NHL Weekly Recap: April 10
The NHL playoff picture is beginning to take shape with a little over three weeks in the season.
Atlantic Division
The Florida Panthers have already clinched the playoffs and Jonathan Huberdeau is leading the way with over a hundred points on the season.
Toronto has also clinched the playoffs led by an MVP-caliber season from Auston Matthews.
The Bruins sit in third place in the Atlantic. One player that needs to step up if they want to go deep is center Erik Haula, who usually centers the second line.
Tampa Bay made additions to the left side with Brandon Hagel and Nick Paul and they will both serve crucialroles in the playoffs.
The Red Wings are already eliminated from playoff contention ,so they will likely be giving their younger players like Joe Veleno and Gustav Lindstrom more ice time.
Buffalo will get their first look at Owen Power soon.
Metropolitan
The Hurricanes clinched the playoffs. Expect Seth Jarvis to do well, now getting first line minutes for Carolina.
The Rangers have clinched the playoffs and Frank Vatrano has played well on the wing for them.
Pittsburgh has gotten some contributions from defenseman Mike Matheson lately, scoring two goals in the past week.
Washington will likely make the playoffs and have also gotten some good contributions from star defenseman John Carlson this past week.
The Islanders most likely won’t make the playoffs, though J.G. Pageau has five goals in his past three games.
Columbus signed former first round pick Kent Johnson. The Blue Jackets will get to see him perform at the next level soon.
The Flyers are eliminated from the playoffs, but Ivan Provorov is showing that he can be their top defenseman for the future.
New Jersey has not been very good this season, but Yegor Sharangovich has four goals in his last four games.
Central
The Avalanche are in the driver's seat for the President’s Trophy and Nathan MacKinnon is leading the way for them.
St. Louis is currently in second while Robert Thomas and Justin Faulk have shined during the five game win streak.
The Wild have been led by Kirill Kaprizov this season and look to challenge the Blues for the second seed.
Nashville saw Roman Josi set the franchise’s all time points record in a season and they currently hold the top wild card position.
The Stars are fighting for the postseason while Joe Pavelski, John Klingberg and Tyler Seguin all have multiple points this week.
Winnipeg has lost four straight games and will likely miss the playoffs.
Pacific
The Flames have won four straight games with the help of Johnny Gaudreau’s eight points in those games.
Edmonton is also cruising with six straight victories while Connor McDavid once again starred on the ice.
The Kings are currently being led by centers Anze Kopitar and Adrian Kempe this season as they push for a playoff spot.
Vegas is on the outside looking in right now and Brayden McNabb has been a star on the ice for them as the Golden Knights get contributions from lesser known players.
Elias Petterson has seven points in his last three games for the Canucks as they still have an outside chance looking in on the playoffs.
Anaheim is 2-7-1 in their last ten with Adam Henrique playing at a high level at the moment.
The Sharks have lost five straight and Nick Bonino has been one of their best players during that stretch.
Seattle will not make the playoffs in its first season while Jordan Eberle has shown he can still play in the top six of a team this season.
James Morrison is a second-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email jpm6920@psu.edu.
