UPDATED: All figures and schedules current through April 4
Get busy living or get busy dying. The Flyers needed to decide weeks ago but are apparently still on the fence about it. Thankfully, the teams around them seem to be dying much faster than the Flyers at the moment, not including the Canadiens. They are essentially in at this point. Here is a breakdown of the 9 8 teams battling for the final 5 4 spots in the Eastern Conference Playoffs. This started on March 23 but is updated nightly…
Playoff Picture
For the uninitiated, the NHL playoff format takes the top three teams from each division in each conference1 then the next two teams with the highest point total for eight teams total per conference. The Tampa Bay Lightning and Carolina Hurricanes currently lead the two divisions with the Buffalo Sabres and Montreal Canadiens in close pursuit for the Atlantic Division. The other four slots include two in the Metropolitan division and the two Wild Cards.
Flyers (M) – 88 Points – 36.4% Chance of Playoffs
Thanks to some great luck around them, the Flyers are right back in this thing. They are currently 1 point out of the final Metro spot, but have 2 games less advantage on the Islanders for the position. The wildcard is currently a 4-way tie at 88 points, but Philly loses the tiebreak to the Senators.
Individual Teams
The following are profiles of the nine teams with updated points and playoff odds. CLICK for remaining schedule…
Pittsburgh Penguins (Metro) – 94 Points – 99.2% Chance of Playoffs
- Head to Heads: 2
at Senators – 3/26at Islanders – 3/30vs Red Wings – 3/31- vs Capitals 4/11
- at Capitals – 4/12
- Stronger Opponents: 0
vs Colorado Avalanche – 3/24vs Dallas Stars – 3/28at Tampa Bay Lightning – 4/2
- Weaker Opponents: 3
vs Florida Panthers 4/4- vs Florida Panthers 4/5
- at New Jersey Devils 4/9
- at St. Louis Blues 4/14
Boston Bruins (A) – 94 points – 96.5% Chance of Playoffs
- Head to Heads: 2
at Blue Jackets – 3/29- at Flyers – 4/5
- at Blue Jackets – 4/12
- Stronger Opponents: 2
at Buffalo Sabres – 3/25vs Minnesota Wild – 3/28vs Dallas Stars – 3/31at Tampa Bay Lightning – 4/4- at Carolina Hurricanes – 4/7
- vs Tampa Bay Lightning – 4/11
- Weaker Opponents: 1
vs Toronto Maple Leafs – 3/24at Florida Panthers – 4/2- vs New Jersey Devils – 4/14
Ottawa Senators (A) – 88 Points – 50.6% Chance of Playoffs
- Head to Heads: 1
at Red Wings – 3/24vs Penguins – 3/26- at Islanders – 4/11
- Stronger Opponents: 2
at Tampa Bay Lightning – 3/28vs Buffalo Sabres – 4/2vs Minnesota Wild – 4/4- vs Carolina Hurricanes – 4/5
- vs Tampa Bay Lightning – 4/7
- Weaker Opponents: 3
at New York Rangers – 3/23at Florida Panthers – 3/31- vs Florida Panthers – 4/9
- at New Jersey Devils – 4/12
- vs Toronto Maple Leafs – 4/15
Detroit Red Wings (A) – 88 Points – 37.3% Chance of Playoffs
- Head to Heads: 2
vs Senators – 3/24vs Flyers – 3/28at Penguins – 3/31at Flyers – 4/2- vs Blue Jackets – 4/7
- vs Flyers – 4/9
- Stronger Opponents: 2
at Buffalo Sabres – 3/27- vs Minnesota Wild – 4/5
- at Tampa Bay Lightning – 4/13
- Weaker Opponents: 2
at New York Rangers – 4/4- vs New Jersey Devils – 4/11
- at Florida Panthers – 4/15
Philadelphia Flyers (M) – 88 Points – 36.4% Chance of Playoffs
- Head to Heads: 3
vs Blue Jackets – 3/24at Red Wings – 3/28at Capitals – 3/31vs Red Wings – 4/2at Islanders – 4/3- vs Bruins – 4/5
- at Red Wings 4/9
- vs Canadians 4/14
- Stronger Opponents: 1
vs Dallas Stars – 3/29- vs Carolina Hurricanes – 4/13
- Weaker Opponents: 2
vs Chicago Blackhawks – 3/26- at New Jersey Devils – 4/7
- at Winnipeg Jets – 4/11
New York Islanders (M) – 89 Points – 31.4% Chance of Playoffs
- Head to Heads: 2
vs Penguins – 3/30vs Flyers – 4/3- vs Senators – 4/11
- vs Canadians – 4/12
- Stronger Opponents: 1
vs Dallas Stars – 3/26at Buffalo Sabres – 3/31at Carolina Hurricanes – 4/4- vs Carolina Hurricanes – 4/14
- Weaker Opponents: 1
vs Chicago Blackhawks – 3/24vs Florida Panthers – 3/28- vs Toronto Maple Leafs – 4/9
Columbus Blue Jackets (M) – 88 Points – 25.5% Chance of Playoffs
- Head to Heads: 4
at Flyers – 3/24at Canadians – 3/26vs Bruins – 3/29- at Red Wings – 4/7
- at Canadians – 4/11
- vs Bruins – 4/12
- vs Capitals – 4/14
- Stronger Opponents: 0
vs Carolina Panthers – 3/31at Carolina Panthers – 4/2- at Buffalo Sabres – 4/9
- Weaker Opponents: 1
vs San Jose Sharks – 3/28vs Winnipeg Jets 4/4
Washington Capitals (M) – 87 Points – 23% Chance of Playoffs
- Head to Heads: 3
vs Flyers – 3/31- at Penguins – 4/11
- vs Penguins – 4/12
- at Blue Jackets – 4/14
- Stronger Opponents: 0
at Utah Mammoth – 3/26vs Buffalo Sabres – 4/4
- Weaker Opponents: 2
at St. Louis Blues – 3/24at Las Vegas Golden Knights – 3/28at New Jersey Devils – 4/2- at New York Rangers – 4/5
- at Toronto Maple Leafs – 4/8
Playoff Odds: Moneypuck.com
Photo: AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill
- This year the East is much more competitive than the West considering the Flyers current 80 point total would be good for 5th on the other side. ↩︎

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