The Stanley Cup Playoffs field is nearly set. There’s less than a week left in the regular season and only four spots are left up for grabs. Seeding is also a hot-button topic with many of the first-round matchups still in flux.
In the Eastern Conference, the Washington Capitals have earned the top seed. They are still awaiting their first-round matchup, but it is likely to be against one of the hottest teams in the league in the Montreal Canadiens who have won six in a row to open up an six-point advantage for the final spot in the East over Columbus Blue Jackets and New York Rangers.
The West is a bit of a different story with four teams vying for three spots. The Minnesota Wild, St. Louis Blues, Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames are all still battling, but the Flames appear to be the odd team out as they sit seven points behind the Oilers and five behind the Wild and Blues with four games left.
The playoff picture will likely change on a daily basis, so CBS Sports will have you covered with our NHL playoff race tracker. It will be updated daily to show where each potential playoff team sits in the standings as the postseason draws near. The Stanley Cup Playoffs begin on April 19.
Reminder: Here’s how the NHL playoff seeding works
- The top three teams in each division automatically qualify for the playoffs.
- Each conference has two wild-card spots.
- The top division winner in each conference will play the second wild card team, and the other division winner will play the first wild card team.
- The second and third-place teams in each division will match up with one another in the first round.
*Regulation wins are the first tiebreaker, and regulation plus overtime wins are the second tiebreaker. Shootout wins are not counted in regulation plus overtime wins. X denotes clinched playoff berth. Z denotes clinched best record in conference.
Eastern Conference playoff picture
Atlantic Division
1. Toronto Maple Leafs | 48-26-4 | 100 points – X
Points percentage: .641
Regulation wins: 39
Regulation plus overtime wins: 47
Current first-round matchup: Ottawa Senators
2. Tampa Bay Lightning | 45-26-7 | 97 points – X
Points percentage: .622
Regulation wins: 39
Regulation plus overtime wins: 43
Current first-round matchup: Florida Panthers
3. Florida Panthers | 46-29-4 | 96 points – X
Points percentage: .608
Regulation wins: 37
Regulation plus overtime wins: 41
Current first-round matchup: Tampa Bay Lightning
Metropolitan Division
1. Washington Capitals | 50-19-9 | 109 points – Z
Points percentage: .699
Regulation wins: 42
Regulation plus overtime wins: 48
Current first-round matchup: Montreal Canadiens
2. Carolina Hurricanes | 46-27-5 | 97 points – X
Points percentage: .622
Regulation wins: 41
Regulation plus overtime wins: 46
Current first-round matchup: New Jersey Devils
3. New Jersey Devils | 41-30-7 | 89 points – X
Points percentage: .571
Regulation wins: 36
Regulation plus overtime wins: 39
Current first-round matchup: Carolina Hurricanes
Wild Card
WC1. Ottawa Senators | 42-29-6 | 90 points
Points percentage: .584
Regulation wins: 33
Regulation plus overtime wins: 41
Current first-round matchup: Toronto Maple Leafs
WC2. Montreal Canadiens | 39-30-9 | 87 points
Points percentage: .558
Regulation wins: 29
Regulation plus overtime wins: 37
Current first-round matchup: Washington Capitals
Columbus Blue Jackets | 36-33-9 | 81 points
Points percentage: .519
Regulation wins: 26
Regulation plus overtime wins: 30
New York Rangers | 37-35-7 | 81 points
Points percentage: .513
Regulation wins: 33
Regulation plus overtime wins: 36
Detroit Red Wings | 36-35-7 | 79 points
Points percentage: .506
Regulation wins: 28
Regulation plus overtime wins: 33
New York Islanders | 34-33-11 | 79 points
Points percentage: .506
Regulation wins: 27
Regulation plus overtime wins: 32
Western Conference playoff picture
Central Division
1. Winnipeg Jets | 54-21-4 | 112 points – X
Points percentage: .709
Regulation wins: 43
Regulation plus overtime wins: 53
Current first-round matchup: St. Louis Blues
2. Dallas Stars | 50-23-6 | 106 points – X
Points percentage: .671
Regulation wins: 41
Regulation plus overtime wins: 48
Current first-round matchup: Colorado Avalanche
3. Colorado Avalanche | 48-28-4 | 100 points – X
Points percentage: .625
Regulation wins: 39
Regulation plus overtime wins: 44
Current first-round matchup: Dallas Stars
Pacific Division
1. Vegas Golden Knights | 48-22-9 | 105 points-X
Points percentage: .660
Regulation wins: 43
Regulation plus overtime wins: 46
Current first-round matchup: Minnesota Wild
2. Los Angeles Kings | 45-24-9 | 99 points – X
Points percentage: .635
Regulation wins: 40
Regulation plus overtime wins: 44
Current first-round matchup: Edmonton Oilers
3. Edmonton Oilers | 45-28-5 | 95 points
Points percentage: .609
Regulation wins: 33
Regulation plus overtime wins: 45
Current first-round matchup: Los Angeles Kings
Wild Card
WC1. Minnesota Wild | 43-29-7 | 93 points
Points percentage: .589
Regulation wins: 33
Regulation plus overtime wins: 40
Current first-round matchup: Vegas Golden Knights
WC2. St. Louis Blues | 43-30-7 | 93 points
Points percentage: .581
Regulation wins: 31
Regulation plus overtime wins: 39
Current first-round matchup: Winnipeg Jets
Calgary Flames | 37-27-13 | 87 points
Points percentage: .565
Regulation wins: 28
Regulation plus overtime wins: 33
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