Stanley Cup Playoff Push 2025: Ebb and Flow

Another week has passed, and we are down to less than 40 days left in the NHL's regular season! The month of March is almost one-third over, and we have some movers and shakers in the playoff race. On Saturday, during ABC's coverage of their early games, I saw, for the first time this season, a semblance of a promo for this year's Stanley Cup Playoffs. The promo, featured on the bottom of the screen, showed that ESPN and ABC's coverage of the playoffs starts on April 20, but according to online reports, April 19 is the start day for this year's Stanley Cup Playoffs.

For the fourth straight year, it's Turner and ESPN covering the playoffs in the States, with RSNs (Regional Sports Networks) simulcasting the first round. For this year, ESPN will air the Western Conference Final, while TNT covers the Eastern Conference Final, as well as the Stanley Cup Final. In Canada, Sportsnet will cover the entire postseason, from the first puck drop in the first Game One, to the moment that the Cup is awarded. But that starts next month. Let's look at the playoff picture as of now.

Atlantic Division

In the Atlantic Division, the Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers have now taken over the division lead, going from down by one point last week to up by four points this week. The Maple Leafs have hit a lull in the last week, and losing 7-4 to the Avalanche after leading 4-2 definitely didn't help matters. They now only hold a one point lead over the Tampa Bay Lightning, who (despite losing to a Boston Bruins team who just traded, of all people, Brad Marchand to the Panthers), are still quite red hot and could be on the verge of climbing the division ladder. The Bolts are done with both Florida and Toronto this season, but the Panthers and Leafs will face each other on Thursday in Toronto.

Metropolitan Division

The story remains the same for the Metropolitan Division: the Washington Capitals have a huge lead in the division with 92 points to the Carolina Hurricanes' 80. The New Jersey Devils have 74 points, are barely hanging on to third place, will be without Jack Hughes for the season, and could be without Dougie Hamilton for a good bit. Hell's bells. The Hurricanes are coming off just trading Mikko Rantanen to Dallas in what looks like a bad deal for the team, but their first game after the deal saw them beat the Winnipeg Jets, so there's that. Again, Carolina and New Jersey are competing for second place, and with 39 days left in the season, the Canes are up six points. The Canes and Devils' head-to-head season series is finished. As for the Capitals, they are (at most) seven or eight wins away from clinching a playoff spot, and Alex Ovechkin is nine goals away from surpassing The Great One's total.

East Wild Cards

The always-changing Eastern Conference Wild Card picture has a new pair holding the spots. Now, with 39 days left, it's the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Ottawa Senators with the spots; the Jackets at WC1 with 70 points (four points behind New Jersey in the Metro), and the Sens at WC2 with 69 points. At one point this past week, the New York Rangers were in WC2, and the Montréal Canadiens were one point out. Rangers sit one point out, while the Habs, Red Wings, and Bruins are three points out. Even the New York Islanders have an outside shot (even after trading Brock Nelson to the Avalanche). This will be a wild race that could come down to the final week.

Central Division

In the Central Division, the Winnipeg Jets lead the way with 92 points, a six point edge over the Dallas Stars with 86. As for third place, that is now held by the red hot Colorado Avalanche, who won five straight games and have loaded up at the deadline. The Avs capitalized on the woes of the Minnesota Wild as of late, and finally moved into the Central Division's Top 3, two points ahead of the Wild. Next up is a quest for 2nd place, but that could be difficult. The Avs have one game left against the Wild (on Tuesday), and one game left against Dallas (on next Sunday). The latter will be quite interesting: Mikko Rantanen's return to Ball Arena. Oh man.

Pacific Division

The Pacific Division's Top 3 remains the same; the Vegas Golden Knights lead the division with 82 points, the Edmonton Oilers (78 points) are second, and the Los Angeles Kings (75 points) are third. Barring a change atop the division, we're pretty much destined to get Oilers/Kings in Round 1 for the fourth straight year, and people are complaining. Those people would not have survived hockey in the 80s. Back then, divisional foes faced each other about 10 times a year counting playoffs, and certain rivalries took place in the playoffs every year. Oilers/Kings is a throwback; remember, both teams were in the old Smythe Division, and they've shared The Great One. They're going to be tied to each other whether fans like it or not.

West Wild Cards

With the change in the Central Division, it's the Minnesota Wild now holding the West's WC1 position, while WC2 is still held by the Calgary Flames. The Wild have been losing quite a bit; their Friday loss to the Vancouver Canucks knocked them down to the WC standings, and they remained there after losing to the Penguins on Sunday. Speaking of the Canucks, they and the St. Louis Blues are knocking on the door of that WC2 spot, and the Blues have been red hot--7-1-2 in their last ten games. The Utah Hockey Club look like they have an outside shot, as do the Anaheim Ducks, but we'll see if they will remain strong in a couple of weeks.

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And that's the story so far, with 39 days left in this wacky season. No spots clinched yet, but they will come, and it will make this race even more interesting. The road to the Stanley Cup Playoffs is a bumpy one, but it's always thrilling, nail biting, and epic!