Rangers, Canadiens, Penguins, Hurricanes, Flyers All Fighting for Positioning

With just one regular-season game left for most of them, the New York Rangers, Montreal Canadiens, Pittsburgh Penguins, Carolina Hurricanes, and Philadelphia Flyers have all clinched Playoff spots but are still fighting for positioning or home-ice advantage.

The Rangers have the longest win streak going of the eight teams heading for the Eastern Conference side of the postseason.

New York and Montreal are tied at 93 points. The Rangers are ahead of the Canadiens in the standings, as they have one more win, but a Montreal win against Pittsburgh on Saturday and a New York loss in their final game against those same Penguins could reverse their positions.

Pittsburgh has 97 points, just like Carolina and Philadelphia. A Penguins win against Montreal would put them in fourth place with home-ice advantage, assuming Carolina loses their last game and the Flyers lose their last two games.

The Flyers have lost their last two games to the Rangers but beat them the last time the two teams met in Philly. Of course, the Rangers get Friday and Saturday off to prepare for their Sunday game against the Flyers while Philadelphia plays the New York Islanders on Saturday.

If the Flyers beat the Islanders on Saturday but lose at home to the Rangers on Sunday, they'll finish the season with 99 points, and the Rangers will finish with 95. That should be good for seventh for the Rangers, ahead of the Canadiens.

But keep in mind that the Penguins are likely to win their last game (against Montreal), which would leave the Flyers and Penguins tied at 99 at the end of the campaign.

Carolina's last game is at the New Jersey Devils, but that team is 3-6-1 in their last ten games, while the 'Canes are 9-1-0 in their last ten.

There's a possibility that Carolina would end the season in a deadlock with the Flyers in the Penguins (if they all wrap with 99). The rules state that if two or more clubs are tied in points at the end of the regular season, the standing of the clubs is determined by the number of games won and then the greater number of points earned in games between the tied clubs.

In short, the standings in the Eastern Conference could very well stay the same as they are right now. That would mean the Boston Bruins would play the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the Playoffs, Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals would "welcome" Sean Avery and the revamped Rangers, the Devils would host (but not roast) the Penguins, and the Flyers would fight the Hurricanes.

Hockey fans in the East may be hoping for a Boston-New York series after Tim Thomas fought with Sean Avery in their last game and a Washington-Pittsburgh series to see Ovechkin against Malkin and Crosby, but these series look unlikely.

Of course, there's a second round of postseason action to look forward to.