NHL Playoff races: Leafs now 7 points out of 7th place

NHL East has 6 teams battling for 3 playoff spots

By picking up two points in their overtime and shootout losses on the weekend, the Toronto Maple Leafs find they are now just 7 points out of 7th place, and only four points behind Carolina holding the eighth and final Eastern Conference NHL playoff spot:

EASTERN DIV GP W L OT PTS

6. MONTREAL NE 63 33 23 7 73

7. NY RANGERS ATL 64 33 27 4 70

8. CAROLINA SE 63 29 25 9 67

9. BUFFALO NE 61 29 25 7 65

10. TORONTO NE 63 27 27 9 63

11. ATLANTA SE 63 26 26 11 63


Montreal is very close to being in, so in my mind there are really 5 teams battling for 2 playoff positions.


NHL Western Conference 2011 Playoff Race

The West is truly crazy, and we're gonna have to keep an eye on this one and narrow it down a bit in a week or two, but right now it is wide open. There are 11 NHL teams battling for West playoff spots 3 through 8:

WESTERN DIV GP W L OT PTS

3. SAN JOSE PAC 63 36 21 6 78

4. PHOENIX PAC 64 33 21 10 76

5. LOS ANGELES PAC 62 35 23 4 74

6. CALGARY NW 64 32 23 9 73

7. MINNESOTA NW 62 33 23 6 72

8. DALLAS PAC 62 33 23 6 72

9. CHICAGO CEN 62 33 23 6 72

10. NASHVILLE CEN 63 32 23 8 72

11. ANAHEIM PAC 63 33 25 5 71

12. COLUMBUS CEN 61 31 24 6 68

13. ST LOUIS CEN 62 28 25 9 65



The Elite: Vancouver, Philadelphia, Detroit, Tampa Bay, Pittsburgh, Boston, Washington


The Pack: ALL the teams featured in the playoff races above.


The Future: Edmonton, Colorado, Ottawa, NY Islanders, New Jersey, Florida

With the NHL trade deadline being tomorrow afternoon, we're down to the nitty gritty and already seeing playoff-style intensity in games affecting divisional standings. This is gonna be fun!!!

Go Leafs Go!