Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz: Stars can clinch berth in West

Welcome to the Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz, a daily look at the races for the 2025 NHL postseason.

There are 20 days left in the regular season and the races in each of the four divisions are tight. The top three teams in each of the four divisions and the next two highest-place finishers in each conference reach the playoffs.

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

Here are the Stanley Cup Playoffs clinching scenarios for March 29:

WESTERN CONFERENCE

The Dallas Stars will clinch a playoff berth:

If they defeat the Seattle Kraken in any fashion AND either of the following occurs:

- The St. Louis Blues lose to the Colorado Avalanche in any fashion

- The Calgary Flames lose to the Edmonton Oilers in any fashion

OR

If they get one point against the Kraken AND either of the following occurs:

- The Blues lose to the Avalanche in regulation

- The Flames lose to the Oilers in regulation

On Tap

There are 11 games on the NHL schedule Saturday, each with playoff implications.

Buffalo Sabres at Philadelphia Flyers (1 p.m. ET; NHLN, NBCSP, MSG-B)

The Sabres (30-35-6), who are nine points behind the Columbus Blue Jackets for the second wild card into the playoffs from the Eastern Conference, look to win their fourth straight game. The Flyers (29-36-9), who are eight points behind the Blue Jackets, won Brad Shaw's debut as coach Thursday to end an 0-5-1 skid.

New York Islanders at Tampa Bay Lightning (2 p.m. ET; FDSNSUN, MSGSN, SN360, TVAS)

The Islanders (32-29-10) have lost three straight (0-1-2) but have points in six of seven (3-1-3) and are still in the thick of the race for the second wild card in the East, one point behind the Blue Jackets, Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers. The Lightning (42-25-5), who have won five of their past seven, including 8-0 against the Utah Hockey Club on Thursday, are third in the Atlantic Division, one point behind the second-place Toronto Maple Leafs and two points behind the first-place Florida Panthers.

St. Louis Blues at Colorado Avalanche (4:30 p.m. ET; FDSNMW, ALT, TVAS)

The Blues (39-28-7) will look to make it nine straight wins, which could move them into a points tie with the Minnesota Wild for the first wild card in the West. Nathan MacKinnon has a 23-game home point streak (40 points; 15 goals, 25 assists) for the Avalanche (45-25-3), who have won four in a row and are 12-1-1 in their past 14 games. They are five points behind the Stars for second in the Central Division.

New Jersey Devils at Minnesota Wild (6 p.m. ET; FDSNWIX, FDSNNO, MSGSN)

The Devils (38-29-7) play the second of a back to back after a 4-0 loss at the Winnipeg Jets on Friday. New Jersey is nine points behind the Carolina Hurricanes for second in the Metropolitan Division. The Wild (41-27-5), who have won four of six, are two points ahead of the Blues for the first wild card in the West and six points behind the Avalanche for third in the Central.

Vegas Golden Knights at Nashville Predators (6:30 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, SCRIPPS)

The Golden Knights (44-20-8) play the second of a back to back after a 5-3 win at the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday. They are first in the Pacific Division, seven points ahead of the second-place Los Angeles Kings. The Predators (27-37-8) were eliminated for Stanley Cup Playoff contention Thursday.

Columbus Blue Jackets at Ottawa Senators (7 p.m. ET; TVAS, SN1, CITY, FDSNOH)

The Blue Jackets (33-29-9) moved into the second wild card in the East with a 7-6 shootout win against the Vancouver Canucks on Friday. They have won their past two after a six-game skid (0-5-1) and are tied in points with the Canadiens and Rangers but have games in hand on each. The Senators (38-28-5), who have won eight of 11, are six points ahead of the Blue Jackets for the first wild card in the East.

Toronto Maple Leafs at Los Angeles Kings (7 p.m. ET; FDSNW, SN, CBC)

The Kings (40-22-9) look to their extend their franchise-best 15-game home point streak (12-0-3), which includes seven straight wins at Crypto.com Arena. They are two points ahead of the Edmonton Oilers for second in the Pacific and seven points behind the first-place Golden Knights. The Maple Leafs (43-25-4), who are 4-1-1 in their past six, are one point behind the first-place Panthers in the Atlantic.

Boston Bruins at Detroit Red Wings (8 p.m. ET; ABC, ESPN+)

It's a prime-time battle of two teams trying to stay close in the hunt for the second wild card in the East. The Bruins (30-34-9) have lost seven in a row (0-6-1) and are six points behind the Blue Jackets for the last playoff spot. The Red Wings (33-33-6) have lost four of five and are three points out of the second wild card.

Calgary Flames at Edmonton Oilers (10 p.m. ET; CBC, SN, CITY)

The latest Battle of Alberta comes with each team needing a win. The Flames (34-26-11) had a four-game winning streak end in a 5-2 loss to the Stars on Thursday and are six points behind the Blues for the second wild card in the West. The Oilers (41-26-5) are 1-2-0 without injured forwards Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, though the latter will be a game-time decision, and are expected to also be without goalie Stuart Skinner (head) for the second straight game. Edmonton is third in the Pacific, two points behind Los Angeles for second.

New York Rangers at San Jose Sharks (10:30 p.m. ET; NBCSCA, MSG)

The Rangers (34-32-7) play the second of a back to back after a 5-4 overtime loss at the Anaheim Ducks on Friday. They are tied in points with Columbus and Montreal for the second wild card in the East but have played two more games than Columbus and one more than Montreal. The Sharks (20-42-9) have been eliminated from playoff contention.

Dallas Stars at Seattle Kraken (10:30 p.m. ET; KHN, Victory+, KONG)

Wyatt Johnston has scored in three straight games for the Stars (47-21-4), who look for their fifth straight win and can clinch a playoff berth. The Kraken (31-36-6) will be eliminated from playoff contention if they lose in regulation or if the Blues defeat the Avalanche in any fashion.

If playoffs started Saturday

Eastern Conference

(1A) Florida Panthers vs. (WC1) Ottawa Senators
(2A) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (3A) Tampa Bay Lightning
(1M) Washington Capitals vs. (WC2) Columbus Blue Jackets
(2M) Carolina Hurricanes vs. (3M) New Jersey Devils

Western Conference

(1P) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (WC1) Minnesota Wild
(2P) Los Angeles Kings vs. (3P) Edmonton Oilers
(1C) Winnipeg Jets vs. (WC2) St. Louis Blues
(2C) Dallas Stars vs. (3C) Colorado Avalanche

About last night

There were six games on the schedule Friday, each with playoff implications:

Florida Panthers 2, Utah Hockey Club 1 (OT): Brad Marchand, making his Panthers debut, assisted on Sam Bennett’s goal in overtime for Florida (44-25-3), which took a one-point lead on Toronto for first in the Atlantic. Utah (32-29-12) moved within nine points of St. Louis for the second wild card in the West.

Carolina Hurricanes 4, Montreal Canadiens 1: Jackson Blake had a goal and two assists for the Hurricanes (44-24-4), who moved nine points ahead of the Devils for second in the Metropolitan. The Canadiens (33-30-9) have lost five straight (0-3-2) and fell out of a playoff spot in the East. They are tied in points with the Blue Jackets and Rangers, but Columbus has the tiebreaker having played one fewer game than Montreal and two fewer than New York.

Columbus Blue Jackets 7, Vancouver Canucks 6 (SO): The Blue Jackets (33-29-9), who trailed 3-0 in the first period, rallied for the shootout win to move back into playoff position. The Canucks (34-26-13) picked up one point and are four behind the Blues for the second wild card in the West.

Winnipeg Jets 4, New Jersey Devils 0: Connor Hellebuyck made 24 saves for his NHL-leading seventh shutout of the season, and the Jets (50-19-4) moved one point ahead of the Capitals in the race for the Presidents’ Trophy. The Devils (38-29-7) lost for the fourth time in five games (1-3-1) and fell nine points behind the Hurricanes for second in the Metropolitan.

Vegas Golden Knights 5, Chicago Blackhawks 3: Pavel Dorofeyev broke a tie with 3:11 left in regulation, and the Golden Knights increased their first-place lead in the Pacific to seven points. The Blackhawks (21-43-9) have been eliminated from playoff contention.

Anaheim Ducks 5, New York Rangers 4 (OT): The Rangers blew a two-goal lead in the third period and lost when Mason McTavish scored 59 seconds into overtime. New York is tied in points with Columbus and Montreal for the second wild card in the East but has played two more games than Columbus and one more than Montreal. The Ducks (32-32-8) are 13 points behind the Blues for the second wild card in the West.