Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz: Ducks, Kings look to climb higher in Pacific race

Welcome to the Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz, a daily look at the races for the 2026 NHL postseason.

With three days left in the regular season, all 16 playoff spots have been filled, but only two of the eight first-round matchups have been set and first place in the Pacific Division is still up for grabs. 

Here is a look at the NHL standings and everything else that could impact the playoff picture.

Playoff scenarios

Though all 16 spots have been taken, seeding and positioning are still at stake. Here are the scenarios for Tuesday: 

EASTERN CONFERNCE 

The Boston Bruins can lock up the first wild card in the East and a first-round matchup with the Atlantic Division champion Sabres with any kind of win against the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; NESN, MSG, SNP, TVAS). 

If Boston wins the first wild card, the Ottawa Senators would get the second wild card and play the Metropolitan Division champion Carolina Hurricanes in the first round.  

The Tampa Bay Lightning (idle) can lock up home ice in their first-round series with the Montreal Canadiens if Montreal loses in regulation to the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; NBCSP, TSN2, RDS). 

WESTERN CONFERENCE

The Vegas Golden Knights can lock up home ice in their first round series if:

The Minnesota Wild defeat the Anaheim Ducks (8 p.m. ET; FDSNWIX, FDSNNO, Victory+, KCOP-13, KSTC)

The Utah Mammoth can lock up the first wild card in the West if:

They defeat the Winnipeg Jets in any fashion (9 p.m. ET; Utah16, TSN3)

AND if either of the following occurs:

The Ducks lose in regulation.

The Los Angeles Kings lose to the Vancouver Canucks in any fashion (10 p.m. ET; SNP, FDSNSC). 

OR 

If they get one point vs. the Jets AND if the Kings lose in regulation

The Los Angeles Kings will be the second wild card in the West and a be locked into a first-round matchup with the Central Division winning Avalanche, the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference if: 

They lose to the Canucks in regulation 

AND 

If the Ducks and Mammoth each get one point

On Tap

There are nine games on the NHL schedule Tuesday, five with playoff implications:

New Jersey Devils at Boston Bruins (7 p.m. ET; NESN, MSG, SNP, SN360, TVAS)

The Bruins can wrap up the first wild card in the East and a first-round meeting with the Buffalo Sabres with any kind of win against the Devils. Boston (44-27-10) has a one-point lead over the Ottawa Senators for the first wild card, but Ottawa owns the first tiebreaker (regulation wins, 37-32). Ottawa hosts the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday.  Morgan Geekie is two goals shy of becoming the fourth player in the past 30 years to score 40 goals in a season for the Bruins, joining David Pastrnak (five times), Glen Murray (2002-03) and Bill Guerin (2001-02). The Devils have been eliminated from playoff contention.

Montreal Canadiens at Philadelphia Flyers (7 p.m. ET; NBCSP, TSN2, RDS)

The Flyers clinched a playoff berth on Monday and will open the postseason at the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Canadiens are also in and will play the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round, but home-ice advantage is still up for grabs. The Canadiens (48-23-10) are tied in points with the Lightning with 106 points, but Tampa Bay owns the first tiebreaker, so Montreal would need to finish ahead of Tampa Bay in points to get home ice in the first round. If Montreal loses in regulation on Tuesday, it will open the first round in Tampa Bay. 

Anaheim Ducks at Minnesota Wild (8 p.m. ET; FDSNWIX, FDSNNO, Victory+, KCOP-13, KSTC)

The Ducks (42-32-6) clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 2018 when San Jose won 3-2 against Nashville on Monday. Anaheim has two games left and can finish as high as first in the Pacific Division or as low as the second wild card in the West. The Ducks (42-32-6) are currently third in the division, three points behind the first-place Vegas Golden Knights and one point behind the second place Edmonton Oilers. The Ducks have two games left while Vegas and Edmonton have one game left. They are tied in points with the Utah Mammoth for the first wild card in the West and two points ahead of the Los Angeles Kings for the second wild card. Like the Ducks, the Mammoth and Kings each have two games left. The Wild (45-24-12) are locked into third place in the Central Division, and will play the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference First Round. 

Winnipeg Jets at Utah Mammoth (9 p.m. ET; Utah16, TSN3)

The Mammoth (42-32-6) have a chance to lock up the first wild card in the West depending on what they do against the Jets and how the Kings fare at the Canucks and the Ducks do against the Wild. The Mammoth own the first tiebreaker over the Kings, Ducks, Oilers and Golden Knights. Winning the first wild card would avoid having to play the Presidents’ Trophy winning Colorado Avalanche in the first round. The Jets were eliminated from playoff contention on Monday. 

Los Angeles Kings at Vancouver Canucks (10 p.m. ET; SNP, FDSNSC)

The Kings look to extend their season-long win streak to six games after clinching their fifth straight berth into the playoffs with 5-3 win at the Seattle Kraken on Monday. Los Angeles (35-26-19) still has a chance, with 89 points, to finish as high as second in the Pacific Division. They are one point behind the Ducks for third and two points behind the Oilers for second. They do not own the tiebreaker against either team.

If playoffs started Tuesday

Western Conference

(1P) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (WC1) Utah Mammoth
(2P) Edmonton Oilers vs. (3P) Anaheim Ducks
(1C) Colorado Avalanche vs. (WC2) Los Angeles Kings
(2C) Dallas Stars vs. (3C) Minnesota Wild

Eastern Conference

(1A) Buffalo Sabres vs. (WC1) Boston Bruins
(2A) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (3A) Montreal Canadiens
(1M) Carolina Hurricanes vs. (WC2) Ottawa Senators
(2M) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (3M) Philadelphia Flyers

About last night

There were 10 games on the NHL schedule Monday, seven with playoff implications:

Philadelphia Flyers 3, Carolina Hurricanes 2 (SO)

The Flyers clinched their first Stanley Cup Playoff berth in five seasons when Tyson Foerster scored the only goal in a four-round shootout and Dan Vladar stopped Alexander Nikishin. Philadelphia (42-27-12) rallied from a 2-0 deficit on second-period goals by Matvei Michkov and Trevor Zegras to secure third place in the Metropolitan Division. Nikolaj Ehlers had a goal and an assist for Carolina (52-22-7), which clinched first place in the Eastern Conference with the point gained in playing past regulation.

Tampa Bay Lightning 4, Detroit Red Wings 3 (OT)

Nikita Kucherov scored 27 seconds into overtime to record his second career 130-point season and become the 10th player in NHL history to reach the mark in multiple seasons. Kucherov, who also had an assist, has 130 points (44 goals, 86 assists) in 75 games for the Lightning (50-25-6), who are in second place in the Atlantic Division, tied in points with the Montreal Canadiens, but own the tiebreaker. If the Lightning finish the season tied in points with the Canadiens, they would have home-ice advantage in their first-round series. 

San Jose Sharks 3, Nashville Predators 2

Macklin Celebrini scored two goals but the Sharks (38-34-8) and Predators (38-33-10) were each eliminated from playoff contention when the Kings won 5-3 at the Seattle Kraken. San Jose won for the first time in 16 games against Nashville dating to Dec. 10, 2019. Celebrini has 112 points (44 goals, 68 assists) on the season, two shy of the team record set by Hockey Hall of Famer Joe Thornton in 2006-07.

Buffalo Sabres 5, Chicago Blackhawks 1

Tage Thompson scored twice to help the Sabres (50-23-8) to their first division title since 2009-10, when they finished first in the Northeast Division. Buffalo, winner of four straight, clinched its first playoff berth since 2011 on April 4, ending the longest postseason drought in NHL history. The Blackhawks (28-39-14) have lost nine of their past 10 games and have been eliminated from playoff contention.

Colorado Avalanche 2, Edmonton Oilers 1 (SO)

Connor McDavid scored his 48th goal of the season for the Oilers (40-30-11), who moved within two points of Golden Knights for first place in the Pacific Division with one game remaining for each team and one point ahead of the Ducks for second place. The Oilers, like the Ducks, can finish anywhere from first in the division to the second wild card. Valeri Nichushkin, Martin Necas and Nathan MacKinnon each scored in the shootout and Scott Wedgewood made 30 saves for Colorado (53-16-11), which has already clinched the top seed in the Western Conference, the Central Division title and Presidents’ Trophy for the most points in the regular season. 

Los Angeles Kings 5, Seattle Kraken 3

Quinton Byfield scored two goals for the Kings (35-26-19), who won their fifth straight game and clinched a playoff berth for the fifth straight season. The Kraken (34-35-11) have been eliminated from playoff contention. The Kings can finish as high as second in the Pacific or be the first or second wild card. They trail the third-place Ducks by one point and the second-place Oilers by two points. The Kings and Ducks each have a game in hand on the Oilers. 

Vegas Golden Knights 6, Winnipeg Jets 2

Jack Eichel had a goal and three assists for the Golden Knights (38-26-17), who increased their lead for first in the Pacific Division by two points over the Oilers and three over the third-place Ducks. Vegas improved to 6-0-1 since John Tortorella replaced Bruce Cassidy as coach March 29. Mark Scheifele (101 points; 35 goals, 66 assists) had a goal and an assist to establish a Jets/Atlanta Thrashers record for most points in a season. The Jets (35-33-12) were eliminated from playoff contention.