NHL playoff watch: Guide to a pivotal 11-game Saturday
Saturdays during the NHL regular season are typically a heavy day on the schedule, and this week is no exception.
While the playoff races (for both spots and positioning) play out, an 11-game slate is on hand. Here’s a guide to each game, including the stakes for both teams.
Buffalo Sabres at Philadelphia Flyers
1 p.m., NHL Network
A push for the playoffs is a bit of a stretch when describing these two clubs. While technically not eliminated, both are more likely to win the draft lottery than make a miraculous run to the postseason. But draft position is important, too, and the loser of this game will have pushed its opponent down that inverse leaderboard.
New York Islanders at Tampa Bay Lightning
2 p.m., ESPN+
Both of these teams need this game. For the Islanders, it’s a chance to make moves on the final Eastern wild card. For the Lightning, an Atlantic Division title remains in reach.
St. Louis Blues at Colorado Avalanche
4:30 p.m., ESPN+
Two of the hottest teams in the league square off, as Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar get to wave hello to 4 Nations Face-Off teammate Jordan Binnington before attempting to put several pucks past him. The Avs are all but locked in to the No. 3 seed in the Central, while the Blues are ably fending off the masses behind them — and could overtake the Wild as the West’s first wild-card team if their winning ways continue.
New Jersey Devils at Minnesota Wild
6 p.m., ESPN+
Whereas the Avs and Blues are on heaters, the Devils and Wild are treading water, hoping they can maintain their postseason tickets. The Devils enter the day as the Metro’s No. 3 seed, nine points ahead of the Islanders. The Wild are two points ahead of the Blues as the first Western wild card, with the Canucks and Flames both within 10 points behind them.
Vegas Golden Knights at Nashville Predators
6:30 p.m., ESPN+
Jonathan Marchessault‘s old teammates are in town for this matchup, and the two clubs’ paths couldn’t be more divergent; the Golden Knights are charging toward another Pacific Division crown (and hoping to put more distance between themselves and the Kings) while the Predators are in the bottom three, though likely at No. 3 exactly given that they are 11 points ahead of the Blackhawks.
Columbus Blue Jackets at Ottawa Senators
7 p.m., ESPN+
If the Blue Jackets are going to solidify their playoff position, a “four-point game” like this one cannot be wasted — earning them those points in the standings and denying the points to the Sens. Columbus enters this game in the second wild-card spot, and eight points back of Ottawa for the first.
Toronto Maple Leafs at Los Angeles Kings
7 p.m., ESPN+
The West Coast swing continues for Toronto in what could be a Stanley Cup Final matchup if the Kings can manage to get past the Oilers in the first round (on their fourth try) and the Leafs can get to the Final for the first time since 1967. Toronto remains in a battle with the Panthers and Lightning for the Atlantic title, while L.A. begins the day seven points back of Vegas for first in the Pacific.
Boston Bruins at Detroit Red Wings
8 p.m., ABC/ESPN+
The playoffs look less and less likely by the day for these Original 6 teams — but the chances aren’t entirely gone. But one of them will need to move quickly; Detroit (3-7-0 in its last 10) and Boston (2-7-1) are losing any buffer to make a miraculous run into the postseason. Will this game be a pivot point?
Calgary Flames at Edmonton Oilers
10 p.m., ESPN+
This is the final Battle of Alberta matchup this regular season, after the teams split a pair of contests in the fall. Will they meet again in the playoffs? The Oilers are doing their part, sitting third in the Pacific. Calgary has work to do, as it is six points behind St. Louis and eight points behind Minnesota, who are each in wild-card position.
New York Rangers at San Jose Sharks
10:30 p.m., ESPN+
Actual roller coasters are jealous of the peaks and valleys that the 2024-25 Rangers have navigated. Nevertheless, the Rangers are right in the mix for the second wild-card spot in the East. To say that anything less than two points from this game would be devastating would be accurate. As for the Sharks, they hold a two-point edge at the bottom of the standings ahead of the Blackhawks.
Dallas Stars at Seattle Kraken
10:30 p.m., ESPN+
Can the Stars catch the Jets to be the top seed in the Central Division? They are six points back with 10 games remaining, so it’s not entirely unreasonable to think so — particularly with another matchup against Winnipeg on April 10. Obviously, a win is expected here over the Kraken, who are jockeying for draft lottery position with the Sabres, Flyers, Bruins and Penguins.
There are less than three weeks left until April 17 and we’ll help you track it all with the NHL playoff watch. As we traverse the final stretch, we’ll provide details on all the playoff races, along with the teams jockeying for position in the 2025 NHL draft lottery.
Note: Playoff chances are via Stathletes.
Jump ahead:
Current playoff matchups
Today’s schedule
Yesterday’s scores
Expanded standings
Race for No. 1 pick
Current playoff matchups
Eastern Conference
A1 Florida Panthers vs. WC1 Ottawa Senators
A2 Toronto Maple Leafs vs. A3 Tampa Bay Lightning
M1 Washington Capitals vs. WC2 Columbus Blue Jackets
M2 Carolina Hurricanes vs. M3 New Jersey Devils
Western Conference
C1 Winnipeg Jets vs. WC2 St. Louis Blues
C2 Dallas Stars vs. C3 Colorado Avalanche
P1 Vegas Golden Knights vs. WC1 Minnesota Wild
P2 Los Angeles Kings vs. P3 Edmonton Oilers
Saturday’s games
Note: All times ET. All games not on TNT or NHL Network are available to stream on ESPN+ (local blackout restrictions apply).
Buffalo Sabres at Philadelphia Flyers, 1 p.m. (NHLN)
New York Islanders at Tampa Bay Lightning, 2 p.m.
St. Louis Blues at Colorado Avalanche, 4:30 p.m.
New Jersey Devils at Minnesota Wild, 6 p.m.
Vegas Golden Knights at Nashville Predators, 6:30 p.m.
Columbus Blue Jackets at Ottawa Senators, 7 p.m.
Toronto Maple Leafs at Los Angeles Kings, 7 p.m.
Boston Bruins at Detroit Red Wings, 8 p.m. (ABC/ESPN+)
Calgary Flames at Edmonton Oilers, 10 p.m.
New York Rangers at San Jose Sharks, 10:30 p.m.
Dallas Stars at Seattle Kraken, 10:30 p.m.
Friday’s scoreboard
Florida Panthers 2, Utah Hockey Club 1 (OT)
Carolina Hurricanes 4, Montreal Canadiens 1
Columbus Blue Jackets 7, Vancouver Canucks 6 (SO)
Winnipeg Jets 4, New Jersey Devils 0
Vegas Golden Knights 5, Chicago Blackhawks 3
Anaheim Ducks 5, New York Rangers 4 (OT)
Expanded standings
Atlantic Division
Points: 91
Regulation wins: 35
Playoff position: A1
Games left: 10
Points pace: 103.638888888889
Next game: vs. MTL (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 90
Regulation wins: 35
Playoff position: A2
Games left: 10
Points pace: 102.5
Next game: @ LA (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 89
Regulation wins: 36
Playoff position: A3
Games left: 10
Points pace: 101.361111111111
Next game: vs. NYI (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 81
Regulation wins: 29
Playoff position: WC1
Games left: 11
Points pace: 93.5492957746479
Next game: vs. CBJ (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 98.1%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 75
Regulation wins: 24
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 10
Points pace: 85.4166666666667
Next game: @ FLA (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 43.7%
Tragic number: 21
Points: 72
Regulation wins: 25
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 10
Points pace: 82
Next game: vs. BOS (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 4.5%
Tragic number: 18
Points: 69
Regulation wins: 23
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 9
Points pace: 77.5068493150685
Next game: @ DET (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 0.1%
Tragic number: 13
Points: 66
Regulation wins: 24
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 11
Points pace: 76.225352112676
Next game: @ PHI (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 0.1%
Tragic number: 14
Metro Division
Points: 103
Regulation wins: 40
Playoff position: M1
Games left: 10
Points pace: 117.305555555556
Next game: vs. BUF (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 92
Regulation wins: 39
Playoff position: M2
Games left: 10
Points pace: 104.777777777778
Next game: vs. NYI (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 83
Regulation wins: 34
Playoff position: M3
Games left: 8
Points pace: 91.972972972973
Next game: @ MIN (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 98.5%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 75
Regulation wins: 23
Playoff position: WC2
Games left: 11
Points pace: 86.6197183098592
Next game: OTT (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 18.5%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 75
Regulation wins: 31
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 9
Points pace: 84.2465753424658
Next game: @ SJ (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 18.1%
Tragic number: 19
Points: 74
Regulation wins: 25
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 11
Points pace: 85.4647887323944
Next game: @ TB (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 18.4%
Tragic number: 22
Points: 69
Regulation wins: 20
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 8
Points pace: 76.4594594594595
Next game: vs. OTT (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 0.1%
Tragic number: 11
Points: 67
Regulation wins: 18
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 8
Points pace: 74.2432432432432
Next game: vs. BUF (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: 9
Central Division
Points: 104
Regulation wins: 39
Playoff position: C1
Games left: 9
Points pace: 116.821917808219
Next game: vs. VAN (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 98
Regulation wins: 38
Playoff position: C2
Games left: 10
Points pace: 111.611111111111
Next game: @ SEA (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 93
Regulation wins: 38
Playoff position: C3
Games left: 9
Points pace: 104.465753424658
Next game: vs. STL (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 87
Regulation wins: 33
Playoff position: WC1
Games left: 9
Points pace: 97.7260273972603
Next game: vs. NJ (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 90.2%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 85
Regulation wins: 29
Playoff position: WC2
Games left: 8
Points pace: 94.1891891891892
Next game: @ COL (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 80.3%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 76
Regulation wins: 24
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 9
Points pace: 85.3698630136986
Next game: @ CHI (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 4%
Tragic number: 10
Points: 62
Regulation wins: 23
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 10
Points pace: 70.6111111111111
Next game: vs. VGK (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E
Points: 51
Regulation wins: 18
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 9
Points pace: 57.2876712328767
Next game: vs. UTA (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E
Pacific Division
Points: 96
Regulation wins: 41
Playoff position: P1
Games left: 10
Points pace: 109.333333333333
Next game: @ NSH (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 89
Regulation wins: 35
Playoff position: P3
Games left: 11
Points pace: 102.788732394366
Next game: vs. TOR (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 99.9%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 87
Regulation wins: 30
Playoff position: P2
Games left: 10
Points pace: 99.0833333333333
Next game: vs. CGY (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 98.2%
Tragic number: N/A
Points: 81
Regulation wins: 26
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 9
Points pace: 90.986301369863
Next game: @ WPG (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 10.4%
Tragic number: 16
Points: 79
Regulation wins: 26
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 11
Points pace: 91.2394366197183
Next game: @ EDM (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 16.9%
Tragic number: 17
Points: 72
Regulation wins: 23
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 10
Points pace: 82
Next game: vs. TOR (Sunday)
Playoff chances: 0.1%
Tragic number: 8
Points: 68
Regulation wins: 25
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 9
Points pace: 76.3835616438356
Next game: vs. DAL (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: 2
Points: 49
Regulation wins: 14
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 11
Points pace: 56.5915492957746
Next game: vs. NYR (Saturday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E
Note: An “x” means that the team has clinched a playoff berth. An “e” means that the team has been eliminated from playoff contention.
Race for the No. 1 pick
The NHL uses a draft lottery to determine the order of the first round, so the team that finishes in last place is not guaranteed the No. 1 selection. As of 2021, a team can move up a maximum of 10 spots if it wins the lottery, so only 11 teams are eligible for the No. 1 pick. Full details on the process are here. Matthew Schaefer, a defenseman for the OHL’s Erie Otters, is No. 1 on the draft board.
Points: 49
Regulation wins: 14
Points: 51
Regulation wins: 18
Points: 62
Regulation wins: 23
Points: 66
Regulation wins: 24
Points: 67
Regulation wins: 18
Points: 68
Regulation wins: 25
Points: 69
Regulation wins: 20
Points: 69
Regulation wins: 23
Points: 72
Regulation wins: 23
Points: 72
Regulation wins: 25
Points: 74
Regulation wins: 25
Points: 75
Regulation wins: 31
Points: 75
Regulation wins: 24
Points: 76
Regulation wins: 24
Points: 79
Regulation wins: 26
Points: 81
Regulation wins: 26
Sports
Ranking the top 50 players in the Stanley Cup playoffs: Where do Hellebuyck, MacKinnon, Kucherov land?
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Neil Paine
As the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs began, a number of storylines dominated the conversation: Can Connor Hellebuyck turn his historic regular season into a Dominik Hašek-esque postseason run for the ages for the Winnipeg Jets? Will the Colorado Avalanche–Dallas Stars showdown be a quasi-Cup Final right away in Round 1? Is it finally the year for Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl to win it all, after the Edmonton Oilers came so close last season?
But beyond the matchups and narratives, it’s also a good time to take stock of which players bring the most value into the postseason.
That’s where goals above replacement (GAR) comes in — my evolved spin on earlier all-in-one value stats like Tom Awad’s goals versus threshold and Hockey-Reference’s point shares. The core idea of GAR is to measure a player’s total impact — in offense, defense or goaltending — above what a generic “replacement-level” player might provide at the same position. It also strives to ensure the league’s value is better balanced by position: 60% of leaguewide GAR is distributed to forwards, 30% to defensemen and 10% to goaltenders.
To then assess who might be most valuable on the eve of this year’s playoffs, I plugged GAR into a system inspired by Bill James’ concept of an “established level” of performance; in this case, a weighted average of each player’s GAR over the past three regular seasons, with more emphasis on 2024-25. And to keep the metric from undervaluing recent risers, we also apply a safeguard: no player’s established level can be lower than 75% of his most recent season’s GAR.
The result is a blend of peak, recent, and sustained performance — the players on playoff-bound teams who have been great, are currently great or are still trending upward — in a format that gives us a sense of who could define this year’s postseason.
One final note: Injured players who were expected to miss all or substantial parts of the playoffs were excluded from the ranking. Sorry, Jack Hughes.
With that in mind, here are the top 50 skaters and goaltenders on teams in the 2025 playoff field, according to their three-year established level of value, ranked by the numbers:
Five series of the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs have begun, and two more will begin Monday. Meanwhile, the two matchups in the Central Division are on to Game 2.
Here’s the four-pack of games on the calendar:
What are the key storylines heading into Monday’s games? Who are the key players to watch?
Read on for game previews with statistical insights from ESPN Research, recaps of what went down last night, and the Three Stars of Sunday Night from Arda Öcal.
Matchup notes
Montreal Canadiens at Washington Capitals
Game 1 | 7 p.m., ESPN
You might’ve heard about the 2010 playoff matchup between these two teams a time or so in the past week.
In that postseason, the overwhelming favorite (and No. 1 seed) Capitals, led by Alex Ovechkin, were upset by the No. 8 seed Canadiens, due in large part to an epic performance in goal from Jaroslav Halak. Halak isn’t walking out of the tunnel for the Habs this time around (we assume); instead it’ll be Becancour, Quebec, native Sam Montembeault, who allowed four goals on 35 shots in his one start against the Caps this season.
Washington’s goaltender for Game 1 has yet to be revealed, as Logan Thompson was injured back on April 2. But there’s no question that there is a disparity between the offensive output of the two clubs, as the Caps finished second in the NHL in goals per game (3.49), while the Canadiens finished 17th (2.96). Can Montreal keep up in this series?
St. Louis Blues at Winnipeg Jets
Game 2 | 7:30 p.m., ESPN2
The Blues hung with the Jets for much of Game 1 and even looked like the stronger team at certain times, so pulling off the series upset remains on the table. But getting a win on the unfriendly ice at the Canada Life Centre would be of some benefit in shifting momentum before the series moves to St. Louis for Game 3. The Blues proved that Connor Hellebuyck is not invincible in Game 1, and they were led by stars Jordan Kyrou and Robert Thomas, who both got on the board.
The Jets have a mixed history after winning Game 1 of a playoff series, having gone 3-3 as a franchise (including the Atlanta Thrashers days) on such occasions. Like the Blues, the Jets were led by their stars, Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele, but the game-tying goal came from Alex Iafallo, who has played up and down the lineup this season.
Colorado Avalanche at Dallas Stars
Game 2 | 9:30 p.m., ESPN
The Stars might like a redo on Game 1 after the visiting Avalanche essentially controlled the festivities for much of the contest. Stars forward Jason Robertson missed Game 1 because of an injury sustained in the final game of the regular season, and his return sooner than later would be excellent for Dallas; he scored three goals in three games against Colorado in the regular season. Also of note, teams that have taken a 2-0 lead in best-of-seven series have won 86% of the time.
Slowing down the Avs’ stars will be critical in Game 2, which is a sound — if perhaps unrealistic — strategy. With his two goals in Game 1, Nathan MacKinnon became the third player in Avalanche/Nordiques history to score 50 playoff goals, joining Joe Sakic (84) and Peter Forsberg (58). In reaching 60 assists in his 73rd playoff game, Cale Makar became the third-fastest defenseman in NHL history to reach that milestone, behind Bobby Orr (69 GP) and Al MacInnis (71 GP).
Edmonton Oilers at Los Angeles Kings
Game 1 | 10 p.m., ESPN2
This is the fourth straight postseason in which the Oilers and Kings have met in Round 1, and Edmonton has won the previous three series. Will the fourth time be the charm for the Kings?
L.A. went 3-1-0 against Edmonton this season, including shutouts on April 5 and 14. Quinton Byfield was particularly strong in those games, with three goals and an assist. Overall, the Kings were led in scoring this season by Adrian Kempe, with 35 goals and 38 assists. Warren Foegele — who played 22 playoff games for the Oilers in 2024 — had a career-high 24 goals this season.
The Oilers enter the 2025 postseason with 41 playoff series wins, which is the second most among non-Original Six teams (behind the Flyers, with 44). They have been eliminated by the team that won the Stanley Cup in each of the past three postseasons (Panthers 2024, Golden Knights 2023, Avalanche 2022). Edmonton continues to be led by Leon Draisaitl — who won his first Rocket Richard Trophy as the league’s top goal scorer this season — and Connor McDavid, who won the goal-scoring title in 2022-23 and the Conn Smythe Trophy as MVP of the playoffs last year, even though the Oilers didn’t win the Cup.
Arda’s Three Stars of Sunday
For the last several seasons, much of the postseason narrative for the Leafs has been the lack of production from the Core Four. So this was a dream Game 1 against Ottawa for Marner (one goal, two assists), Nylander (one goal, one assist), John Tavares (one goal, one assist) and Matthews (two assists) in Toronto’s 6-2 win over Ottawa.
Stankoven’s two goals in the second period put the game out of reach, with the Canes winning 4-1 in Game 1. Stankoven is the second player in Hurricanes/Whalers history to score twice in his first playoff game with the club (the other was Andrei Svechnikov in Game 1 of the first round in 2019)
Howden had two third-period goals in the Golden Knights’ victory over the Wild in Game 1, including a buzzer-beating empty-netter to make the final score 4-2.
Sunday’s results
Hurricanes 4, Devils 1
Carolina leads 1-0
The Hurricanes came out inspired thanks in part to the raucous home crowd and took a quick lead off the stick of Jalen Chatfield at 2:24 of the first period. Logan Stankoven — who came over in the Mikko Rantanen trade — scored a pair in the second period, and the Canes never looked back. On the Devils’ side, injuries forced Brenden Dillon and Cody Glass out of the game, while Luke Hughes left in the third period but was able to return. Full recap.
0:44
Logan Stankoven’s 2nd goal gives Hurricanes a 3-0 lead
Logan Stankoven notches his second goal of the game to give the Hurricanes a 3-0 lead.
Maple Leafs 6, Senators 2
Toronto leads 1-0
The first skirmish in the Battle of Ontario goes to the home side, as the Leafs never let the Senators get very close in this one. Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Mitch Marner scored in the first, John Tavares and William Nylander tallied in the second, while Morgan Rielly and Matthew Knies put the game away in the third. Drake Batherson and Ridly Greig — scorer of a controversial empty-net goal against Toronto in 2024 — scored for Ottawa. Full recap.
0:42
William Nylander zips home a goal to pad the Maple Leafs’ lead
William Nylander zips the puck past the goalie to give the Maple Leafs a 4-1 lead.
Golden Knights 4, Wild 2
Vegas leads 1-0
In Sunday’s nightcap, the two teams played an evenly matched first two periods, as Vegas carried a 2-1 lead into the third. Then, Brett Howden worked his magic, scoring a goal to pad the Knights’ lead 2:28 into that frame, and putting the game to bed with an empty-netter that beat the buzzer. The Wild were led by Matt Boldy, who had two goals, both assisted by Kirill Kaprizov. Full recap.
0:31
Brett Howden buries Wild in Game 1 with buzzer-beating goal
Brett Howden sends the Minnesota Wild packing in Game 1 with an empty-net goal for the Golden Knights in the final second.
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