NHL Playoff Death Watch: Wild comeback; pressure on Blue Jackets

Since we're down to the final moments of postseason life for teams in contention, Puck Daddy solemnly begins a daily countdown to annihilation.

Zach Parise says it’s all in the skates.

"We skated and moved our feet and made it tough on their 'D' when we got it behind them and got them stuck in their zone," Parise said, after the Minnesota Wild’s 3-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings. "We made it really hard on their 'D' and that was the best part of our game -- that's two games in a row now that we've done that and we feel pretty good about it."

They should. The Wild now have a 92.2 percent chance of making the playoffs, with a 66 percent chance of making the first wild card. They have six games left, four of them against playoff teams. But the Wild’s big win last night put them five points ahead of Phoenix.

All playoff percentages are from Sports Club Stats; tragic numbers and other figures via the NHL. A team is eliminated from play-offs when their "Tragic Number" hits 0.

Here’s the Eastern Conference picture:

The Devils and Senators kept their faint hopes alive with victories; now it’s the Blue Jackets’ turn to snuff out some hope with a game vs. Colorado tonight. This begins a three games in four days stretch for ‘Lumbus, including at Philly and home for Chicago on Thursday and Friday.

The Capitals host Dallas in a critical game for both teams, while Toronto attempts to right the ship against Calgary. The Devils are in Buffalo with Cory Schneider getting the nod.

The Islanders can be eliminated with a Columbus win or a loss in regulation.

At the top of the conference, the Rangers are in Vancouver while the Flyers are in St. Louis, with New York holding a 2-point lead in the standings for home ice. Philly has two games in-hand.

Meanwhile in the Western Conference:

Dallas is in Washington with a chance to leap over the Coyotes, who play the front end of back to back games at home against Winnipeg before shipping up to LA. Once again keep in mind that Dallas has a game in-hand, and that these teams play to end the season.

San Jose (103) is in Edmonton, trying to close the gap with the Ducks (106). But Anaheim has a game in-hand and two in-hand after tonight.