Contenders or pretenders: The NHL’s Eastern Conference wild-card race

Coming into the NHL’s 4 Nations Tournament break, the Eastern Conference wild-card race is as close as ever, as six teams are currently within five points of each other.

With a tight race shaping up, let’s take a look at which teams are contenders and which are pretenders.

Ottawa Senators: Contenders

The Senators have surged recently, going 8-5-2 in the month of January after a six-game win streak during December. Much of their success is due to the play of goaltender Linus Ullmark, who has the seventh highest save percentage in the league (.915).

They currently sit in third place in the Atlantic division and are just four points behind the Maple Leafs for second place. With one of the best records since Dec. 1, the Senators’ consistency has them as real playoff contenders.

Boston Bruins: Pretenders

Boston has floated around a wild-card spot for most of the season and it currently sits just on the outside with 60 points in 55 games. There’s plenty of reason, however, to believe the Bruins will be out of the playoff picture for the first time since 2016.

The Bruins have struggled to score this season, with a 25th-ranked 2.76 goals for per game. Their special teams haven’t fared well either, with a 30th-ranked power play (12 percent) and a 25th-ranked penalty kill (75.6 percent). On top of all that, star goaltender Jeremy Swayman has struggled, sporting just a .898 save percentage. With these numbers, Boston could be on the outside looking in.

Detroit Red Wings: Contenders

The Red Wings have been the best team in the league since Todd McLellan took over, going 15-4-1 with two separate seven game win streaks. They currently sit in the first wild-card spot and are just one point behind Ottawa for third place in the Atlantic. 

Detroit has also gotten some elite play from their stars during their recent run. Lucas Raymond (25 points in 20 games), Dylan Larkin (24 points in 20 games) and Moritz Seider (15 points in 20 games) have all been excellent. If they keep up their play, they should be in the postseason for the first time since 2016-17.

New York Islanders: Pretenders

The Islanders recently had a seven-game win streak, vaulting them back into wild-card contention. However, despite being just three points behind Tampa Bay for the second wild card, New York has a tough road ahead.

It was recently announced that star forward Mat Barzal is out indefinitely with an injury, a big hit to the team’s forward core. For a team that already struggles to score goals and has the third hardest remaining schedule, it may be too much to overcome.

Tampa Bay Lightning: Contenders

Despite losing captain Steven Stamkos to free agency, the Lightning haven’t missed a beat. Nikita Kucherov has once again been playing at an MVP level with 77 points in 50 games and free agent signee Jake Guentzel has paired nicely with Kucherov on the top line with 51 points in 51 games.

With goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy back to form (.918 save percentage), look for Tampa Bay to maintain its current wild-card position.

Columbus Blue Jackets: Pretenders

Columbus has been a surprise story this season as it sits just one point out of the wild card. The Blue Jackets could be due for a slide, though, as their top forward Kirill Marchenko was just sidelined for six to eight weeks with a broken jaw.

Although the Blue Jackets are a top 10 scoring team in the league (3.24 goals per game), they struggle to keep the puck out of their net (3.30 goals against). Without Marchenko, they may not be able to outscore their defensive problems.