Panthers Postscript: Florida’s first-round playoff opponent likely one of two teams
The Florida Panthers’ spot in the playoffs might be secured, but where they finish in the standings will go a long way in determining their potential path to returning to the Stanley Cup Finals.
Depending on how the final two weeks of the regular season shakes out, it looks as if the Panthers will open the postseason against the Toronto Maple Leafs or the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Entering play Monday, the Panthers (47-22-5, 99 points, eight games left) are second in the Atlantic Division, two points behind the Boston Bruins (43-17-15, 101 points, seven games left) with a game in hand. At the moment, Florida owns the first tiebreaker over Boston, which is regulation wins (Florida has 38 regulation wins, Boston 33), so the Panthers still have the inside track to win the division.
The Metropolitan-leading New York Rangers (50-20-4, 104 points, eight games left), however, have a distant lead on the rest of the conference.
So what does that mean for Florida?
If the Panthers finish second in the Atlantic, they will open the playoffs against the team that finishes third in the division, which right now is Toronto (42-22-9, 93 points, nine games left), although the Tampa Bay (41-25-7, 89 points, nine games left) can make a push.
If Florida wins the division, it will open the playoffs against the Eastern Conference’s top wild-card team unless it overtakes the Rangers for the conference lead. Right now, the conference’s top wild-card team is Tampa Bay. However, if the Lightning overtake the Maple Leafs for the third spot in the Atlantic, then Toronto becomes the top wild card team.
So either way, barring something unforeseen, Florida’s first step for the playoffs appears to be getting clearer.
As for the rest of the playoff field...
▪ The Rangers, Carolina Hurricanes (47-21-7, 101 points, seven games left) and Washington Capitals (36-27-10, 82 points, nine games left) are the top three teams in the Metro.
▪ The Philadelphia Flyers (36-29-10, 82 points, seven games left) and Detroit Red Wings (36-30-8, 80 points, eight games left) are the two teams vying for the final wild-card spot.
▪ Three teams in the Western Conference have clinched playoff berths — the Dallas Stars (47-19-9, 103 points, seven games left), Colorado Avalanche (47-21-6, 100 points, eight games left) and Vancouver Canucks (45-20-8, 98 points, nine games left) — but the rest of the field appears to be clear. Either the Winnipeg Jets (44-24-6, 94 points, eight games left) or Nashville Predators (43-27-4, 90 points, eight games left) will be the third team in the Central Division along with Dallas and Colorado. The Edmonton Oilers (45-23-4, 94 points, 10 games left) and one of the Golden Knights (41-25-8, 90 points, eight games left) or Los Angeles Kings (38-24-11, 87 points, nine games left) should round out the Pacific, which Vancouver leads. Whichever teams from this group don’t finish in the top three of their division should be the wild-card teams in the West unless the St. Louis Blues (39-31-4, 82 points, eight games left) makes a massive push.
The Stanley Cup Playoffs begin April 20.
700 for Barkov
Panthers captain and top-line center Aleksander Barkov hit yet another milestone last week.
With his two-point performance in Florida’s loss to the New York Islanders on Thursday, Barkov became the sixth Finnish-born player to log 700 points in the NHL.
“It means a lot,” Barkov told reporters. “As a little kid, I would’ve never even thought about being here right now, but it’s just one of those things that you don’t realize until after your career that you’ve been here for a long time and living the dream every day.”
Barkov followed up that outing with a two-goal performance in Florida’s shootout win over the Red Wings on Saturday. On the season, Barkov has 71 points (21 goals, 50 assists).
The week ahead
The Panthers are on the road all week. Their four-game slate: Monday at Toronto (7 p.m., Bally Sports Florida), Tuesday at Montreal (7 p.m., Bally Sports Florida), Thursday at Ottawa (7 p.m., Bally Sports Florida) and Saturday at Boston (3:30 p.m., ABC).
