What’s at stake in the NHL: New York Islanders control playoff destiny tonight

The NHL season is winding down, with just three days of games remaining on the regular-season schedule. We’ve reached the point of the campaign at which some clinching or elimination scenario is seemingly in play every night, so we’ll keep you abreast on what to watch for each day between now and the end of the regular season.

After the Winnipeg Jets and Florida Panthers clinched playoff spots Tuesday: What’s at stake in the standings for Wednesday, April 12?

– Despite Florida clinching one of the Eastern Conference Wildcard berths, Tuesday was a good night for the New York Islanders (41-31-9), with the Buffalo Sabres eliminated from contention and the Pittsburgh Penguins (40-31-10) inexplicably losing at home to the tanking Chicago Blackhawks. What on Earth happened? Now, the Islanders have won back the ability to control their destiny. All they need tonight is a single point at home against the Montreal Canadiens. It seems like a tap-in facing an opponent that gave up on its season months ago, but we said the same thing about the Pens/Hawks game 24 hours ago, didn’t we?

– In the upside-down standings, the San Jose Sharks (22-42-16) can no longer finish first in the draft lottery standings, but after Chicago’s costly win Tuesday, the Sharks can still finish in a top-three lottery position if they lose in regulation tonight and Thursday and the Blackhawks win their final game, as the Hawks have more regulation wins.

IF THE PLAYOFFS STARTED TODAY…

Western Conference

(P1) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (WC2) Winnipeg Jets
(C1) Colorado Avalanche (WC1) Seattle Kraken
(P2) Edmonton Oilers vs. (P3) Los Angeles Kings
(C2) Dallas Stars vs. (C3) Minnesota Wild

Eastern Conference

(A1) Boston Bruins vs. (WC2) New York Islanders
(M1) Carolina Hurricanes vs. (WC1) Florida Panthers
(M2) New Jersey Devils vs. (M3) New York Rangers
(A2) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (A3) Tampa Bay Lightning