Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz: Golden Knights can clinch berth 

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

There are 18 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 31:

WESTERN CONFERENCE

The Vegas Golden Knights will clinch a playoff berth:

If the Calgary Flames lose to the Colorado Avalanche in regulation (8:30 p.m. ET; KTVD, ALT, Prime)

On Tap

There are four games on the NHL schedule Monday, each with playoff implications.

Minnesota Wild at New Jersey Devils (7 p.m. ET; FDSNWIX, FDSNNO, MSGSN, NHLN)

The Wild (41-28-5) begin a three-game road trip having lost three of their past four games. They are tied in points (87) with the St. Louis Blues for the first wild card in the West but have a game in hand. The Devils (39-29-7) open a five-game homestand after concluding a three-game road trip with a 5-2 win at Minnesota on Saturday. New Jersey is third in the Metropolitan Division, nine points behind the Carolina Hurricanes and eight ahead of the New York Rangers.

Nashville Predators at Philadelphia Flyers (7 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, NBCSP)

The Flyers (30-36-9) have won their first two games under new coach Brad Shaw and have scored 13 goals in the wins, including back-to-back two-goal games from rookie forward Matvei Michkov. Philadelphia trails the Montreal Canadiens by eight points for the second wild card in the East with seven games left. The Predators (27-38-8) have been eliminated from playoff contention.

Calgary Flames at Colorado Avalanche (8:30 p.m. ET; KTVD, ALT, Prime)

Nathan MacKinnon has a 24-game home point streak (41 points; 16 goals, 25 assists) for the Avalanche (45-26-3), who are third in the Central Division, seven points behind the Dallas Stars and six ahead of the Wild and Blues. The Flames (34-26-12) have lost their past two games (0-1-1) and have fallen seven points behind the Blues for the second wild card in the West.

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

The Stars (48-21-4) have won five straight and look to sweep a four-game road trip after victories at Edmonton, Calgary and Seattle. They are second in the Central, six points behind the Winnipeg Jets with a game in hand. The Kraken (31-37-6) have been eliminated from playoff contention.

If playoffs started Monday

Eastern Conference

(1A) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (WC1) Ottawa Senators
(2A) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (3A) Florida Panthers
(1M) Washington Capitals vs. (WC2) Montreal Canadiens
(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 eight games on the schedule Sunday, each with playoff implications:

Montreal Canadiens 4, Florida Panthers 2: Nick Suzuki scored the go-ahead goal at 2:02 of the third period for the Canadiens (34-30-9), who moved back into the second wild card in the East. Montreal, which had lost five in a row (0-3-2), is tied in points with the New York Rangers but has a game in hand. The Panthers (44-26-3) remained tied for second in the Atlantic Division with the Lightning, who have two more regulation wins. Each trails the Maple Leafs by three points and has a game in hand.

Buffalo Sabres 8, Washington Capitals 5: Alex Ovechkin scored his 890th NHL goal and is five away from becoming the all-time leader. The Sabres (31-36-6) are nine points behind the Canadiens for the second wild card in the East; the Capitals (47-17-9) lost their third straight (0-2-1) and saw their first-place lead in the Metropolitan Division on the Hurricanes trimmed to nine points. Each has nine regular-season games left.

Winnipeg Jets 3, Vancouver Canucks 1: Kyle Connor scored his 38th goal of the season for the Jets (51-19-4), who moved three points ahead of the Capitals in the Presidents’ Trophy race. The Canucks (34-27-13) remained six points behind the St. Louis Blues and Minnesota Wild for the wild cards in the West.

Utah Hockey Club 5, Chicago Blackhawks 2: Alex Kerfoot had a goal and two assists for Utah (33-29-12), which moved within nine points of a wild card in the West. The Blackhawks (21-44-9) have been eliminated from playoff contention.

Pittsburgh Penguins 1, Ottawa Senators 0 (OT): Sidney Crosby scored the only goal of the game 1:16 into overtime for the Penguins (30-34-11), who remained six points back in the East wild-card race. The Senators (39-28-6) lead the Canadiens by seven points for the first wild card.

Carolina Hurricanes 6, New York Islanders 4: The Hurricanes (42-25-4) moved closer to clinching a playoff berth after Seth Jarvis scored twice and Sebastian Aho had a goal and two assists. Carolina is nine points ahead of New Jersey for second place in the Metropolitan. The Islanders (32-31-10) have lost five in a row (0-3-2) and fell three points behind the Canadiens for the second wild card in the East.

Toronto Maple Leafs 3, Anaheim Ducks 2: Max Domi, Mitch Marner and Steven Lorentz scored and the Maple Leafs (45-25-4), who swept back-to-back games at Los Angeles and Anaheim to move three points ahead of the Lightning and Panthers for first place in the Atlantic. Tampa Bay and Florida each has a game in hand. The Ducks (32-33-8) are 15 points back in the West wild-card race with nine games left.

Los Angeles Kings 8, San Jose Sharks 1: Adrian Kempe and Warren Foegele each scored twice for the Kings (41-23-9), who set a franchise record for home wins in a season (27) and moved two points ahead of the Oilers for second place in the Pacific Division. The Sharks (20-44-9) have been eliminated from playoff contention.