NHL Death Watch: When will your team be eliminated?

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

Outside of the Minnesota Wild and Carolina Hurricanes, every team in the NHL has less than 20 games left on the schedule before the playoffs begin. So, like, get cracking Colorado Avalanche.

Welcome to the first edition of this season’s DEATH WATCH, which will shift to daily post mode once teams start being eliminated. But first, we wanted to offer a snapshot (via the NHL) of the current playoff picture.

A picture that the St. Louis Blues would no doubt like to burn in a fireplace.

Here’s what the Eastern Conference playoff picture looks like:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

And here is what the bottom of the conference looks like:

Keep in mind that the Atlantic Division No. 3 seed complicates things, with teams like the Toronto Maple Leafs, Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning having multiple paths to the postseason.

Here’s what the Western Conference playoff picture looks like:

WESTERN CONFERENCE

And here is what the bottom of the conference looks like:

The Blues are, at the moment, out of a playoff spot but have games in-hand on the Kings.

The Avalanche, as you can see, are seven points lost by them or gained by the last wild card from being eliminated. Somewhere, Patrick Roy almost choked on his mai tai.

From a playoff matchup perspective, as play begins on Sunday:

M1 Capitals vs. WC2 Islanders
M2 Blue Jackets vs. M3 Penguins
A1 Canadiens vs. WC1 Rangers
A2 Senators vs. A3 Bruins

C1 Blackhawks vs. WC2 Kings
C2 Wild vs. C3 Predators
P1 Sharks vs. WC1 Flames
P2 Oilers vs. P3 Ducks

Swap out the Leafs for the Islanders and those are some darn sexy matchups.

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Greg Wyshynski is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter. His book, TAKE YOUR EYE OFF THE PUCK, is available on Amazon and wherever books are sold.

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