March NHL News, Standings and Opinion (Week of 3/28)
By Jim Lynch
I cannot believe March is almost behind us! Today will be the last NHL standings update of the month of March and then we will be gearing up for April and eventually the end of the regular season.
The playoff race is heating up, and there are some interesting battles to follow throughout the league, like who makes it in with the wild card in the west and who will be the top three teams in the Atlantic Division.
The Boston Bruins are making a push for the third spot, in the Atlantic, and this race could go down to the end of the season. Let’s jump in with some standings and news from around the league!
Atlantic Division Standings:
Florida Panthers 44-15-6 94 Pts
Tampa Bay Lightning 41-18-6 88 Pts
Toronto Maple Leafs 41-19-5 87 Pts
Boston Bruins 41-19-5 87 Pts
Detroit Red Wings 26-32-8 60 Pts
Buffalo Sabres 23-33-10 56 Pts
Ottawa Senators 23-36-6 52 Pts
Montreal Canadiens 18-37-11 47 Pts
Division News
The Atlantic Division has a lot of favorites for the Stanley Cup, but only one team can come out on top. Some of the trade deadline moves the teams in the division made will help set them apart from their competitors, and we took a look and graded the moves from the Atlantic Division teams.
Metropolitan Division Standings:
Carolina Hurricanes 43-15-7 93 Pts
Pittsburgh Penguins 40-17-10 90 Pts
New York Rangers 42-19-5 89 Pts
Washington Capitals 32-29-10 84 Pts
Columbus Blue Jackets 32-29-5 69 Pts
New York Islanders 28-27-9 65 Pts
Philadelphia Flyers 21-34-11 53 Pts
New Jersey Devils 24-37-5 53 Pts
Division News
The big news out of the Metro has to be the big night from the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday. Beating the Detroit Red Wings 11-2 is the biggest win in the Salary Cap era and featured a night where all but three players got at least a point, and one of those players who missed out on the action was the goalie!
Central Division Standings:
Colorado Avalanche 46-14-6 98 Pts
Minnesota Wild 40-20-4 84 Pts
Nashville Predators 38-24-4 80 Pts
St. Louis Blues 35-20-9 79 Pts
Dallas Stars 36-25-3 75 Pts
Winnipeg Jets 32-25-10 74 Pts
Chicago Blackhawks 24-32-10 58 Pts
Arizona Coyotes 20-40-5 45 Pts
Division News
The Colorado Avalanche are the favorite to win the Stanley Cup and capture the Presidents Trophy, but that trophy has been a curse more than a blessing in years past. The Central has a lot of competitive teams including a tough race for the Wild Card spots that includes the Predators, Blues, and Stars.
Pacific Division Standings:
Calgary Flames 40-17-8 88 Pts
Los Angeles Kings 36-22-9 81 Pts
Edmonton Oilers 36-25-5 77 Pts
Vegas Golden Knights 36-28-4 76 Pts
Vancouver Canucks 32-26-9 73 Pts
San Jose Sharks 29-28-8 66 Pts
Anaheim Ducks 27-29-11 65 Pts
Seattle Kraken 20-39-6 46 Pts
Division News
The Pacific Division is a mixed bunch of teams as usual. The Calgary Flames look like the top team around but considering they will face off against a wild card team we could see them face the Vegas Golden Knights in round one which definitely is not a match made in heaven. Honestly, the pairing of LA and Edmonton looks like the strangest round one matchup in the league potentially considering neither team looks to be that competitive in the grand scheme of things.
The playoffs are a little over a month away and it definitely is going to be fun to watch!