Faceoff Factor

Penguins Vs. Eastern Conference (3/17)

Matt Bodenschatz | Pittsburgh Penguins

Mar 17, 10:09 AM | Hype this story!

The picture in the Atlantic Division is pretty cut and dry…aside from the Philadelphia Flyers.

At this point, the Pittsburgh Penguins and New Jersey Devils have established themselves as sure-shot playoff teams, both with a 100 percent chance of making the dance, according to Sports Club Stats.

With 14 goals in their last two games — both without superstar forward Sidney Crosby — the Penguins have sent a message to the Devils and the rest of the Eastern Conference that they will not go away.

The same cannot be said for the Flyers and New York Islanders. With nine games left in the season, the Flyers have fallen flat and are being chased by three teams, all of which appear to be more disparate. The Islanders, meanwhile, have played themselves completely out of the post-season with five consecutive losses.

That leaves the New York Rangers, who sit third in the division and sixth in the conference. Their 7-2-1 record in their last 10 games suggests that their desire is to continue playing into April and, barring a catastrophic change of circumstances, they will do just that.

Atlantic Division Standings
	GP	W	L	OTL	Pts	GF	GA	Home	Away	Div	L 10	Streak
New Jersey	72	42	24	6	90	188	168	22-12-1	20-12-5	10-10-3	6-3-1	2W
Pittsburgh	72	41	24	7	89	220	196	21-10-5	20-14-2	10-11-2	6-3-1	3W
NY Rangers	72	37	26	9	83	188	177	22-13-1	15-13-8	15-6-1	7-2-1	2L
Philadelphia	73	35	28	10	80	220	214	16-14-6	19-14-4	11-11-2	4-3-3	4L
NY Islanders	73	32	34	7	71	176	219	17-16-3	15-18-4	12-12-0	2-8-0	5L

The Eastern Conference also seems to have settled down quite a bit, with the top six teams locked in and the next two almost-certain. The confusion sets in with the eighth seed, currently occupied by the Flyers.

The Sabres, Capitals and Panthers all appear to be knocking on the door, while the Sabres and Panthers could push the Carolina Hurricanes out of their third seed.

Out of the picture completely are the Tampa Bay Lightning, Atlanta Thrashers and Islanders. Though next to impossible, the Toronto Maple Leafs still hold on to a glimmer of playoff hope.

Eastern Conference Standings
	GP	W	L	OTL	Pts	GF	GA	Home	Away	Div	L 10	Streak
New Jersey	72	42	24	6	90	188	168	22-12-1	20-12-5	10-10-3	6-3-1	2W
Montreal	73	40	24	9	89	230	200	18-13-5	22-11-4	13-10-1	7-3-0	1W
Carolina	74	39	30	5	83	225	229	22-12-3	17-18-2	15-8-1	8-2-0	1W
Pittsburgh	72	41	24	7	89	220	196	21-10-5	20-14-2	10-11-2	6-3-1	3W
Ottawa	73	40	26	7	87	231	215	21-12-3	19-14-4	16-8-0	4-5-1	1L
NY Rangers	72	37	26	9	83	188	177	22-13-1	15-13-8	15-6-1	7-2-1	2L
Boston	73	37	27	9	83	189	202	19-14-4	18-13-5	9-11-4	3-4-3	1L
Philadelphia	73	35	28	10	80	220	214	16-14-6	19-14-4	11-11-2	4-3-3	4L
Buffalo	73	34	28	11	79	227	214	18-13-5	16-15-6	11-10-3	4-4-2	2W
Washington	73	35	30	8	78	212	213	20-15-3	15-15-5	11-11-3	7-3-0	3W
Florida	74	35	31	8	78	200	205	17-13-7	18-18-1	13-10-1	7-2-1	7W
Toronto	73	32	31	10	74	205	227	17-15-5	15-16-5	11-9-4	6-3-1	1L
NY Islanders	73	32	34	7	71	176	219	17-16-3	15-18-4	12-12-0	2-8-0	5L
Atlanta	74	31	35	8	70	196	246	18-16-3	13-19-5	12-11-2	2-4-4	2W
Tampa Bay	72	29	35	8	66	203	230	18-17-2	11-18-6	10-12-2	4-5-1	3W