Sunday Standings: The thin line between Wild Card and draft lottery

Today at 10:38 AM

The Penguins are starting to get left behind in the crunch of teams going for a playoff spot

After going 9-3-1 over a part of December, the Penguins had some reason for hope this season. Sure, they weren't a perfect team or even one without obvious and very clear weaknesses, but they were able to string together some wins, play well and start to change the trajectory of their season.

Unfortunately that did not last, perhaps as it is always bound to not last for a mediocre squad that features more problems than solutions in their lineup. Even about at their peak, the team still had a points percentage barely over .500, and though they were in fourth place in the division a month ago, they also were only on a 84-point pace. That coming after a hot streak could have only meant when they cooled a sharp decline was waiting.

Cooled they have, Pittsburgh has only won three of their past 12 games (3-6-3) and is settling into a familiar spot in the second half of the season as a team that settles in as a seller as turns its focus to the future.

Let's check in with each team in the division since it's been a few weeks with Sunday games and various activities since we've been able to catch up with how things are going for the rival clubs.

Washington — As the Pens found out last night, it's not easy playing against the Capitals right now. They've won five of their last six games and have only given up two goals in the last four games. Like all really good teams, it's tough to get anything going against Washington, they seal off the walls, battle hard and do a great job of limiting time and space defensively. Impressive so far, we'll see what they can do with the daunting western swing they're about to embark on.

New Jersey — The Devils have been mucking it out in the middle of the season. Before losing 3-1 yesterday to Philadelphia (with an ENG along the way), the last six NJ games ended in one-goal differences (with the previous four all requiring at least over time). New Jersey has only won two of their last 10 games and already seems resigned to the fact that they will be in the 2 vs 3 Metro playoff matchup this season, regardless of what happens.

Carolina — This week the Hurricanes lost to the Ducks (in OT) and the Sabres, so they're not exactly in top form either. They find themselves in a similar to the Devils where they're locked into a playoff track, but can't advance that much and don't have a lot of pressure for their spot. As such, they're not playing extremely inspired at the moment.

Columbus — But a team that IS playing inspired is the Blue Jackets, in one of the most inspiring and best surprises of the season. Check out that home record at 16-5-3, Columbus has something special building up this season. Sean Monahan has been a tremendous addition (though the team will be tested with him currently on the sideline), Kirill Marchenko is emerging as a true breakout star with 49 points in 46 games so far and Zach Werenski is a legit contender for the Norris trophy. Fun and exciting times out in the Ohio hockey world.

Philadelphia — The Flyers are 4-0-1 in their last five games, putting together a nice little stretch. Being the Flyers, they needed it since they lost all of their four games before that point, so that's kinda where they are right now. They'll lose a few in a row and then they'll turn around and string together a couple of wins.

NY Rangers — Is this the redemption period for the Rangers? They're 5-0-2 in the last two weeks and appear to have the arrow pointed up again after falling all the way to last place in the division for a time. Knowing this fragile team, who knows what could be next — especially if it includes the rumors about acquiring J.T. Miller. The funniest timeline would be getting Miller back and then his presence derailing whatever positive momentum they had regained. As a real life soap opera this season, nothing seems like it is out of the realm of reasonable possibilities for NYR in all directions positive and negative.

NY Islanders — The Islanders put in some work on the road recently to earn wins in Boston, Las Vegas and Salt Lake City. Not bad! They would return home only to lose games in the past week to Ottawa and Philadelphia as a tough reminder of what has been an unfulfilling season. The Islanders did beat the Sharks yesterday, showing that they are kinda like the Penguins in the fact that they are not very good but still better than the true dregs of the NHL.

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Here's how the Wild Card picture is shaping up as of today.

It's all going to the NHL's plan, six of the eight teams below the playoff cut line are within four points of the final Wild Card position. Of course, with games played a team like the Penguins (or Philadelphia) may not be as close as they appear at the moment, but that's all part of the illusion for now.

That's what makes for the fun, recent games like Pittsburgh has played against Detroit and Ottawa, and the Pens' subsequent losses in both of them, have gone a long way to explain why they're down towards the bottom looking up. The Pens' next six games are all against Western Conference foes, tamping down the importance of almost every recent game they have played as of late.

It's a thin line between the Wild Card chase and the draft lottery. From Tankathon, here's where it stands today. Pittsburgh's high number of games played relative to the rest of the league doesn't help in the points% area.

Of course, this is a function and not a bug for the NHL that teams can be 2-4 points from a playoff spot while also occupying top-10 picks right now. Thanks to the point for overtime losses, almost everyone (24 out of 32 teams) can be .500 or better by nature of NHL math.