NHL Push for the Playoffs: East race down to sorting out seeding

Push for the Playoffs will run every morning through the end of the 2021-22 NHL season. We’ll highlight the current playoff picture in both conferences, take a look at what the first-round matchups might look like, see who’s leading the race for the best odds in the draft lottery and more.

There are 18 games remaining in the 2021-22 NHL season and only one conference can tout a race for playoff spots. That would be the West, who currently have an on-going battle for the two Wild Card spots and divisional seeds.

The Eastern Conference, however, has been pretty much wrapped up for some time now. While mathematically the Islanders and Blue Jackets are in it, they trail the Capitals by 15 and 16, points, respectively, with the calendar marching towards April 29 quickly.

The eight playoff teams in the East are just now out to fight over division crowns and home-ice advantage in their First Round matchups. In the Metropolitan Division, the Rangers’ 7-2-1 run in their last 10 has put them two points behind the Hurricanes with the two teams meeting Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden. Both Carolina and New York have nine games to play. The Penguins got a big win over the Predators on Sunday, but they have eight games to play and trail the Rangers by six points in the division race.

While the Maple Leafs have been hot, picking up 17 points in their last 20 games, so too have the Panthers, who are 9-1-0 in their last 10 games. Florida has not given up ground in the Atlantic Division title battle, which leaves Toronto eight points behind with 10 games to play. Helping the Buds to that second-place spot has been the recent stumble of the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Lightning, who are 5-3-2 over their last 10 games.