jack Hughes until September.
Where in the Atlantic Division will the Maple Leafs finish this season? First place in the grouping is important, as the Leafs, Panthers, and Lightning are practically neck-and-neck with 20 games left to play. The winner of the division takes on one of the wildcard teams, a much preferable matchup than facing one of the Atlantic Division powerhouses. Utah have also earned their way back into the post-season conversation in the Western Conference.
For most of this regular season, the Winnipeg Jets have been one of the best teams (along with the Washington Capitals) in the entire league. Nice. What does that get you? A more advantageous first-round matchup. The Jets have a lot to prove after their flameout in the first round last year when they lost in five games to the Colorado Avalanche.
Can the Red Wings finally make the NHL playoffs for the first time since 2016? Sure, they can, but it’s going to be a struggle. Detroit are in the mix for one of the two Eastern wildcard spots, but so are 7 other teams. Detroit hasn’t won a playoff series since 2013. The Sabres will not finally make the playoffs this time around, for the first time since 2011 (and Buffalo hasn’t won a playoff series since 2007).
This would make for a great opening-round playoff series, which could happen if the freshly fortified Tampa Bay Lightning take the Atlantic Division crown. It’s important to finish first in this division, in order to not draw such a tough opening round opponent.
While Utah might make the playoff cut in their first season in their new locale, the Kraken look to miss the spring tournament for the third time in their four-year history. Seattle earned 100 points back in 2022-23, their second year in the league. The Sea Monsters took down the first-place Avalanche in seven games in the opening round before falling in seven in the next round to the Dallas Stars.
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