NHL Playoff Standings 2018: Current Bracket Matchups and Postseason Picture

The stage is set for a dramatic final 72 hours of the NHL regular season.

The only thing that seems to be locked in place is the Nashville Predators' place atop the Presidents' Trophy standings, which was secured with Thursday's win over the Washington Capitals.

Entering Friday, the Metropolitan and Pacific Divisions have the most at stake, as the teams' positions in each division could change once again.

The Atlantic Division title is still up for grabs, with the Tampa Bay Lightning and Boston Bruins tied on 110 points, while the Central is the calmest of the four divisions, as it has all three postseason seeds set.

Current Bracket Matchups

Eastern Conference

Atlantic No. 1  Tampa Bay vs. Wild Card No. 2 Philadelphia

Atlantic No. 2 Boston vs. Atlantic No. 3 Toronto

Metropolitan No. 1 Washington vs. Wild Card No. 1 New Jersey

Metropolitan No. 2 Pittsburgh vs. Metropolitan No. 3 Columbus

Western Conference

Central No. 1 Nashville vs. Wild Card No. 2 Colorado

Central No. 2 Winnipeg vs. Central No. 3 Minnesota

Pacific No. 1 Vegas vs. Wild Card No. 1 Anaheim

Pacific No. 2 San Jose vs. Pacific No. 3 Los Angeles

Tampa Bay, Boston in Fight for Atlantic Title

There will be no shortage of attention paid to the Atlantic Division title race, as the Tampa Bay Lightning and Boston Bruins both have two games remaining on their respective schedules.

The Lightning can take a two-point advantage Friday with a win over the Buffalo Sabres, but Boston can take it right back if it knocks off the Florida Panthers on Sunday.

On Saturday, the Lightning visit the Carolina Hurricanes. The Bruins, meanwhile, play host to the Ottawa Senators.

Tampa Bay holds the tiebreaker because it has 47 regulation and overtime wins compared to Boston's 46.

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With the tiebreaker in hand, all Tampa Bay has to do is win out to earn the division title as well as home-ice advantage throughout the Eastern Conference playoffs.

If the Lightning get pushed to a shootout in either of those games, Boston takes over the tiebreaker by way of its 3-1 head-to-head record against Tampa Bay.

While it may seem like the Bruins have a slight advantage because Tampa Bay has to go on the road to play Carolina, there is none since the Lightning are as good on the road as they are at home—and the Hurricanes have just 18 home victories this term.

Winning the division is going to benefit either team since it presents them with the easier matchup against the second wild-card team, which is the Philadelphia Flyers.

The second-place team in the Atlantic gets the unfortunate task of facing the Toronto Maple Leafs in a best-of-seven series in the first round.

Anaheim Hoping To Use Extra Game to Its Advantage

The Anaheim Ducks are one of the two teams left in the Western Conference playoff race with two games remaining on their schedule. The St. Louis Blues are the other, but they are on the outside looking in at the wild-card race.

With a one-point deficit to make up on the Los Angeles Kings in the hunt for third place in the Pacific Division, Anaheim appears ready to vault out of the wild-card positions.

The Ducks, who already clinched a playoff berth, host the Dallas Stars on Friday before taking a road trip to face the last-place Arizona Coyotes in Saturday's regular-season finale.

Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

With a win Friday, the Ducks jump over the Kings and put themselves in position for a first-round showdown with the San Jose Sharks.

The Kings conclude their regular-season slate Saturday at home against the Stars, but a victory wouldn't be enough to secure a top-three spot in the Pacific.

If L.A. defeats the Stars and the Ducks pick up three points from their two games, the Kings carry the tiebreaker with 43 regulation and overtime wins compared to 38 from Anaheim.

Los Angeles is hoping for that scenario to play out because the loser of the race for third drops into the first wild-card position and a matchup with the Pacific Division champion Vegas Golden Knights.

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