Super 16: Storylines for stretch run of NHL regular season

There are two weeks remaining in the NHL regular season. It's safe to say the home stretch is here.

So what are we watching?

Well, how about everything?

There are tight races for first place in three of the four divisions. Only the Washington Capitals have a cushion of more than five points.

The race for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference features at least five teams, if you want to stretch it that far.

The St. Louis Blues are climbing, winners of 10 straight games.

Alex Ovechkin is closing in on Wayne Gretzky's all-time goals record.

There are big storylines to follow all over the NHL in the last two weeks of the season. As always, the Super 16 is here to educate you on them all.

As a reminder, to come up with the Super 16 each week, the 15 voters this week put together their own version of what they think the rankings should look like and a point total is assigned to each, with the team selected first given 16 points, second 15, third 14, and so on.

Here is the storylines down the stretch edition of the Super 16:

1. Winnipeg Jets (51-20-4)

Total points: 235
Last week: No. 1

"The schedule and the surging Dallas Stars are making things interesting for the Jets, who will have some tough battles in their final seven games as they push toward winning the Central Division and potentially the Presidents' Trophy. They play the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday (10 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, TSN3), one of four games they have against teams currently in a playoff position, including one at Dallas, the team right behind them in second in the Central race, on April 10. That comes three days after they play the hottest team in the NHL right now, the Blues, at home. How the Jets handle those games, while also trying to find a way to trim some ice time for their top players to make sure they're fresh for the postseason, will be interesting to watch during this final regular-season push." -- Adam Kimelman, deputy managing editor

2. Washington Capitals (48-18-9)

Total points: 221
Last week: No. 2

"There will be no bigger storyline in the NHL in the next two weeks than whether Alex Ovechkin will break Wayne Gretzky's all-time goals record before the end of this season. Entering the Capitals' final seven games, Ovechkin needs three goals to break Gretzky's record of 894. Gretzky has owned the record since scoring his 802nd goal on March 23, 1994, passing Gordie Howe. No one thought anyone would ever get close to Gretzky when he retired in 1999 with 894 goals, but the hockey world is watching with Ovechkin closing in on overtaking him." --Tom Gulitti, senior writer

3. Dallas Stars (49-21-4)

Total points: 213
Last week: No. 3

"The storyline for the Stars is two-fold: how well they're doing without injured forward Tyler Seguin and defenseman Miro Heiskanen, and that they've still got a chance to finish first in the Central Division. The Stars are four points behind the first-place Jets with a game in hand. In their eight remaining games, the Stars play teams likely to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs twice: the Minnesota Wild on Saturday and the Jets on April 10. And, yes, there's no doubt acquiring forward Mikko Rantanen from the Carolina Hurricanes before the NHL Trade Deadline on March 7 has been a big help. Rantanen has 11 points (four goals, seven assists) in 12 games with Dallas, adding to the already impressive depth the Stars had." -- Tracey Myers, staff writer

4. Vegas Golden Knights (45-21-8)

Total points: 191
Last week: No. 4

"Will Jack Eichel reach 100 points for the first time in his NHL career? The Golden Knights center has 93 points (27 goals, 66 assists) in 73 games, tied for fourth in the NHL. That's already an NHL career high, surpassing the 82 points (28 goals, 54 assists) he had in 77 games for the Buffalo Sabres in 2018-19. Eichel needs seven points with eight games to go. He has 13 points (six goals, seven assists) over his past seven games." -- Nicholas J. Cotsonika, columnist

5. Carolina Hurricanes (46-24-4)

Total points: 167
Last week: No. 7

"It's pretty clear by now the Hurricanes are going to finish second in the Metropolitan Division and play the New Jersey Devils in the Eastern Conference First Round. So, the theme for them is to stay on a roll; they have gone 12-2-0 in their past 14 games dating to March 2 while allowing an average of 2.00 goals per game. They could still use some more scoring, averaging 3.57 goals in that span and 3.28 this season." -- Bill Price, Editor-in-Chief

6. Colorado Avalanche (46-26-4)

Total points: 159
Last week: No. 5

"The most intriguing storyline for the Avalanche as we head down the stretch is whether we'll see captain Gabriel Landeskog return in the playoffs. The veteran forward hasn't played since the 2022 Stanley Cup Final and had cartilage transplant surgery in his right knee in May of 2023. But Landeskog has been practicing sporadically with his teammates, and what a story it would be if he can be ready to return this postseason." -- Brian Compton, managing editor

7. Toronto Maple Leafs (46-25-4)

Total points: 148
Last week: No. 9

"When it comes to the final two weeks of the NHL regular season, the focus on and of the Maple Leafs will be the three-team dogfight to finish atop the Atlantic Division. The battle for first between the Maple Leafs, the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers and the Tampa Bay Lightning, a perennial contender, stands to go down right to the wire, and there's plenty at stake. Finish first, and you'll have home-ice advantage in the Eastern Conference First Round and a date against a wild-card team. That leaves the other two meeting each other in a battle of top contending teams that will leave one prematurely out after one round. Add it all up and it becomes paramount for Toronto to win the division, especially for a franchise that has won only one playoff round in the past 21 years." -- Mike Zeisberger, staff writer

8. Tampa Bay Lightning (44-25-5)

Total points: 145
Last week: No. 10

"Can they finish first in the Atlantic Division? It's a question I didn't think I'd be asking at this point in the season, but the Lightning have been red-hot, with seven wins in their past nine games, getting them up to second in the division, three points behind the Maple Leafs, while holding the regulation wins tiebreaker over both the Panthers. As recently as Feb. 5, the Lightning were in the second wild-card spot, seven points back of the Panthers with the Ottawa Senators and Detroit Red Wings ahead of them. Not anymore." -- Amalie Benjamin, senior writer

9. Los Angeles Kings (42-23-9)

Total points: 115
Last week: No. 8

"The hope for the Kings down the stretch is twofold: finish at least second in the Pacific Division to have home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs, and try to avoid playing the Edmonton Oilers. The Kings are 28-4-4 at home, including a recent team-record 15-game point streak (12-0-3). They have played the Oilers each of the past three postseasons, opening on the road each time, and have lost each series, so avoiding them and beginning at home would seemingly be positives." -- David Satriano, staff writer

10. Florida Panthers (44-27-4)

Total points: 109
Last week: No. 6

"All eyes are on Matthew Tkachuk here. The rambunctious forward has started to skate, but as coach Paul Maurice said, there is a long way to go before Tkachuk is ready for game action. In fact, he is not expected to return in the regular season, so there is a curiosity factor regarding where his game will be after not playing since sustaining a lower-body injury during the 4 Nations Face-Off on Feb. 15. He had 57 points (22 goals, 35 assists) in 52 games for Florida this season before getting injured and showed last postseason how much of a difference-maker he can be." -- Shawn P. Roarke, senior director of editorial

11. St. Louis Blues (41-28-7)

Total points: 93
Last week: No. 12

"The Blues are the hottest team in the NHL with 10 consecutive wins. They've been the best team in the NHL dating to Feb. 2 with a .813 points percentage (18-3-3). Previous to that, they were sixth in the Central Division with 50 points, 12 behind the fourth-place Avalanche and 16 behind the third-place Wild. Well, they're now even in points with the Wild and hold the second wild card from the West, and the storyline for the Blues with six games remaining is, how much higher can they climb and how long does the winning streak go for? They are seven points behind the Avalanche for third in the division. The Blues and Avalanche play each other on Saturday. St. Louis also has games remaining against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Jets, Oilers, Seattle Kraken and Utah Hockey Club. Will the Blues finish the season on a 16-game winning streak? Hey, it's possible." -- Dan Rosen, senior writer

12. Edmonton Oilers (43-26-5)

Total points: 86
Last week: No. 11

"Leon Draisaitl returned from a four-game absence because of an undisclosed injury and picked up right where he left off, finishing with two goals and an assist in a 3-2 overtime win against the Calgary Flames on Saturday. Draisaitl is the first player to reach 50 goals this season and could be the only one to do it. The NHL points race might be out of reach for Draisaitl with Nathan MacKinnon of the Avalanche and Nikita Kucherov of the Lightning each six points ahead of him, but he is very much still in contention for the Hart Trophy as the League's most valuable player. Draisaitl won the award in 2019-20, and how he finishes the regular season could determine if he can win it again. Of his 52 goals, 11 have been game-winners, the most of any player in the League this season." -- Derek Van Diest, staff writer

13. New Jersey Devils (40-29-7)

Total points: 51
Last week: No. 14

"The storyline for New Jersey is the schedule. The Devils need to take advantage of a favorable schedule that includes five of its remaining six regular-season games on home ice. They play the New York Rangers, Boston Bruins, Penguins, New York Islanders and Red Wings at home. They also play at Boston. The Rangers, tied with the Montreal Canadiens with 79 points for the second wild card in the East, are the only opponent in playoff position. Forwards Jesper Bratt and Nico Hischier have been leading the charge offensively in the absence of Jack Hughes (shoulder surgery), and defenseman Luke Hughes has been a force with Dougie Hamilton sidelined (lower body), with eight points (one goal, seven assists) in his past five games." -- Mike G. Morreale, senior draft writer

14. Minnesota Wild (41-28-7)

Total points: 47
Last week: No. 13

"How soon Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson Ek, each sidelined with a lower-body injury, can get into a game and how much immediate help they can deliver are no doubt the most pressing questions that worry everyone around the Wild, who hold the first wild card in the West and are tied in points with the Blues, who have three fewer regulation wins. Both forwards have started skating and participated in a full team practice on Sunday -- a first for Kaprizov since late January. To say Minnesota has missed its superstar would be an understatement. The Wild are desperate to have Kaprizov back. Before their 5-4 overtime loss at the Rangers on Wednesday, they'd scored just nine goals in their previous five games and lost four of them (1-3-1). This has become a recurring theme; Minnesota is averaging an NHL-low 2.17 goals per game dating to Feb. 1 and had scored two goals or fewer in 16 of its previous 23 games entering Wednesday." -- Paul Strizhevsky, staff writer

15. Ottawa Senators (39-29-6)

Total points: 38
Last week: No. 15

"The storyline for the Senators is all about the team, not a specific player or group of players. Team. Team. Team. Get into the playoffs. Clinch. Get the job done. They've played themselves into a great spot, the first wild card, five points clear of the second wild card, and have seven of their final eight games at home. But it was eight of their final nine at home before a 5-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres at Canadian Tire Centre on Tuesday. They also lost 1-0 in overtime at the Penguins on Sunday. The Senators are a good home team, 21-11-2 in their rink, but the games are tough. Tampa Bay on Thursday, Florida on Saturday and the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday. Then they go to Columbus before finishing with four straight at home against the Montreal Canadiens, Philadelphia Flyers, Chicago Blackhawks and Hurricanes. Win enough to get into the dance. That's the storyline. That's the goal. Just get the job done." -- Rosen

16. Montreal Canadiens (35-30-9)

Total points: 15
Last week: No. 16

"The storyline is simple: The Canadiens are pushing for a playoff spot. Nick Suzuki is leading this team since the break for the 4 Nations Face-Off with 27 points (10 goals, 17 assists) in his past 18 games. With 79 points (25 goals, 54 assists) and eight games to go, Suzuki should reach 80 points for his first time in his NHL career. The captain would be the first Montreal player since Alex Kovalev (84) in 2007-2008 to reach 80 points in a season. The race for the Calder Trophy, awarded to the NHL rookie of the year is also on in Montreal with defenseman Lane Hutson. In his past two games, both against the Panthers, Hutson had a combined six assists. With 62 points (five goals, 57 assists), 21-year-old is two points away from tying the Canadiens record for a rookie defenseman in a season. Chris Chelios holds the record with 64 points in 1984-1985." -- Jean-Francois Chaumont, journalist principal LNH.com

Others receiving points: Calgary Flames 5, New York Rangers 1, Vancouver Canucks 1

Dropped out from last week: None

Enterprise Team of the Week: The Blues just keep on winning. They did so three times since the Super 16 ran last week, all tight games too. They defeated the Nashville Predators 3-1 a week ago, the No. 6 Avalanche 2-1 on Saturday, and the Red Wings 2-1 in overtime on Tuesday, when Jordan Kyrou scored the tying goal at 19:31 of the third period and Cam Fowler got the winner 3:27 into overtime. With a win against the Penguins on Thursday, they will match the longest winning streak in team history at 11. That streak happened in the second half of the 2018-19 season, when the Blues also went on to win the Stanley Cup. Just saying. -- Rosen

HERE'S HOW WE RANKED ’EM

AMALIE BENJAMIN

1. Washington Capitals; 2. Winnipeg Jets; 3. Dallas Stars; 4. Colorado Avalanche; 5. Vegas Golden Knights; 6. Carolina Hurricanes; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Los Angeles Kings; 9. Tampa Bay Lightning; 10. Florida Panthers; 11. Edmonton Oilers; 12. St. Louis Blues; 13. Minnesota Wild; 14. Ottawa Senators; 15. New Jersey Devils; 16. Montreal Canadiens

JEAN-FRANCOIS CHAUMONT

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Washington Capitals; 3. Dallas Stars; 4. Colorado Avalanche; 5. Vegas Golden Knights; 6. Toronto Maple Leafs; 7. Carolina Hurricanes; 8. Tampa Bay Lightning; 9. Florida Panthers; 10. Edmonton Oilers; 11. Los Angeles Kings; 12. St. Louis Blues; 13. Minnesota Wild; 14. New Jersey Devils; 15. Ottawa Senators; 16. Montreal Canadiens

BRIAN COMPTON

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Washington Capitals; 3. Dallas Stars; 4. Vegas Golden Knights; 5. Carolina Hurricanes; 6. Colorado Avalanche; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Tampa Bay Lightning; 9. Los Angeles Kings; 10. Florida Panthers; 11. St. Louis Blues; 12. Edmonton Oilers; 13. Ottawa Senators; 14. Minnesota Wild; 15. New Jersey Devils; 16. Calgary Flames

NICHOLAS J. COTSONIKA

1. Washington Capitals; 2. Winnipeg Jets; 3. Dallas Stars; 4. Vegas Golden Knights; 5. Carolina Hurricanes; 6. Toronto Maple Leafs; 7. Tampa Bay Lightning; 8. Los Angeles Kings; 9. Colorado Avalanche; 10. Florida Panthers; 11. Edmonton Oilers; 12. Minnesota Wild; 13. St. Louis Blues; 14. New Jersey Devils; 15. Calgary Flames; 16. Vancouver Canucks

TOM GULITTI

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Washington Capitals; 3. Dallas Stars; 4. Vegas Golden Knights; 5. Carolina Hurricanes; 6. Colorado Avalanche; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Los Angeles Kings; 9. Tampa Bay Lightning; 10. Florida Panthers; 11. Edmonton Oilers; 12. St. Louis Blues; 13. New Jersey Devils; 14. Minnesota Wild; 15. Ottawa Senators; 16. Calgary Flames

ADAM KIMELMAN

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Washington Capitals; 3. Dallas Stars; 4. Vegas Golden Knights; 5. Colorado Avalanche; 6. Tampa Bay Lightning; 7. Toronto Maple Leafs; 8. Carolina Hurricanes; 9. Florida Panthers; 10. Edmonton Oilers; 11. New Jersey Devils; 12. Los Angeles Kings; 13. Ottawa Senators; 14. St. Louis Blues; 15. Minnesota Wild; 16. New York Rangers

MIKE G. MORREALE

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Washington Capitals; 3. Dallas Stars; 4. Vegas Golden Knights; 5. Carolina Hurricanes; 6. Los Angeles Kings; 7. Colorado Avalanche; 8. Tampa Bay Lightning; 9. Florida Panthers; 10. Toronto Maple Leafs; 11. Edmonton Oilers; 12. St. Louis Blues; 13. New Jersey Devils; 14. Minnesota Wild; 15. Ottawa Senators; 16. Montreal Canadiens

TRACEY MYERS

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Washington Capitals; 3. Dallas Stars; 4. Vegas Golden Knights; 5. Toronto Maple Leafs; 6. Carolina Hurricanes; 7. Colorado Avalanche; 8. Tampa Bay Lightning; 9. Los Angeles Kings; 10. Florida Panthers; 11. Edmonton Oilers; 12. St. Louis Blues; 13. Minnesota Wild; 14. New Jersey Devils; 15. Ottawa Senators; 16. Montreal Canadiens

BILL PRICE

1. Washington Capitals; 2. Winnipeg Jets; 3. Dallas Stars; 4. Vegas Golden Knights; 5. Carolina Hurricanes; 6. Toronto Maple Leafs; 7. Tampa Bay Lightning; 8. Los Angeles Kings; 9. Colorado Avalanche; 10. Florida Panthers; 11. Edmonton Oilers; 12. Minnesota Wild; 13. St. Louis Blues; 14. New Jersey Devils; 15. Ottawa Senators; 16. Montreal Canadiens

SHAWN P. ROARKE

1. Colorado Avalanche; 2. Dallas Stars; 3. Winnipeg Jets; 4. Tampa Bay Lightning; 5. Washington Capitals; 6. St. Louis Blues; 7. Carolina Hurricanes; 8. Vegas Golden Knights; 9. Florida Panthers; 10. Los Angeles Kings; 11. Toronto Maple Leafs; 12. Montreal Canadiens; 13. Ottawa Senators; 14. New Jersey Devils; 15. Edmonton Oilers; 16. Minnesota Wild

DAN ROSEN

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Dallas Stars; 3. Washington Capitals; 4. Vegas Golden Knights; 5. Tampa Bay Lightning; 6. St. Louis Blues; 7. Carolina Hurricanes; 8. Colorado Avalanche; 9. Toronto Maple Leafs; 10. Los Angeles Kings; 11. Edmonton Oilers; 12. Florida Panthers; 13. New Jersey Devils; 14. Ottawa Senators; 15. Montreal Canadiens; 16. Minnesota Wild

DAVID SATRIANO

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Vegas Golden Knights; 3. Dallas Stars; 4. Washington Capitals; 5. Carolina Hurricanes; 6. Toronto Maple Leafs; 7. St. Louis Blues; 8. Tampa Bay Lightning; 9. Colorado Avalanche; 10. Los Angeles Kings; 11. Florida Panthers; 12. Edmonton Oilers; 13. New Jersey Devils; 14. Ottawa Senators; 15. Minnesota Wild; 16. Montreal Canadiens

PAUL STRIZHEVSKY

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Washington Capitals; 3. Dallas Stars; 4. Vegas Golden Knights; 5. Carolina Hurricanes; 6. Toronto Maple Leafs; 7. Tampa Bay Lightning; 8. St. Louis Blues; 9. Colorado Avalanche; 10. Los Angeles Kings; 11. Florida Panthers; 12. Edmonton Oilers; 13. Minnesota Wild; 14. New Jersey Devils; 15. Ottawa Senators; 16. Montreal Canadiens

DEREK VAN DIEST

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Washington Capitals; 3. Dallas Stars; 4. Vegas Golden Knights; 5. Toronto Maple Leafs; 6. Carolina Hurricanes; 7. Colorado Avalanche; 8. Tampa Bay Lightning; 9. Florida Panthers; 10. Los Angeles Kings; 11. Edmonton Oilers; 12. St. Louis Blues; 13. Minnesota Wild; 14. New Jersey Devils; 15. Ottawa Senators; 16. Calgary Flames

MIKE ZEISBERGER

1. Winnipeg Jets; 2. Dallas Stars; 3. Washington Capitals; 4. Vegas Golden Knights; 5. Colorado Avalanche; 6. Carolina Hurricanes; 7. Florida Panthers; 8. Tampa Bay Lightning; 9. Toronto Maple Leafs; 10. Edmonton Oilers; 11. Los Angeles Kings; 12. St. Louis Blues; 13. New Jersey Devils; 14. Ottawa Senators; 15. Minnesota Wild; 16. Montreal Canadiens