* NHL Stats takes a snapshot at the standings storylines four weeks after play resumed following the 4 Nations Face-Off, and four weeks before opening night of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs (April 19).
* While the Jets are idle on a 14-game Saturday that includes primetime national showdowns on ABC, ESPN+ and Sportsnet’s Hockey Night in Canada, they can become the first Western Conference team to clinch a berth into the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs (pending the results of two contests).
* Among the standings shuffles that could happen Saturday are the owners of Wild Card 2 in both conferences, the holders of the No. 2 seed in the Pacific Division, as well as the entire top-three of the Atlantic Division.
* Sidney Crosby (1-1—2) put up a two-point performance and climbed an NHL list as the Penguins extended their home point streak versus the Blue Jackets to 17 games and moved within six points of the Eastern Conference’s final Wild Card spot.
4 WEEKS REMOVED FROM 4 NATIONS, 4 WEEKS TO GO UNTIL PLAYOFFS
Four weeks removed from the resumption of play after the 4 Nations Face-Off break and with four weeks until the Stanley Cup Playoffs begin April 19, a snapshot of what has changed since (entering play Feb. 22) and what is at stake down the stretch:
Western Conference Wild Card Race
*Four Weeks Ago*: Colorado (WC 1) and Vancouver (WC 2) held eight and three-point advantages, respectively, on the first team outside the bracket (Calgary), and St. Louis was eight points back of playoff spot.
*Four Weeks Until Playoffs*: Minnesota has occupied Wild Card 1 since March 7, and three teams have taken turns at Wild Card 2 (CGY: 13 days; VAN: 13 days; STL: 2 days) including St. Louis who moved into the spot with a victory vs. Vancouver on Thursday and have the conference’s top points percentage since 4 Nations (.786). The gap between Wild Card 2 and the first team outside the bracket has been three points or less the entire season in the West, including a margin of 2 points or less for 96% of game days since opening night in North America (and every day since Feb. 23).
Pacific Division
*Four Weeks Ago*: Edmonton (P1) sat in first place by virtue of a tiebreaker with Vegas (P2), with each club holding a seven-point advantage over Los Angeles (P3).
*Four Weeks Until Playoffs*:\ Vegas overtook Edmonton on the first day back and has held the No. 1 seed since as it pursues its fourth division title in its eighth NHL season (a feat accomplished by only one franchise to date: the Oilers had 6 in their first eight campaigns from 1979-80 to 1986-87). The Golden Knights have had an advantage as high as six points over the No. 2 seed in that span, but the gap between first and third now stands at only five points with pivotal matchups on the horizon (EDM faces both clubs again this season: April 1 at VGK, April 5 at LAK & April 14 vs. LAK).
Central Division
*Four Weeks Ago*: Dallas (C2) and Minnesota (C3) were separated by two points as the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds behind division leader Winnipeg (C1), with four and two-point advantages on fourth-place Colorado (WC1).
*Four Weeks Until Playoffs*: Colorado slipped as many as eight points back of Dallas for second place in the Central, but has narrowed that gap to three entering Saturday by posting the second-highest points percentage in the West since 4 Nations (.731). The Avalanche displaced the Wild for the No. 3 seed on March 7 and have held the position since. Though they are idle Saturday, Winnipeg will become the first Western Conference team to clinch a playoff spot if the Blues lose to the Blackhawks in any fashion and the Canucks lose to the Rangers in regulation.
Eastern Conference Wild Card Race
*Four Weeks Ago*: Four teams were separated by four points in the Wild Card race, with Ottawa (WC1) and Detroit (WC2) holding two and one-point advantages, respectively, over both Columbus and Boston.
*Four Weeks Until Playoffs*: Five teams have held a Wild Card spot in the East since play resumed, including a span over the past two weeks in which Wild Card 2 has changed hands five times – with its current holders, the Canadiens, overcoming a six-point deficit since 4 Nations to move into that position. Among the teams hot on their heels are the Islanders, who last held a playoff spot Nov. 19, but are within two points of the bracket entering play. Overall, the Senators have spent the most time in an Eastern Conference Wild Card spot since resumption (OTT: 20 days; CBJ: 18 days; DET: 10 days; MTL: 4 days; NYR: 4 days), and only two of six teams from Wild Card 1 to four points out have made the playoffs since 2022 (NYI & NYR).
Atlantic Division
*Four Weeks Ago*: Reigning No. 1 seed and Stanley Cup champion Florida (A1) sat atop the division with a three-point edge on Toronto (A2) and five-point lead on Tampa Bay (A3), who both had two games in hand.
*Four Weeks Until Playoffs*: Toronto has held every seed from No. 1-3 since the break and the top three spots are now divided by only two points. Any of the three clubs (FLA, TOR or TBL) could finish the day as the No. 1 seed – a position held by either Florida (80 game days) or Toronto (67 game days) since the first Hockey Night in Canada of the season (Oct. 12).
Metropolitan Division
*Four Weeks Ago*: Washington (M1), a team that clinched the last playoff spot during its final game of the 2023-24 campaign and went winless in the First Round, held a 10-point cushion ahead of Carolina (M2) who was just two points up on New Jersey (M3).
*Four Weeks Until Playoffs*: Carolina has soared since the break, posting a top-three points percentage in that span (.750) and entering Saturday with the best “last 10 games” record of any club (9-1-0 since Feb. 26). While widening their lead in the pursuit of a playoff spot and home ice in the First Round, the Hurricanes have actually lost ground on the Capitals who hold a 12-point lead entering their showdown with fellow No. 1 seed Florida on Saturday. The late-season pursuits are aplenty in Washington (the only club with a playoff spot locked up so far) as The Gr8 Chase is intertwined with the club’s pursuit of a 14th division title, fifth conference title and fourth Presidents’ Trophy.
NATIONAL GAMES TAKE SPOTLIGHT WITH 4 WEEKS UNTIL PLAYOFFS BEGIN
Five of six games on the nighttime slate are national telecasts:
* Detroit at Vegas (8 p.m. ET): ABC Hockey Saturday moves to primetime in the United States as the first-place Golden Knights (40-20-8, 88 points) look to pad their lead atop the Pacific Division against a Red Wings (32-30-6, 70 points) squad looking to move closer to a Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. The Red Wings won 3-0 when these clubs met six days ago in Detroit, but Jack Eichel (4 points from 600), Mark Stone (4 assists from 400) and company are happy on The Strip where Vegas ranks second in the NHL (tied) with 25 home wins in 2024-25 – four shy of the highest total in club history.
* Toronto at Nashville (7 p.m. ET): For the past five days, only two points have separated the top three teams in the Atlantic Division and Saturday could produce a major shakeup as any of them could finish the day as the No. 1, No. 2 or No. 3 seed. With Florida and Tampa Bay playing at 5 p.m. ET, Toronto will know before the end of the first period where they could end up as they vie for a first-place finish, having spent 67 game days in that position this season. Toronto is one of four teams that has held that spot since opening night in North America, along with Florida (80 game days), Tampa Bay (Oct. 11) and Ottawa (Oct. 10).
* Colorado at Montreal (7 p.m. ET): Montreal (33-27-8, 74 points) could know by puck drop if they’ll end the day in Wild Card 2 – a loss by the Islanders (4 p.m. ET vs. CGY) guarantees the Canadiens would end the day in that seed – but also have a chance to move within one point of division rival Ottawa (36-27-5, 77 points) for Wild Card 1. The Canadiens (.792) top the NHL in points percentage since the 4 Nations Face-Off break, with each of their next two opponents also among the top five in that span (COL: .731 & STL: .786).
* Ottawa at New Jersey (7 p.m. ET): One week ago, the Senators staged a comeback win on Hockey Night in Canada to push their winning streak to six games and improve to 77 points – a five-point advantage in Wild Card 1. Still holding that position with a 7-2-1 record in their past 10 games, the Senators (36-27-5, 77 points) remain at 77 points with three clubs within five points of them – including two who are chasing down the Devils (37-27-6, 80 points) for the No. 3 seed in the Metropolitan Division. New Jersey has held that position for more than two months (since Jan. 20).
* Seattle at Edmonton (10 p.m. ET): Locked in a battle for home ice and aiming for their sixth consecutive playoff berth, the Oilers host the Kraken – against whom they have won eight straight games dating to 2022-23 (Edmonton’s longest active winning streak against one opponent). The Oilers (8 days) and Kings (2 days) have both spent time as the No. 2 seed in the Pacific Division over the past 10 days and could meet in the First Round for a fourth straight postseason (that matchup has been penciled in every day for the past month, since Vegas overtook Edmonton for first place coming out of the 4 Nations Face-Off break).
QUICK CLICKS
* Wizards guard Jordan Poole rocks red Alex Ovechkin jersey before game
* NHL EDGE stats: 5 reasons for Blues resurgence
* John Tavares continuing to hold off Father Time for Maple Leafs
* Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid each out up to a week for Oilers
CROSBY HELPS POWER PENGUINS TO VICTORY AT PPG PAINTS ARENA
Sidney Crosby (1-1—2) factored on two goals and Alex Nedeljkovic made 44 saves – including a highlight-reel blocker save with less than four minutes remaining in regulation – to help the Penguins (29-32-10, 68 points) defeat the Blue Jackets (31-29-9, 71 points) and move within six points of the idle Canadiens (33-27-8, 74 points) for the final Wild Card spot in the East.
* Crosby scored to record his 15th career 25-goal season and became just the second active player with at least that many, following Alex Ovechkin (19). The Penguins captain, who climbed an NHL list with his first-period assist, also extended his home point streak to 12 games (7-11—18 in 12 GP) – the fifth longest in NHL history by a player age 37 or older, behind Brendan Shanahan (13 GP in 2005-06), Mario Lemieux (13 GP in 2002-03), Adam Oates (13 GP in 2001-02) and Johnny Bucyk (13 GP in 1974-75).
* The Penguins extended their home point streak versus the Blue Jackets to 17 games (16-0-1 dating to Dec. 21, 2015), which is their second longest versus a club in franchise history behind an 18-game stretch versus the Jets/Thrashers (18-0-0 from March 24, 2007 – Jan. 4, 2019).
NHL PODCASTS WEEKLY ROUNDUP
- 100% Hockey with Millard & Shannon (March 21): From the Bench to the Boardroom: Coaching Greatness with Spencer Carbery & Recapping the NHL's GM Meetings with Colin Campbell
- NHL Fantasy on Ice (March 20): Playoff push for Blues, Habs; Week 22 mailbag
* NHL Unscripted with Virk and Demers (March 20): Dylan Strome on the Gr8 Chase: Race for the Wild Card, celebrating St. Patrick's Day and Jason fixes 3-on-3 OT
* La Tasse de Café LNH (March 19): Parfum de séries éliminatoires à Montréal
* 100% Hockey with Millard & Shannon (March 19): The Final Call: Sam Rosen on His Legacy as the Voice of the New York Rangers
* NHL @TheRink (March 18): Alex Killorn joins; GM Meetings, Playoff push, Hurricanes win streak
* 100% Hockey with Millard & Shannon (March 18): Behind the Bench: Bruce Cassidy on His Role in Vegas and Playoff Insights
* Energy Line with Nate and JSB (March 18): Empty Netters pod's Dan and Chris Powers talk playoff race, Maple Leafs’ outlook
* Never Offside with Julie and Cat (March 18): Meredith Gaudreau joins; Johnny Hockey stories, Rowdy fans, Cat's Gr8 Chase experience
* NHL Fantasy on Ice (March 17): Fantasy playoff preview
* 100% Hockey with Millard & Shannon (March 17): Stars Align: Pete DeBoer on Mikko Rantanen's Role in Dallas and Their Playoff Aspirations
* NHL Forček (March 17): FORČEK. 6. díl: Pastrňák by měl být kapitánem Bruins
