NHL Weekly Recap: Mar. 6
With the NHL season in full swing, here’s a look at each division.
Atlantic
The Panthers continue to sit just one game ahead of the Lightning in the schedule and will look to use top trade chip Owen Tippett to get a top-tier defenseman.
Toronto is 5-4-1 in their last ten games and goaltender Jack Campbell just finished his worst month of the season in net.
The Bruins just wrapped up a six-game road trip with an impressive ten points to put them within striking distance of Toronto.
Detroit continues to fall further out of the playoff race, and it looks like forward Filip Zadina will need a change of scenery.
The Sabres have leapfrogged the Senators in the standings after both teams beat Toronto this past week.
Montreal is a surprising 7-3 in their last ten and it looks like another mid-season coaching change gave this team a spark.
Metro
The Hurricanes have been playing great hockey lately and sit just four points back of Colorado for the President’s Trophy.
Pittsburgh has surpassed the Rangers in the standings but still has played two more games than New York.
The Capitals are 5-5 in their last ten and have been playing awfully but they will likely make a wild card spot because the Eastern Conference is so bad.
Columbus sits ten points back of Washington and will likely move backup goaltender Joonas Korpisalo at the deadline.
The Islanders have not performed up to expectations this year and need to get younger to do so.
New Jersey is behind Philadelphia in the standings, but no one looks worse on the ice than the Flyers right now.
Central
The Avalanche have lost two straight but continue to lead the race for the President’s Trophy.
St. Louis sits 15 points behind Colorado in the second seed and has looked at defenseman Ben Chiarot to upgrade their defense.
The Wild have struggled recently going 3-7 in their last ten but continue to hold onto a playoff spot.
Nashville has also struggled at the worst time as they are now in a position to fall out of the playoffs.
The Stars have fought back this past week and sit in the second wild-card spot for the Western Conference.
It is safe to say that Winnipeg is out of the playoffs but look for them to load up for next year.
Nick Schmaltz had a franchise-record seven points for the Coyotes against the Senators on Saturday.
Pacific
The Flames have just been unstoppable lately and are 8-1-1 in their last ten and continue to increase their division lead.
Los Angeles has surpassed Vegas for the second seed in the division as Vegas has struggled recently.
The Oilers sit just out of a playoff spot right now but expect them to target goaltenders at the deadline to help them get in.
Vancouver finds themselves sitting just three points out of the playoffs after almost everyone on the team has been involved in trade rumors.
The Ducks have fallen from second in the division to sixth and now it is looking like they will be sellers at the deadline.
San Jose has also had a similar fall from the playoff race as it looks like captain Logan Couture has not played up to expectations since January.
The Kraken will look to trade defenseman Mark Giordano for a first-round pick and a prospect or two as they kick off building the team-up.
James Morrison is a second-year majoring in Broadcast Journalism. To contact him, email jpm6920@psu.edu.
