How Will The Playoff Teams Finish?

As of last night, the West continues to be a major test...

...the Canucks and Flames have clinched playoff spots...but the battle for NE bragginrites (and a home ice seed) remains...

After their loss to the Sharks, the Oilers have little hope as they'd slipped to five points out.

It's down to the Ducks, Blues and Preds for the last two, though in principle they can all catch the Jackets, and even the Hawks.

In the East, the invitations to the feast haven't been printed yet, with a few places still not set.

The cagey Canes have moved the goalposts...

The Pingu Posse are ridin' hard...the Flyers are floundering.

Will Tortorella's Fellas fail in the final flurry? Will Pete's Panthers pump up for a playoff push? Are the Habbies happy as they gain with Gainey?

This weekend, the stakes are raised again in Playoff Poker.

:afro:

This is by no means scientific, but based on watching the teams play since the last set of predictions, I'm taking a stab at this...

IMHO the last three/four games--for most of the teams--will be hard fought and very close...with more than a few OTs/SOs. So, in many cases I expected that going .500 or .600 would be the norm, with no teams winning all of their remaining contests.

I think the Rangers will beat Montreal Tuesday night, and the Flames will beat the Canucks.

Something also tells me that Jay Bouwmeester may not come up big when it's needed most...and the Panthers will fall short as a result, allowing the Rangers to back in.

Just my gut feeling.

Here we go...


EAST
1. Boston 118
2. Washington 107
3. New Jersey 105
4. Carolina 99
5. Philadelphia 99
6. Pittsburgh 97
7. Montreal 95
8. NY Rangers 92
----------------------
9. Florida 91
10. Buffalo 88
11. Ottawa 82
12. Toronto 81
13. Atlanta 78
14. Tampa 67
15. NY Islanders 65

WEST

1. San Jose 119
2. Detroit 115
3. Calgary 99
4. Chicago 101
5. Vancouver 98
6. Columbus 93
7. Anaheim 91
8. St Louis 90
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9. Nashville 89
10. Edmonton 86
11. Minnesota 85
12. Dallas 82
13. Phoenix 78
14. Los Angeles 77
15. Colorado 66 70

And we all know what they say about predictions...

The standings could look quite different tomorrow morning...

In the East:

The Devils can draw even with the Capitals.

Carolina has a chance to pass Philly.

Pittsburgh can catch the Flyers and/or Canes.

Montreal can pass Pittsburgh.

The Rangers can be caught and passed by the Panthers.

In the West:

The Canucks and Flames can trade places.

The Preds can catch the Ducks, as can the Blues, and/or the Preds and Blues can swap spots.

Let's see...did I miss anything?

:*:

All Quiet On the Eastern Front...

The order of business remains the same.

The Flyers have clinched and are still level with the Canes.

The Pens have clinched.

The Habs are hobbled and wobbling.

The Rangers' revive their drive to stay alive.

The Panthers are left behind...with two must wins facing them.

In the West, the battles are still raging.