Additionally, with teams now beginning to clinch playoff spots, no team that has clinched can finish behind a team that hasn\u2019t. <\/p>\n
Record: 52-16-11, +94
Last Week: 1st (0)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 1st
Scott\u2019s Rank: 2nd<\/p>\n
Hunter: Good teams beat bad teams, which is what the Avalanche did last week against the Blues and Flames. We\u2019ll let the overtime loss to the Golden Knights slide, especially after seeing Jared Bednar take a puck to the face that will keep him away from behind the bench until the playoffs. Another piece expected to return is Cale Makar, who has been out since March 30 with an upper-body injury. He will be a major factor if Colorado plans to raise more than just a Presidents\u2019 Trophy banner next October.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Record: 52-22-6, +56
Last Week: 2nd (0)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 2nd
Scott\u2019s Rank: 1st<\/p>\n
Hunter: On one hand, the Hurricanes have won 10 of their last 13 games and are 19-7-0 since Feb 1, and will likely have home-ice advantage through the playoffs unless they face the Avs in the final. On the other hand, Brandon Bussi and Frederik Andersen have a combined save percentage that hovers around .880 and everyone not named Andrei Svechnikov has been inconsistent the last few weeks. They\u2019re an intriguing group in that I can see them either lifting the Stanley Cup or losing to the Senators in Round 1.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Scott: As much as I don\u2019t like the Bruins as an overall team, even they have the ingredients to upset the Canes like we\u2019ve seen in the past: an elite goaltender and high-end scorer. I obviously really like the Canes if I put them over the Avs, but I\u2019m not confident in them this season.<\/p>\n
Record: 49-25-6, +60
Last Week: 3rd (0)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 3rd
Scott\u2019s Rank: 3rd<\/p>\n
Hunter: With three straight regulation losses to division opponents, the Lightning go into the final week of the regular season in the third Atlantic Division spot. Still, games against the struggling Red Wings and Rangers could help them clinch the division if the Sabres and Habs lose. Also, did anyone see their game against Montreal last week? Doctor, I need seven games of that, stat!\u00a0<\/p>\n
Record: 48-20-12, +51
Last Week: 5th (+1)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 4th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 4th<\/p>\n
Scott: The Stars on another solid run of play heading into the playoffs, as they\u2019ve won three games in a row and four of their last five. But perhaps most importantly, they drew first blood in the preview to their first-round series against the Wild, taking the game by a score of 5-4. But there was some bad news coming from that win, with Miro Heiskanen sustaining an injury. He\u2019s only missing the rest of the regular season at this point, but he\u2019s also not a certainty for the playoffs. If he\u2019s out, that\u2019s a huge blow to Dallas\u2019 chances against Minnesota, never mind a deep playoff run.<\/p>\n
Hunter: I was cold on the Stars for early chunks of the season, but apart from a string of losses in late March, the Stars have been phenomenal in the second half of 2025-26. Jason Robertson and Wyatt Johhnston continue to score at an elite level, and Mikko Rantanen is primed for another Hall of Fame-worthy postseason run. But if Heiskanen is out for their first-round series against Minnesota, then all bets are off (except the bet I would place on Minnesota to take it in six).\u00a0<\/p>\n
Record: 45-23-12, +34
Last Week: 4th (-1)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 6th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 5th<\/p>\n
Scott: As mentioned before, the Stars and Wild got a first taste of their playoff series when Minnesota lost 5-4 to Dallas. The loss snapped a four-game winning streak, and then the Wild followed it up with another loss to the Predators. Jesper Wallstedt is returning to his early-season form at the right time, as he\u2019s had a .900 save percentage or more in eight of nine games since the start of March. With Filip Gustavsson finishing below .900 in six of his last eight games, it\u2019s certainly making the goaltending conversation interesting going into the playoffs.<\/p>\n
Record: 48-23-10, +29
Last Week: 6th (0)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 5th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 7th<\/p>\n
Hunter: The Canadiens have been one of hockey\u2019s best teams in the final quarter of the season, and more importantly, one of the most fun to watch. Seriously, the pop when Cole Caufield scored his 50th goal of the season \u2014 the first Hab to do so in nearly 40 years \u2014 sounded like when Stone Cold Steve Austin helped Mick Foley defeat The Rock to win the WWF Championship in 1999.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
This league is better when Montreal is good, and fans of all teams should be ecstatic that one of hockey\u2019s most passionate franchises is back in the hunt. Let this be a lesson to fans and pundits who follow the Leafs: The Canadiens play in one of the most pressure-packed markets in professional sports \u2014 and they do it all in two languages \u2014 a team that\u2019s sewn into Quebecois culture like a hockey sweater. For god\u2019s sake, they wrote a book about the religion of Les Habitants called The Hockey Sweater and every Canadian had to read it in school.<\/p>\n
You know why pressure is a good thing? Because it creates diamonds, the things on Stanley Cup rings.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Scott: In defense of the Leafs, they didn\u2019t see Montreal\u2019s success coming this season.<\/p>\n
Record: 49-23-8, +44
Last Week: 7th (0)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 7th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 6th<\/p>\n
Hunter: Three wins in three games last week give the Sabres a puncher\u2019s chance at winning their first division title in 16 seasons. What\u2019s fascinating is they\u2019re 16th in the league in even-strength expected goals at 49.9%, but they\u2019re right near the top in terms of actual production and it feels like they\u2019re the better team on any given night. I\u2019m fascinated to see how they perform in the first round, and I\u2019m not ashamed to admit that I\u2019ll be rooting for them as one of hockey\u2019s feel-good stories in 2025-26.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Record: 41-24-16, +27
Last Week: 8th (0)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 9th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 8th<\/p>\n
Scott: We\u2019ll talk more about what could have been the final matchup between Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin on Sunday. But if there\u2019s one thing I loved about that opening faceoff, where Dylan Strome kicked himself out to let Ovi draw against Sid, it\u2019s that Crosby could have given Ovechkin his moment, but he didn\u2019t. He played that faceoff like it was a key defensive draw in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final and didn\u2019t give Ovi a chance. If there\u2019s anything that sums up Crosby, it\u2019s that.<\/p>\n
Anyways, the Penguins are officially in the playoffs. I\u2019m not only excited to see Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang (along with an Erik Karlsson in better form) get at least one more kick at the can together, but I\u2019m intrigued to see how the depth carries over into the playoffs. All these unsung heroes have been a driving force for Pittsburgh, so if they can continue that momentum, I like the Penguins\u2019 chances in a wide-open Metropolitan Division.<\/p>\n
Hunter: The likes of Jon Cooper, Lindy Ruff and Jared Bednar will likely get some votes for the Jack Adams Award. But Dan Muse really deserves his flowers. Taking over a Penguins squad that\u2019s missed the playoffs for three straight seasons and replacing a two-time Stanley Cup champion in Mike Sullivan is no small feat. So to come in and juggle a handful of soon-to-be retired Hall of Famers is rather impressive.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Record: 43-27-11, +30
Last Week: 9th (0)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 8th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 9th<\/p>\n
Scott: With how this season has gone for Ottawa, it\u2019s so nice to see them pull through and make the playoffs. Earlier this week, I identified them as a team playing Cup-caliber hockey this season<\/a>. So it would have been a shame for them to miss the playoffs. Seeing Linus Ullmark persevere through his mental health struggles has been an underrated story. I\u2019m very curious to see who Ottawa faces in the first round. They should be the favourites against a good chunk of the second-tier contenders in the East, but even against the Hurricanes or Lightning, the Sens could be a foil to them.<\/p>\n Hunter: As I mentioned in my blurb on Carolina, Ottawa could give them a real fight. Travis Green has them playing about as disciplined a level of hockey as I\u2019ve seen at the NHL level; it reminds me of the University of New Brunswick\u2019s men\u2019s hockey program, or some of Dale Hunter\u2019s relentless defensive squads of the mid-to-late 2000s. They have \u201cfirst round upset that never really felt like an upset\u201d written all over them.\u00a0<\/p>\n Scott:\u00a0Ah, yes, the commonly known University of New Brunswick teams.<\/p>\n Record: 37-26-17, +8 Hunter: Maybe all the credit shouldn\u2019t go to John Tortorella for the team winning five of six since he took over, but we\u2019ll give him his flowers. Their win over the first-place Avs was impressive, as they dominated in both possession and expected goals. They\u2019ve scored so much during this stretch that they finally have a positive goal differential. Vegas can guarantee a Pacific Division title if they win their last two games against Winnipeg and Seattle.\u00a0<\/p>\n Record: 44-27-10, +18 Scott: They actually did it. The Bruins are always inevitable, and this season may have been the biggest proving point. They had no business being in the playoff conversation, and yet they did so, and not just because of strong play from David Pastrnak, Jeremy Swayman and Charlie McAvoy. Somehow, a team notorious for its poor center depth post-Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci somehow managed to solve that problem. Elias Lindholm and Casey Mittelstadt have improved this season, Fraser Minten has been everything Boston hoped they were getting in the Carlo trade, and in a pinch, Marat Khusnutdinov has some solid chemistry with Pastrnak. I still think this team is an easy out in the playoffs, but you never know with them. They just never die.<\/p>\n Record: 40-30-10, +9 Scott: I keep forgetting how much Evan Bouchard is running away with the defensive scoring race. It\u2019s a shame he probably won\u2019t get a ton of Norris Trophy consideration because of his reputation as a one-way defenseman, but he should at least be a finalist. I can understand voting for Zach Werenski or Moritz Seider because they are stronger two-way defenders. But Cale Makar has been less productive, on a better team, and just as mediocre defensively.<\/p>\n Record: 42-32-6, +28 Hunter: The Mammoth clinched their first playoff berth<\/a> since the franchise relocated from Arizona and will likely face the Pacific Division winner in round one, a matchup that might work in their favor. Dylan Guenther has been on fire, scoring in five of his last eight games and recording his 40th of the season over the weekend. Now let\u2019s find out how loud Utah fans can get in the big dance.\u00a0<\/p>\n Record: 41-27-12, +4 Scott: Porter Martone has been the injection this Flyers team needed at the right time. He\u2019s got three goals and seven points already in seven games, and Philadelphia has been good enough to maintain its playoff spot in that time. Now, they just need to win one of their remaining two games to secure a spot, although Carolina and Montreal aren\u2019t easy outs. That said, the Canes are already resting players, so that may be Philly\u2019s opportunity, but regardless, they control their own fate for the time being.<\/p>\n Record: 34-26-19, -21 Scott: The Kings picked as good a time as any to get hot, as they have points in six straight games (5-0-1) and are hanging on to that final playoff spot. The one loss was the one game they needed to win, a 5-4 shootout loss to the Predators, who are just a point behind them, but at least Los Angeles has as easy a remaining schedule as you\u2019ll find this week, playing Seattle, Vancouver, and Calgary. Just four points get the Kings in, assuming Nashville doesn\u2019t drop points, so it\u2019s time to bunker down. Do it for Anze!<\/p>\n Speaking of Kopitar, it felt a bit weird how he had to do a whole retirement appreciation thing with a few games remaining, and likewise with Ovechkin. I know the NHL doesn\u2019t know if some players are retiring when they make the schedule, but I think they need to plan around the teams with aging superstars like Kopitar, Ovechkin and even Crosby and give them the final game at home, even if they end up not retiring.<\/p>\n Hunter: Agreed with the last point: it feels like baseball always schedules teams with future Hall of Famers who are retiring to play at home on the last day of the regular season.<\/p>\n As for Kopitar: I just want to see him and Drew Doughty take one more stab at playing in the Stanley Cup Playoffs together. It\u2019s been a long time since they\u2019ve won a playoff series (2014, when they won the whole damn thing) but it feels like they should get at least one more swan song in Hollywood. Sure, they\u2019ll probably get smoked by the Avalanche in four or five games, but at least they\u2019ll say they made it to the dance.\u00a0<\/p>\n Record: 42-32-6, -35 Hunter: Is there a streakier team than the Ducks this season? Anaheim has squandered its lead on the Pacific Division with eight losses in its last nine games, and there\u2019s a non-zero chance it will completely blow it and miss the playoffs. Or they could win the division, and we forget everything that happened. Hockey!\u00a0<\/p>\n Record: 42-30-9, +18 Scott: This week felt a bit all over the place with regard to Ovechkin\u2019s future in the NHL. He mentions on Wednesday that he still hasn\u2019t made a decision about his future after this season, and yet flash forward to Sunday, and they\u2019re treating it like his last game (shoutout to the Caps\u2019 game ops crew and how they found a way to spin the celebrations as Crosby and Ovi\u2019s 100th game against each other). Again, he hasn\u2019t decided anything yet, but it does kind of feel like he\u2019s ready to call it a career.<\/p>\n And maybe he still gets some more playoff games in. Washington\u2019s chances are slim, as they need the Flyers to lose out, but they\u2019re not out of the race just yet!\u00a0<\/p>\n Record: 40-29-12, +1 Hunter: It\u2019s safe to say the Blue Jackets ran out of gas as the season winds down, and if you\u2019ve seen the price of gas lately, they couldn\u2019t afford to refill the tank. Columbus has lost nine of their last 12 games \u2014 eight of which have come in regulation \u2014 and too many of those defeats have seen it score just two goals or fewer. Still, Rick Bowness has highlighted that there are good building blocks in place for 2026-27.\u00a0<\/p>\n Scott: I wonder how much this stretch will impact Werenski\u2019s Norris chances. Not because I think team performance should factor into it, but because his struggles likely impacted the team\u2019s struggles down the stretch. That 12-game stretch Hunter referred to saw Werenski get just six points, and he went pointless in eight of them. With how competitive the Norris ballot is this year, it might be enough to sink his chances at winning.<\/p>\n Record: 38-32-10, -20 Scott:\u00a0The Predators have just been a bit colder than the Kings (5-4-1 vs. 6-1-3 in their last 10 games), and that may come down to the difference between Nashville making and missing the playoffs. They\u2019re only a point behind, but they have two games remaining vs. Los Angeles\u2019 three, and after talking about how easy L.A.\u2019s final games are, the Preds have the Sharks and Ducks left. They aren\u2019t world-beaters, but better than what the Kings are facing, and both San Jose and Anaheim are still in the hunt for a playoff spot.<\/p>\n Record: 35-32-12, -18 Scott: The Jets aren\u2019t mathematically out of the playoffs yet, but with either one loss from them or a win from the Kings, it\u2019s over. It\u2019s crazy to look back at last year and see three of the four division winners poised to miss the playoffs, but it shouldn\u2019t be a massive surprise either, especially with how unsustainable Toronto, Washington and Winnipeg\u2019s play was.<\/p>\n Hunter: There were far too many losses for Winnipeg at the start of the year, which, in hindsight, makes them falling short of a playoff spot even more frustrating for Jets fans. I\u2019ll be curious to see what GM Kevin Cheveldayoff does with this group, or if ownership decides to go in a different direction after Cheveldayoff has spent 15 seasons in the role.\u00a0<\/p>\n Scott: This is the Jets we\u2019re talking about. They\u2019ll do absolutely nothing except rearrange some deck chairs on the Titanic and call it a summer.<\/p>\n Sorry, just to clarify, this is the Winnipeg Jets. The New York Jets do stuff, it\u2019s just bad stuff.<\/p>\n Record: 41-30-9, -9 Scott: Another season has gone by, and the Red Wings are once again outside of a playoff spot. Imagine telling a hockey fan 10 years ago that the team that had just made the playoffs for 25 straight seasons would miss for 10 after that, but here we are. It sounds like Steve Yzerman\u2019s job is safe for now, which is a bit surprising. I get that he has the legacy there and he\u2019s good friends with Chris Ilitch, but you\u2019d think there\u2019d be a bit more urgency for this team to take the next step. Next season will be Little Caesars Arena\u2019s 10th season, and they have yet to host a Stanley Cup Playoff game! That sounds like a poor return on investment!<\/p>\n Also, to all the Red Wings fans still mad at Hunter for calling the team a playoff lock earlier in the season, just know that some of you already got him. <\/p>\n Hunter: You have me mistaken with Jimmy Hoffa, who is buried under MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, where the NFL\u2019s New York Giants and New York Jets play. Jeez, get your union advocates right!\u00a0<\/p>\n In all likelihood, I feel like Yzerman will take the path of \u201cwe\u2019re not firing you, we\u2019re giving you a promotion,\u201d and become a president or vice president of hockey operations, then hire a new GM to take a crack at this lineup.\u00a0<\/p>\n Record: 37-34-8, -44 Hunter: The Sharks started the week with promise after defeating the Blackhawks, but three straight losses to division foes, including a shootout defeat to the last-place Canucks, likely sealed their fate. Perhaps it was greedy to expect a team that\u2019s been terrible for several seasons to make the playoffs off the back of a 19-year-old. Then again, we expected Canada to win an Olympic gold medal under the same logic. Macklin Celebrini will get Hart Trophy votes, and even if San Jose misses the playoffs, those votes are well deserved.\u00a0<\/p>\n Record: 43-33-5, -7 Hunter: The Islanders were eliminated from playoff contention<\/a> over the weekend. If you told fans they would compete for a postseason berth right after selecting first overall, they would take it. But losing six of their last seven games \u2014 all in regulation! \u2014 leaves a sour taste in their mouths.<\/p>\n Still, it feels like GM Mathieu Darche was OK with that result after firing Patrick Roy and hiring Pete DeBoer <\/a>with just four games left in the season. Bringing in DeBoer, who has found playoff success in the past, signals to both fans and players that 2026-27 will be a step forward on Long Island.\u00a0<\/p>\n Scott: At the very least, DeBoer got a feel for how the team works and what needs improvement, and can go into the summer with a bit more knowledge than he would have if he were just hired after the season ended.<\/p>\n Record: 42-36-3, -20 Hunter: The firing of Tom Fitzgerald signaled the end of an era in New Jersey that saw the Devils set a franchise record for wins and points in a single season (2022-23), but just two playoff appearances and one playoff series win. Rumors are already swirling about who will replace the two roles of president and general manager (by god, that\u2019s Brendan Shanahan\u2019s music!<\/a>). In the meantime, the Devils aren\u2019t bad enough for a good draft pick and they don\u2019t have a 30-goal scorer*.<\/p>\n
Last Week: 13th (+3)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 10th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 11th<\/p>\n
Last Week: 11th (0)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 12th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 10th<\/p>\n
Last Week: 12th (0)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 11th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 12th<\/p>\n
Last Week: 14th (+1)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 13th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 13th<\/p>\n
Last Week: 10th (-4)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 14th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 14th<\/p>\n
Last Week: 20th (+5)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 16th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 16th<\/p>\n
Last Week: 15th (-1)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 15th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 19th<\/p>\n
Last Week: 19th (+2)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 20th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 15th<\/p>\n
Last Week: 17th (-1)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 18th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 17th<\/p>\n
Last Week: 21st (+2)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 17th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 18th<\/p>\n
Last Week: 24th (+4)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 21st
Scott\u2019s Rank: 20th<\/p>\n
Last Week: 16th (-5)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 19th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 22nd<\/p>\n
Last Week: 25th (+3)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 23rd
Scott\u2019s Rank: 21st<\/p>\n
Last Week: 18th (-5)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 22nd
Scott\u2019s Rank: 24th<\/p>\n
Last Week: 23rd (-1)
Hunter\u2019s Rank: 24th
Scott\u2019s Rank: 23rd<\/p>\n
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<\/a><\/p>\n