NHL playoff standings: Who will win the Pacific Division?ESPN staffMar 8, 2026, 07:00 AM ETMultiple Authors
tamil yogi
The NHL schedule makers don’t always give us great matchups each night of the week. However, sometimes they outdo themselves.
Sunday features four bangers:
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The Minnesota Wild visit the Colorado Avalanche at 2 p.m. ET (TNT)
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An Evgeni Malkin-less Pittsburgh Penguins squad hosts the Boston Bruins at 4:30 p.m. ET (TNT)
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Two of the top Atlantic Division challengers square off as the Buffalo Sabres host the Tampa Bay Lightning at 6 p.m. ET (ESPN+)
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In the nightcap, two of the top Pacific Division contenders face off as the Edmonton Oilers visit the Vegas Golden Knights at 9:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)
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It’s no surprise that the Knights and Oilers are vying for the division crown, and this game is a “four-point swing” if one of the two can win in regulation. What’s a little more surprising is the fact that this game will begin with the Anaheim Ducks in the No. 1 spot in the Pacific. So how will this race shake out?
Anaheim plays the St. Louis Blues on Sunday, and it could open up a three-point standings lead on Vegas with a W (and a Vegas loss). Beyond that game, the Ducks have 19 games left in the campaign; they play the Oilers one more time (March 28) but have completed their slate against the Knights. Of those 19 remaining games, Anaheim plays against a team currently in playoff position just five times.
The Knights have 18 games left after the Sunday tilt against the Oilers, and 10 of them are against current playoff teams, including two more against Edmonton (March 26 and April 4). They also face the juggernaut Avalanche once and the near-juggernaut Dallas Stars twice.
As for the Oilers, they also have 18 games left after Sunday, and also have 10 of those against teams in a playoff spot right now. They only have to play Dallas once … but have to play Colorado twice, as well as the Atlantic-leading Lightning.
They’ll still play out all of the games, of course, but just based on strength of remaining schedule, one has to give the Ducks a bit of an edge at this juncture.
Every team has about 20 games left before the season concludes April 16, and we’ll help you keep track of it all here on the NHL playoff watch every day. As we traverse the final stretch, we’ll provide detail on all the playoff races — along with the teams jockeying for position in the 2026 NHL draft lottery.
Note: Playoff chances are via Stathletes.
Jump ahead:
Current playoff matchups
Sunday’s schedule
Saturday’s scores
Expanded standings
Race for No. 1 pick
Current playoff matchups
Eastern Conference
A1 Tampa Bay Lightning vs. WC1 Detroit Red Wings
A2 Buffalo Sabres vs. A3 Montreal Canadiens
M1 Carolina Hurricanes vs. WC2 Boston Bruins
M2 New York Islanders vs. M3 Pittsburgh Penguins
Western Conference
C1 Colorado Avalanche vs. WC2 Seattle Kraken
C2 Dallas Stars vs. C3 Minnesota Wild
P1 Anaheim Ducks vs. WC1 Utah Mammoth
P2 Vegas Golden Knights vs. P3 Edmonton Oilers
Sunday’s games
Note: All times ET. All games not on TNT or NHL Network are available to stream on ESPN+ (local blackout restrictions apply).
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Minnesota Wild at Colorado Avalanche, 2 p.m. (TNT)
Boston Bruins at Pittsburgh Penguins, 4:30 p.m. (TNT)
Tampa Bay Lightning at Buffalo Sabres, 6 p.m.
Chicago Blackhawks at Dallas Stars, 6 p.m.
Detroit Red Wings at New Jersey Devils, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
St. Louis Blues at Anaheim Ducks, 9 p.m.
Edmonton Oilers at Vegas Golden Knights, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Saturday’s scoreboard
Boston Bruins 3, Washington Capitals 1
New Jersey Devils 6, New York Rangers 3
Buffalo Sabres 3, Nashville Predators 2
Philadelphia Flyers 4, Pittsburgh Penguins 3 (SO)
Tampa Bay Lightning 5, Toronto Maple Leafs 2
Utah Mammoth 5, Columbus Blue Jackets 4 (OT)
Winnipeg Jets 3, Vancouver Canucks 2 (OT)
Montreal Canadiens 4, Los Angeles Kings 3
Calgary Flames 5, Carolina Hurricanes 4
New York Islanders 2, San Jose Sharks 1 (OT)
Ottawa Senators 7, Seattle Kraken 4
Expanded standings
Atlantic Division
Tampa Bay Lightning
Points: 82
Regulation wins: 30
Playoff position: A1
Games left: 21
Points pace: 110.2
Next game: @ BUF (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
Buffalo Sabres
Points: 82
Regulation wins: 32
Playoff position: A2
Games left: 19
Points pace: 106.7
Next game: vs. TB (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 99.1%
Tragic number: N/A
Montreal Canadiens
Points: 78
Regulation wins: 23
Playoff position: A3
Games left: 20
Points pace: 103.2
Next game: vs. TOR (Tuesday)
Playoff chances: 89.2%
Tragic number: N/A
Detroit Red Wings
Points: 77
Regulation wins: 24
Playoff position: WC1
Games left: 19
Points pace: 100.2
Next game: @ NJ (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 53.7%
Tragic number: N/A
Boston Bruins
Points: 75
Regulation wins: 27
Playoff position: WC2
Games left: 20
Points pace: 99.2
Next game: @ PIT (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 73.6%
Tragic number: N/A
Ottawa Senators
Points: 71
Regulation wins: 25
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 20
Points pace: 93.9
Next game: @ VAN (Monday)
Playoff chances: 59.1%
Tragic number: 36
Florida Panthers
Points: 65
Regulation wins: 25
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 19
Points pace: 84.6
Next game: vs. DET (Tuesday)
Playoff chances: 5.1%
Tragic number: 28
Toronto Maple Leafs
Points: 65
Regulation wins: 19
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 18
Points pace: 83.3
Next game: @ MTL (Tuesday)
Playoff chances: 0.1%
Tragic number: 26
Metro Division
Carolina Hurricanes
Points: 86
Regulation wins: 30
Playoff position: M1
Games left: 19
Points pace: 111.9
Next game: vs. PIT (Tuesday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
New York Islanders
Points: 77
Regulation wins: 23
Playoff position: M2
Games left: 18
Points pace: 98.7
Next game: @ STL (Tuesday)
Playoff chances: 51.1%
Tragic number: N/A
Pittsburgh Penguins
Points: 76
Regulation wins: 27
Playoff position: M3
Games left: 20
Points pace: 100.5
Next game: vs. BOS (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 78.2%
Tragic number: N/A
Columbus Blue Jackets
Points: 73
Regulation wins: 22
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 20
Points pace: 96.6
Next game: vs. LA (Monday)
Playoff chances: 56.5%
Tragic number: 38
Philadelphia Flyers
Points: 69
Regulation wins: 19
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 20
Points pace: 91.3
Next game: vs. NYR (Monday)
Playoff chances: 9.4%
Tragic number: 34
Washington Capitals
Points: 69
Regulation wins: 26
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 18
Points pace: 88.4
Next game: vs. CGY (Monday)
Playoff chances: 19.3%
Tragic number: 30
New Jersey Devils
Points: 66
Regulation wins: 21
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 19
Points pace: 85.9
Next game: vs. DET (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 5.7%
Tragic number: 29
New York Rangers
Points: 56
Regulation wins: 15
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 20
Points pace: 74.1
Next game: @ PHI (Monday)
Playoff chances: ~0%
Tragic number: 21
Central Division
Colorado Avalanche
Points: 93
Regulation wins: 38
Playoff position: C1
Games left: 21
Points pace: 125
Next game: vs. MIN (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
Dallas Stars
Points: 86
Regulation wins: 31
Playoff position: C2
Games left: 20
Points pace: 113.7
Next game: vs. CHI (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
Minnesota Wild
Points: 84
Regulation wins: 24
Playoff position: C3
Games left: 19
Points pace: 109.3
Next game: @ COL (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
Utah Mammoth
Points: 72
Regulation wins: 26
Playoff position: WC1
Games left: 19
Points pace: 93.7
Next game: @ CHI (Monday)
Playoff chances: 98.2%
Tragic number: N/A
Nashville Predators
Points: 64
Regulation wins: 21
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 19
Points pace: 83.3
Next game: @ SEA (Tuesday)
Playoff chances: 5.4%
Tragic number: 35
Winnipeg Jets
Points: 62
Regulation wins: 21
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 20
Points pace: 82
Next game: vs. ANA (Tuesday)
Playoff chances: 5.7%
Tragic number: 35
St. Louis Blues
Points: 57
Regulation wins: 22
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 20
Points pace: 75.4
Next game: @ ANA (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 0.7%
Tragic number: 30
Chicago Blackhawks
Points: 56
Regulation wins: 18
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 20
Points pace: 74.1
Next game: @ DAL (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 0.1%
Tragic number: 29
Pacific Division
Anaheim Ducks
Points: 73
Regulation wins: 20
Playoff position: P1
Games left: 20
Points pace: 96.6
Next game: vs. STL (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 96.4%
Tragic number: N/A
Vegas Golden Knights
Points: 72
Regulation wins: 21
Playoff position: P3
Games left: 19
Points pace: 93.7
Next game: vs. EDM (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 96.3%
Tragic number: N/A
Edmonton Oilers
Points: 68
Regulation wins: 22
Playoff position: P2
Games left: 19
Points pace: 88.5
Next game: @ VGK (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 77%
Tragic number: N/A
Seattle Kraken
Points: 67
Regulation wins: 23
Playoff position: WC2
Games left: 20
Points pace: 88.6
Next game: vs. NSH (Tuesday)
Playoff chances: 34%
Tragic number: N/A
San Jose Sharks
Points: 66
Regulation wins: 18
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 21
Points pace: 88.7
Next game: @ BUF (Tuesday)
Playoff chances: 78.6%
Tragic number: 41
Los Angeles Kings
Points: 64
Regulation wins: 16
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 20
Points pace: 84.7
Next game: @ CBJ (Monday)
Playoff chances: 7.6%
Tragic number: 37
Calgary Flames
Points: 57
Regulation wins: 21
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 20
Points pace: 75.4
Next game: @ WSH (Monday)
Playoff chances: 0.1%
Tragic number: 30
Vancouver Canucks
Points: 46
Regulation wins: 13
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 19
Points pace: 59.9
Next game: vs. OTT (Monday)
Playoff chances: ~0%
Tragic number: 17
Race for the No. 1 pick
The NHL uses a draft lottery to determine the order of the first round, so the team that finishes in last place is not guaranteed the No. 1 selection. As of 2021, a team can move up a maximum of 10 spots if it wins the lottery, so only 11 teams are eligible for the draw for the No. 1 pick. Full details on the process can be found here. Sitting atop draft boards for this summer is Gavin McKenna, a forward for Penn State.
1. Vancouver Canucks
Points: 46
Regulation wins: 13
2. Chicago Blackhawks
Points: 56
Regulation wins: 18
3. New York Rangers
Points: 56
Regulation wins: 15
4. Calgary Flames
Points: 57
Regulation wins: 21
5. St. Louis Blues
Points: 57
Regulation wins: 22
6. Winnipeg Jets
Points: 62
Regulation wins: 21
7. Nashville Predators
Points: 64
Regulation wins: 21
8. Los Angeles Kings
Points: 64
Regulation wins: 16
9. Toronto Maple Leafs*
Points: 65
Regulation wins: 19
10. Florida Panthers
Points: 65
Regulation wins: 25
11. New Jersey Devils
Points: 66
Regulation wins: 21
12. San Jose Sharks
Points: 66
Regulation wins: 18
13. Washington Capitals
Points: 69
Regulation wins: 26
14. Philadelphia Flyers
Points: 69
Regulation wins: 19
15. Ottawa Senators
Points: 71
Regulation wins: 25
16. Columbus Blue Jackets
Points: 73
Regulation wins: 22
*Note: The Maple Leafs’ pick belongs to the Bruins, unless it lands in the top five.
