2026 NHL Playoff Bracket If the Playoffs Started Today

When the NHL season gets to American Thanksgiving, that usually gives you a pretty good indicator of which teams in the league are good, which teams are bad, and which teams might end up in the playoffs.

While the standings do still change a little over the remaining three quarters of the season, most of the teams that occupy a playoff position at the end of November tend to maintain that spot at least 75 percent of the time.

That means most of the teams in a playoff position on Wednesday will probably be playing in the playoffs in April, May, or perhaps even June. So with that in min,d let's just take a look at what the playoff brackets would look like if the postseason were to begin right now.

There are a lot of teams you expect to be there, some teams you might not have expected, and some very prominent teams missing as they sit on the outside of the current playoff picture.

Something important to note before you dive into reading this and getting mad at the matchups.

The NHL does not sort its in-season playoff standings and brackets by points percentage.

We are.

We are not going by raw points alone. We are going by points percentage, since it is a more accurate reflection of what each team has done so far in the games they have actually played. It removes the messiness and noise that can come from one team having played 25 games and another having played only 21 or 22.

Again: Points percentage is how we are looking at the playoff standings right now.

Please keep that in mind.

Carolina Hurricanes (Metropolitan 1) vs. Philadelphia Flyers (Wild-Card 2)

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The Hurricanes are doing their thing so far this season, grinding teams down and wearing them out with a relentless forecheck and possession game and churning out a lot of wins. They have the best record in the Eastern Conference as of Wednesday and once again look to be one of the best teams in the league. The question will simply come down to whether or not their territorial advantages will lead to goals deep in the playoffs against the best teams.

Do they have enough finishers? Will all of that salary cap space and draft pick capital help them land another one by the trade deadline?

The Eastern Conference race is such a pile-up that most of the teams are separated by the slimmest of percentage point margins. At the moment, the Philadelphia Flyers would barely sneak into a wild-card spot with a .595 points percentage, barely edging out the Detroit Red Wings (.587) and Florida Panthers (.568).

Can they hold on to that spot? It will largely come down to whether Dan Vladar can maintain his strong start in goal and whether they can find enough scoring depth.

Ottawa Senators (Atlantic 2) vs. Montreal Canadiens (Atlantic 3)

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If you look at the regular NHL standings by raw points, this would be Ottawa vs. Detroit. But the Canadiens edge out the Red Wings by points percentage, since they are only two points back and have played two fewer games.

These are the only two Canadian teams currently in a playoff position by points percentage.

Ottawa has only had Brady Tkachuk for three games this season and has received some of the worst goaltending in the league, so the fact it is even in a playoff position right now is a minor miracle. A healthy Tkachuk and Linus Ullmark returning to their previous form would do wonders for this team.

Montreal has its own issues in goal so far this season, which is helping to drag down a strong start from its young core players.

The Atlantic Division is a back-and-forth mess at the moment as Ottawa, Montreal, Florida, Detroit, and Boston are all separated by just two points in the standings. It is a razor-thin margin between all of them on points percentage.

Tampa Bay Lightning (Atlantic 1) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (Wild-Card 1)

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You expected the Tampa Bay Lightning to be in this spot, or at least some sort of playoff spot, when the season began.

You probably did not expect the Pittsburgh Penguins to be in this spot, but they are thanks to a narrow points percentage advantage over the other wild-card contenders.

At .595 entering play on Wednesday, they are just ahead of Detroit (.587), Florida (.568), and Washington (.565).

The Penguins have cooled off considerably after their strong, surprising 8-2-1 start, but injuries have really taken a toll on their lineup, as Rickard Rakell, Justin Brazeau, Filip Hallander, Ville Koivunen, and Rutger McGroarty have all missed time this season (and all at the same time recently). Goaltending has largely kept them in it, and they will need to continue to do so until their forwards return to the lineup and mask a bad defense. Their inability to win overtime games and shootouts (0-5) has also cost them some points.

Tampa Bay could probably use some depth help at forward and defense as we get closer to the trade deadline, but its stars are playing great so far this season, including starting goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy.

The big sub-plot to this potential matchup would be the Penguins against their former star, Jake Guentzel.

New Jersey Devils (Metropolitan 2) vs. New York Islanders (Metropolitan 3)

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The Devils are going to have to maintain a playoff spot over the next few weeks without their best player, Jack Hughes, after he suffered yet another significant injury. Unfortunately, this one came during a freak dinner accident, not during an actual game. They need to start wrapping this man in bubble wrap.

They have, once again, struggled in his absence.

When he is in the lineup they can be a contender.

They are not when he isn't.

The Islanders might be one of the biggest surprise teams in the league so far, but the arrival of No. 1 overall pick Matthew Schaefer has been a season-changer and a potential long-term franchise-changer. He is not just playing great for a rookie or 18-year-old. He is simply playing great. He is already playing like a No. 1 defenseman and has brought a new life and energy to a franchise that badly needed all of it.

Colorado Avalanche (Central 1) vs. Utah Mammoth (Wild-Card 2)

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The Avs are simply an absolute monster right now. They have one regulation loss entering play on Wednesday, an MVP contender in Nathan MacKinnon, a Norris Trophy contender in Cale Makar, strong goaltending, and excellent depth performing at an exceptionally high level.

They have been the best team in the NHL through the first two months, and no other team is even close to them right now in terms of results.

The gap between them and the No. 2 team in the league-wide standings by points percentage (Carolina at .696) is the same as the gap between Carolina and the No. 20 team (Washington) in the league-wide standings.

If the playoffs were to begin today, their first-round opponent would be an up-and-coming Utah team that boasts a strong collection of young offensive talent led by forwards Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther. It is an exciting team with a bright future. But does it have enough offense and goaltending to hang with the Avalanche over a best-of-seven series?

Dallas Stars (Central 2) vs. Minnesota Wild (Central 3)

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This would be a fantastic first-round matchup, while also inspiring a lot of anger among longtime Minnesota fans, given the Stars' origins as the Minnesota North Stars.

Dallas is one of the best teams in the league -- again -- and is trying to break through and return to the Stanley Cup Final after three consecutive Western Conference Final defeats. There are not many weaknesses on this roster, as they have high-level players at forward, defense, and in goal, along with very capable depth.

Jason Robertson is on fire right now with goals in seven consecutive games. He is not only raising his price tag on a contract extension, but he should also be playing his way onto the Team USA Olympic roster (if they are smart enough to take him).

The Wild had a terrible start to the season, but has gone on a roll since the calendar rolled over to November.

Rookie goalie Jesper Wallstedt has been one of the driving forces behind that surge with a league-leading .935 save percentage. Remember that name in the Calder Trophy race.

Anaheim Ducks (Pacific 1) vs. Los Angeles Kings (Wild-Card 1)

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This is probably not the hypothetical playoff matchup you expected at this point in the season. Or at any point in the season. And especially not with these standings.

The Ducks are currently the top team in the Pacific Division and look to snap their lengthy playoff drought on the backs of some fantastic young forwards. Leo Carlsson and Cutter Gauthier are rapidly turning into stars, while Beckett Sennecke's career is off to a fantastic start.

They are also getting nice bounce-back seasons from their former New York Rangers contingent as Chris Kreider and Jacob Trouba have played extremely well in supporting roles.

The Ducks do need to shore things up defensively if they are going to maintain this spot -- or a playoff spot -- but the offense looks legit and can take them quite a ways this season.

The Kings, meanwhile, have been objectively mediocre so far this season. Mediocre offense. Mediocre defense. Just kind of lurking around in the middle. After four straight first-round defeats, there should have been a lot of pressure building for a big season. But an uninspiring offseason from new general manager Ken Holland has produced what has so far been an uninspiring start to the season.

What a great potential rivalry matchup, however.

Seattle Kraken (Pacific 2) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (Pacific 3)

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It is a little surprising to see the Kraken in this spot, not only because they had such a down year in 2024-25, but also because they do not really do anything exceptionally well.

They do not have many game-breakers on offense and do not score many goals.

They are good, but not great defensively.

They have very little star power.

What they do have so far is exceptional goaltending, which is helping to carry them through the first two months of the season.

Vegas has probably not matched its preseason expectations just yet. Jack Eichel and Mitch Marner have been outstanding at forward, but defensive depth and goaltending have been big issues so far this season. Entering play on Wednesday, the Golden Knights are only 22nd in the NHL in all-situations save percentage as a team. Seattle is third. That one stat helps explain why Seattle has overachieved and why Vegas has looked like it has underachieved.