Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz: Wild look to stay hot in West

Welcome to the Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz, a daily look at the races for the 2021 NHL postseason. There are 25 days left in the regular season and the races in each of the four divisions -- the seven-team Scotia North and eight-team MassMutual East, Discover Central and Honda West -- are tight. The top four teams in each of the four divisions qualify for the playoffs.
Here is a look at the NHL Standings and everything else that could impact the playoff picture.

Clinching scenarios for Saturday

The Carolina Hurricanes will clinch a playoff berth if they defeat the Florida Panthers in any fashion OR if they get one point against the Panthers AND the Detroit Red Wings defeat the Dallas Stars in regulation.
The Minnesota Wild will clinch a playoff berth if any of the following scenarios occur:
- The Wild defeat the San Jose Sharks in any fashion
- The Arizona Coyotes defeat the Los Angeles Kings in regulation
- The Wild get one point AND the Kings get one point
- The Wild get one point, the Kings win in overtime or shootout AND the Colorado Avalanche defeat the St. Louis Blues in regulation

On Tap

There are 11 games on the NHL schedule Saturday, all of them with playoff implications:
New Jersey Devils at Pittsburgh Penguins (12:30 p.m. ET; NHLN, ATTSN-PT, MSG+, NHL.TV): The Penguins, who are 5-1-1 against the Devils this season, try to sweep this three-game set after a 7-6 win Tuesday and a 5-1 win Thursday. Pittsburgh is tied with the New York Islanders for second in the East, one point behind the Washington Capitals.
Colorado Avalanche at St. Louis Blues (3 p.m. ET; NBC): The Avalanche are 5-1-0 against the Blues this season after a 4-2 win Thursday. Colorado is second in the West, two points behind the Vegas Golden Knights. The Blues are fifth in the division, one point behind the fourth-place Arizona Coyotes. Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon has scored 21 points (seven goals, 14 assists) in a 12-game point streak, the longest current streak in the NHL.
Montreal Canadiens at Calgary Flames (7 p.m. ET; CITY, SNE, SNW, TVAS, NHL.TV): The Flames try to make it two in a row against the Canadiens after a 4-2 win Friday. Calgary is fifth in the North, six points behind fourth-place Montreal.
Toronto Maple Leafs at Winnipeg Jets (7 p.m. ET; NHLN, CBC, SNO, SNP, NHL.TV): The top two teams in the North face off for the second straight game after the Maple Leafs defeated the Jets 5-3 on Thursday. First-place Toronto leads second-place Winnipeg by six points. Maple Leafs forward Joe Thornton needs one assist to become the seventh player all-time to reach 1,100 in the NHL.
Washington Capitals at New York Islanders (7 p.m. ET; ESPN+, MSG+, NBCSWA, NHL.TV): Zdeno Chara will become the fifth defenseman in NHL history to play 1,600 games when the Capitals try to extend their lead in the East. Washington has a one-point lead over New York and the Pittsburgh Penguins, who are tied for second.
Carolina Hurricanes at Florida Panthers (7 p.m. ET, BSFL, BSSO, NHL.TV): The Hurricanes will clinch a playoff berth if they defeat the Panthers in any fashion or if they get one point against the Panthers and the Detroit Red Wings defeat the Dallas Stars in regulation. Carolina is first in the Central, two points ahead of second-place Florida. Panthers defenseman Keith Yandle is expected to play his 915th consecutive game, passing Garry Unger for the second longest streak all-time behind Doug Jarvis (964 games).
Dallas Stars at Detroit Red Wings (7 p.m. ET; BSDET, BSSW+, NHL.TV): The Stars are fifth in the Central, four points behind the fourth-place Nashville Predators with three games in hand. The seventh-place Red Wings will be eliminated from playoff contention with a regulation loss.
Vegas Golden Knights at Anaheim Ducks (9 p.m. ET; ESPN+, BSSC, BSW+, ATTSN-RM, NHL.TV): The Golden Knights look to extend their winning streak to nine games, which would be the longest in their history and tied for longest in the NHL this season with the New York Islanders (Feb. 28-March 4). Vegas is first in the West, two points ahead of Colorado. Anaheim is eighth in the division, 10 points behind fourth-place Arizona.
Minnesota Wild at San Jose Sharks (9 p.m. ET; NBCSCA, BSN, BSWI, NHL.TV): The Wild look to extend their winning streak to seven after a 4-2 win at the Los Angeles Kings on Friday. They can clinch a playoff berth with a win of any kind against the Sharks. Minnesota is third in the West, three points behind second-place Colorado. The Sharks are sixth in the division, four points behind the Coyotes for fourth place.
Ottawa Senators at Vancouver Canucks (10 p.m. ET; CBC, SN, NHL.TV): The Senators have won three straight after a 3-0 victory against the Canucks on Thursday. Vancouver is sixth in the North, 10 points behind fourth-place Montreal with five games in hand.
Arizona Coyotes at Los Angeles Kings (10 p.m. ET; BSW, BSAZ+, NHL.TV): The Coyotes have lost two straight games and are 1-7-0 in their past eight. Arizona is fourth in the West, one point ahead of fifth-place St. Louis. The Kings are seventh in the division, trailing the Coyotes by five points.

About last night

There were five games Friday, each with playoff implications:
Buffalo Sabres 6, Boston Bruins 4: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 36 saves in his NHL debut and Sam Reinhart scored a hat trick for the Sabres, who ended the Bruins' six-game winning streak. It was Buffalo's first win in 11 games against Boston, having last defeated the Bruins on Dec. 16, 2018. Boston remained fourth in the East, three points behind the New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins, who are tied for second, and six points ahead of the fifth-place New York Rangers.
New York Rangers 4, Philadelphia Flyers 1: Pavel Buchnevich and
Alexis Lafreniere
each had a goal and an assist and Alexandar Georgiev made 26 saves for the Rangers, who bounced back after losing 3-2 to the Flyers on Thursday. The Rangers are fifth in the East and moved within six points of the fourth-place Bruins, who have two games in hand. The Flyers are sixth in the division and trail the Rangers by five points.
Nashville Predators 3, Chicago Blackhawks 1: Juuse Saros made 29 saves for the Predators, who won seven of the eight games (7-0-1) against the Blackhawks this season. Nashville is fourth in the Central, 10 points behind the third-place Tampa Bay Lightning and four points ahead of the fifth-place Dallas Stars, who have three games in hand. Chicago is sixth in the division, one point behind Dallas and five behind Nashville.
Calgary Flames 4, Montreal Canadiens 2: Sean Monahan scored the go-ahead goal at 5:58 of the third period and had two assists to help the Flames to their fifth win in seven games (5-2-0) against the Canadiens this season. The Flames are fifth in the North and moved within six points of the fourth-place Canadiens. The teams play again Saturday and Monday in Calgary.
Minnesota Wild 4, Los Angeles 2: Kirill Kaprizov scored two goals, giving him 21 on the season to lead all rookies, and Cam Talbot made 40 saves for the Wild, who have won six in a row. Minnesota is third in the West and moved within three points of the second-place Colorado Avalanche, who have two games in hand. The Kings are seventh in the division and remained five points behind the fourth-place Arizona Coyotes. Los Angeles has three games in hand on Arizona.

If playoffs started Saturday

Here is a look at the matchups for the first round as they stand entering games Saturday:
North Division
1. Toronto Maple Leafs vs. 4. Montreal Canadiens
2. Winnipeg Jets vs. 3. Edmonton Oilers
East Division
1. Washington Capitals vs. 4. Boston Bruins
2. Pittsburgh Penguins vs. 3. New York Islanders
Central Division
1. Carolina Hurricanes vs. 4. Nashville Predators
2. Florida Panthers vs. 3. Tampa Bay Lightning
West Division
1. Vegas Golden Knights vs. 4. Arizona Coyotes
2. Colorado Avalanche vs. 3. Minnesota Wild