2024-03-15 17:02:18
Dramatic twist: the race for a playoff spot promises to be exciting in the NHL Eastern Conference!
Posted at 1:02 p.m.
The game seemed decided at the beginning of February. The Detroit Red Wings, the last qualified club, held a rather comfortable lead of six points over the Islanders, with one game less to play. The Devils found themselves seven points behind, but with three games in hand, and in Buffalo, trailing by ten points, it was questionable whether coach Don Granato would survive.
Ranking as of February 1, 2024
Atlantic Section
- Boston 49 matchs/71 points
- Florida 49 games/66 points
- Tampa 50 games/59 points
Metropolitan Section
- NY Rangers 49 matches/63 points
- Carolina 48 games/61 points
- Philadelphia 50 games/56 points
Fourth ace
- Toronto 47 matchs/58points
- Detroit 50 games/58 points
- NY Islanders 49 matches/52 points
- Washington 47 matchs/51 points
- New Jersey 47 games/51 points
- Pittsburgh 46 matchs/51 points
- Buffalo 49 matchs/48 points
But the discomfiture of the Detroit Red Wings, and the recent series of successes of the Washington Capitals, but especially the Buffalo Sabres, are shaking up the established order.
File since February 1
- Toronto 13-5
- NY Islanders 9-5-2
- Buffalo 10-7-1
- Washington 9-7-2
- Tampa Bay 8-7-1
- New Jersey 8-10-1
- Detroit 7-9
- Pittsburgh 7-10-2
Ranking as of March 15, 2024
Atlantic Section
- Florida 67 games/94 points
- Boston 68 matchs/93 points
- Toronto 65 matchs/84 points
Metropolitan Section
- NY Rangers 66 matches/90 points
- Carolina 66 games/86 points
- Philadelphia 67 games/76 points
Fourth ace
- Tampa 66 games/76 points
- NY Islanders 65 matches/72 points
- Detroit 66 games/72 points
- Washington 65 matchs/71 points
- Buffalo 67 matchs/69 points
- New Jersey 66 games/68 points
- Pittsburgh 65 matchs/67 points
At the trade deadline
Lightning de Tampa Bay
PHOTO KIM KLEMENT NEITZEL, USA TODAY SPORTS VIA REUTERS CON
Already squeezed by the salary cap, lacking high draft picks and prospects, Tampa settled for Anthony Duclair and defenseman Matt Dumba. The first cost a third-round pick and a third-round prospect, but we also received a seventh-round pick. Duclair scored two goals and collected three points in his first two games in Tampa, as part of a second line with Anthony Cirelli and Steven Stamkos. Dumba played 21:56 and 20:04 in his first two games with the Lightning, 6-3 wins over the Rangers and 7-0 over the Flyers. Inexpensive acquisitions, but profitable for the moment.
Islanders de New York
PHOTO ALEX GALLARDO, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Lou Lamoriello is used to making splashes at the trade deadline and we might expect a trade to give more ammunition to his new coach Patrick Roy. But nothing happened. Roy has been lucky recently by putting together a super trio consisting of his three best forwards, Bo Horvat, Mathew Barzal and Brock Nelson. He said he was inspired by the time when Bob Hartley paired Joe Sakic and Peter Forsberg on the same line in Colorado. The Islanders had a six-game winning streak recently, during which they scored goals galore, but they were shut out in their two most recent games once morest Los Angeles and Buffalo. They are now ahead of the Red Wings in last place among qualified clubs, but nothing is certain.
Red Wings de Detroit
PHOTO CARLOS OSORIO, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Even if his club is in the fight for a place in the playoffs, Steve Yzerman did not want to mortgage the future of his team by positioning himself as a buyer. He was content to dump Klim Kostin and his $2 million salary next year on the San Jose Sharks. Detroit is in free fall with seven consecutive defeats. The team scored only twelve goals during this sluggish period. Alex DeBrincat had just one point in the last seven games and was demoted to the third line. Patrick Kane has two assists in six games. This veterans club may be tongue-tied. At least Detroit has no shortage of prospects within its organization. Series or not, Yzerman may have to make more room for young people next year.
Capitals de Washington
PHOTO JASON REDMOND, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Capitals GM Brian MacLellan was an active seller at the trade deadline. He got second and fourth round picks for his second scorer, Anthony Mantha, third and fifth round picks for defenseman Joel Edmundson and he managed to trade his star of the last decade, Evgeni Kuznetsov, for a pick of Carolina Hurricanes third round. Kuznetsov was sent back to the American League following signing up for the NHL’s player assistance program. That doesn’t stop Washington from winning as much as it loses and remaining in the fight. The young Connor McMichael, Aliaksei Protas, Ivan Miroschnichenko and Hendrix Lapierre, in order to energize a club that was once too old.
Buffalo Sabers
PHOTO TIMOTHY T. LUDWIG, USA TODAY SPORTS VIA REUTERS CON
General manager Kevyn Adams got modest draft picks for veterans Kyle Okposo and Erik Johnson, but he made one of the most dramatic trades of the trading period by acquiring 22-year-old defensive whiz Bowen Byram , for its best scorer, center Casey Mittelstadt, 25, and thus allow the Avalanche to solidify its second trio. The Sabers might afford to be without Mittelstadt with the presence of Tage Thompson, Dylan Cozens, Peyton Krebs and prospects Noah Östlund and Matthew Savoie, among others. Byram has five points in four games since his arrival and is averaging 24:21 playing on the top pairing with Rasmus Dahlin. To everyone’s surprise, the Sabers are back in the race. They have won their last three games, including two once morest direct rivals, Detroit and the Islanders, whom they clearly dominated 7-3 and 4-0.
New Jersey Devils
PHOTO JEROME MIRON, USA TODAY SPORTS VIA REUTERS CON
Tom Fitzgerald was both seller and buyer. He traded his top scorer, Tyler Toffoli, eligible for full free agency in a few months, for second and third round picks, and got Canadian Jake Allen for a third round pick. That’s a bit like the Devils’ situation at the moment: between two waters. They have not given up the fight as they find themselves four points behind the Islanders, with one game less to play, but the challenge remains daunting. The Devils remain a young team, with Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt and Dawson Mercer on offense, Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec on defense. In his first game in New Jersey on Thursday, Allen allowed two goals on the first three shots received, but won 6-2 by stopping all 32 pucks followingward.
Penguins de Pittsburgh
PHOTO CHARLES LECLAIRE, USA TODAY SPORTS VIA REUTERS CON
Kyle Dubas finally decided to trade his potential unrestricted free agent Jake Guentzel for a first-round pick, Michael Bunting, and three second-rate prospects. Pittsburgh just beat San Jose 6-3 and got a point once morest the Senators, and thus finds itself five points from the last place giving access to the playoffs, but it has five clubs to beat. The Sharks’ pick for Erik Karlsson is still at 10th overall, so the Penguins have room to keep him, but a few more wins and San Jose might inherit a pick between 11th and 14th.
Reinbacher: response shortly
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
David Reinbacher
Olten plays the seventh semi-final match in the Swiss second division in Zurich at 2:45 p.m. on Friday. If Olten loses, David Reinbacher’s club, Kloten, will not have to play relegation matches and the young man will be able to join the Laval Rocket this weekend. If Olten wins, the Canadian’s first pick in 2023, fifth overall, will have to wait until the conclusion of the final to find out if Olten will earn the right to play a series of promotion matches in Kloten. Katherine Harvey-Pinard will follow this seventh game for us and will tell us the conclusion on lapresse.ca.
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