After Eastern Conference teams deserved a “C” on Monday, they generally passed Tuesday’s tests with flying colors. Sometimes they carved out three-point games when relevant teams faced off, too.
It’s almost bewildering trying to figure out where to start ... so how about the top of the East?
Metro’s rich get richer
The Minnesota Wild deserve credit for fighting back from a considerable deficit, including overcoming an Alex Ovechkin hat trick (all on the power play). Ultimately, T.J. Oshie’s overtime-winner gave Washington the 5-4 (OT) win.
Elsewhere in the Metro’s top ranks, Sergei Bobrovsky grabbed his 41st win of the season (3-1 win against the Sabres) to put Columbus three points behind the Capitals and two ahead of the idle Penguins.
Metro top three (all with 75 games played)
1. Capitals - 108 points
2. Blue Jackets - 105 points
3. Penguins - 103 points
Canadiens gain ground
The Montreal Canadiens handled the Dallas Stars 4-1 in The Epic Battle of the Benns. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Flyers beat the second-place Senators 3-2 via a shootout
Both the Maple Leafs and Bruins won their games, leaving Toronto one point ahead of Boston for third in the Atlantic.
Atlantic top five
1. Canadiens - 95 points in 76 games played
2. Senators - 91 points in 75 GP
3. Maple Leafs - 87 points in 75 GP
Bruins - 86 points in 76 GP
Lightning - 83 points in 75 GP
Finally, let’s look at the final spot in the East
OK, so there’s some overlap here. Why don’t we check on the most wild-card-relevant teams?
Third Atlantic spot: Leafs - 87 points in 75 GP
Final spot: Bruins - 86 points in 76 GP
Lightning - 83 points in 75 GP
Islanders - 82 points in 75 GP
Hurricanes - 82 points in 75 GP
Flyers - 80 points in 76 GP
Panthers - 77 points in 76 GP
Again, the Bruins won, as did the Flyers. The Lightning were idle. The Panthers fell to the Maple Leafs. Buffalo lost while Detroit and New Jersey are out of the running.
You know who deserves special mention outside of the top eight? The Carolina Hurricanes deserve such a distinction, as they are enjoying one of their hottest runs in franchise history after beating Detroit 4-1.
The @NHLCanes have extended their point streak to 12 GP (8-0-4), tying the longest such run in Hurricanes/Whalers history (2005-06: 11-0-1). pic.twitter.com/4wWB80bwqd
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) March 29, 2017
The overall message: just about any truly relevant team at least grabbed a standings point, with most winning games outright on Tuesday.
It doesn’t exactly thin the herd, but it keeps the door open for a fun race to the finish.