With yesterday’s win by the Tampa Bay Lightning over the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Montreal Canadiens would now need to make up six point versus a team with two games in hand, not just one, to get ahead of the team currently holding the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.
The Ottawa Senators managed a shootout win over the Detroit Red Wings, and the game of leapfrog for 12th in the Eastern Conference continues between Ottawa and Montreal.
A third-period comeback earned the Toronto Maple Leafs a rare point in their game versus the Philadelphia Flyers, but Shayne Gostibehere extended his points streak to 15 games with the overtime winner.
The Leafs have finally hit the 50-point plateau, while the Philadelphia Flyers move to 63 on the season. Montreal would have its work cut out for it just to catch the Flyers before the end of the season, let alone pass five Eastern teams that currently stand in the team’s way of a playoff berth.
It wasn’t a good performance from the Arizona Coyotes, outshot 40-22 in a 6-4 loss that prevented them from keeping pace with the Minnesota Wild. Arizona remains in 10th the West, five points back of the Nashville Predators with one additional game to play before the end of the season.
Jaromir Jagr scored two goals — his 741st and 742nd — to move into sole possession of third place in the league’s all-time goal-scoring list. The performance allowed the Florida Panthers to come away with the home win against the Winnipeg Jets, and the newest Canadian franchise’s slide has them just four points out of last place.
That 30th-overall position now belongs to the Edmonton Oilers, after they fell on home ice to the Colorado Avalanche. With just 22 games remaining to add to their 50-point season total, it’s looking good for the Oilers to claim one of the top picks in this year’s draft, and finally be able to add that missing elite forward the team has been needing.
Here are today’s games featuring the teams sitting more than one spot outside of a playoff position:
12:30 PM EST / 9:30 AM PST
Buffalo Sabres
Visitors: Pittsburgh Penguins
Record: 24-28-7
Position: 14th in Eastern Conference; 26th overall
Ideal result: Overtime win for BUF
How to watch: GameCentre Live/NHL.tv
With a win, the Buffalo Sabres can move to just three points back of the team that sits 13th in the East. They’ll face a Penguins team that will be determined to make up for yesterday’s loss.
7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST
Calgary Flames
Host: Anaheim Ducks
Record: 26-28-3
Position: 12th in Western Conference; 25th overall
Ideal result: Win for CGY
How to watch: Sportsnet E/O/W/P/Now
The Calgary Flames snapped a three-game losing streak in their last contest, and now have a .500 record over their last 10. That pace will be good enough to pull them up through ranks over the remainder of the season. A win tonight would require the Flames to end the four-game winning streak of an Anaheim Ducks squad charging to the top of the Pacific Division.
Carolina Hurricanes
Visitors: Tampa Bay Lightning
Record: 27-22-10
Position: 10th in East; 19th overall
Ideal result: Overtime win for CAR
How to watch: GameCentre Live/NHL.tv
After being one of the best teams for quite some time now, the Carolina Hurricanes can finally move into a tie for the final playoff spot with a win and some help from the Sabres.
10:00 PM EST / 7:00 PM PST
Vancouver Canucks
Visitors: Colorado Avalanche
Record: 22-24-12
Position: 11th in West; 24th overall
Ideal result: Anything better than another loss for VAN
How to watch: CBC, Sportsnet E/O/W/P/Now
The Vancouver Canucks are the worst team in the NHL right now, with a league-high four losses in a row, and a paltry five points from their last 10 outings. With a loss tonight, they could find themselves right near the bottom when they play their next game on Thursday.
