Race for the Cup, March 26

The Stanley Cup won't be handed out until June, but this is the time when we see teams making runs at the playoffs. And you can't win the Cup if you don't make the playoffs. Race for the Cup is your daily check of where your favorite team stands as the season dwindles.

Wednesday night saw plenty of drama, including a huge comeback in Buffalo, another superb defensive performance by Pittsburgh, and a rare 60-minute road performance from the Minnesota Wild. How did all of this impact the playoff races? Hit the jump to find out.

In the East

Eastern Conference, 3/25 1. y-Boston Bruins 102 pts 2. New Jersey Devils 97 3. Washington Capitals 97 4. Philadelphia Flyers 90 5. Carolina Hurricanes 87 6. Pittsburgh Penguins 86 7. New York Rangers 86 8. Montreal Canadiens 83 9. Florida Panthers 81 10. Buffalo Sabres 76	Eastern Conference, 3/25	1.	y-Boston Bruins	102 pts	2.	New Jersey Devils	97	3.	Washington Capitals	97	4.	Philadelphia Flyers	90	5.	Carolina Hurricanes	87	6.	Pittsburgh Penguins	86	7.	New York Rangers	86	8.	Montreal Canadiens	83	9.	Florida Panthers	81	10.	Buffalo Sabres	76	Eastern Conference, 3/26 1. y-Boston Bruins 102 pts 2. x-New Jersey Devils 97 3. x-Washington Capitals 97 4. Philadelphia Flyers 90 5. Carolina Hurricanes 89 6. Pittsburgh Penguins 88 7. New York Rangers 86 8. Montreal Canadiens 83 9. Florida Panthers 81 10. Buffalo Sabres 78	Eastern Conference, 3/26	1.	y-Boston Bruins	102 pts	2.	x-New Jersey Devils	97	3.	x-Washington Capitals	97	4.	Philadelphia Flyers	90	5.	Carolina Hurricanes	89	6.	Pittsburgh Penguins	88	7.	New York Rangers	86	8.	Montreal Canadiens	83	9.	Florida Panthers	81	10.	Buffalo Sabres	78
Eastern Conference, 3/25
1.	y-Boston Bruins	102 pts
2.	New Jersey Devils	97
3.	Washington Capitals	97
4.	Philadelphia Flyers	90
5.	Carolina Hurricanes	87
6.	Pittsburgh Penguins	86
7.	New York Rangers	86
8.	Montreal Canadiens	83
9.	Florida Panthers	81
10.	Buffalo Sabres	76
Eastern Conference, 3/26
1.	y-Boston Bruins	102 pts
2.	x-New Jersey Devils	97
3.	x-Washington Capitals	97
4.	Philadelphia Flyers	90
5.	Carolina Hurricanes	89
6.	Pittsburgh Penguins	88
7.	New York Rangers	86
8.	Montreal Canadiens	83
9.	Florida Panthers	81
10.	Buffalo Sabres	78

No movement in the overall standings from Wednesday's action, but Florida's playoff hopes definitely took a huge hit. Buffalo scored four third-period goals to beat the Panthers 5-3. The win keeps Buffalo very much alive for a spot, while hurting Florida tremendously.

Carolina kept pressure on Philadelphia for the fourth spot with a 2-1 win over Ottawa. The deficit is just one point, but the Flyers have four games in hand.

Pittsburgh continues their hot streak, too, meaning the Rangers and Canadiens need to keep winning if they want any hope of avoiding the potential death traps of Boston and New Jersey in the first round.

In the West

Western Conference, 3/25 1. x-Detroit Red Wings 107 pts 2. y-San Jose Sharks 106 3. Calgary Flames 90 4. Chicago Blackhawks 87 5. Vancouver Canucks 87 6. Columbus Blue Jackets 83 7. Edmonton Oilers 79 8. Anaheim Ducks 78 9. Nashville Predators 78 10. St. Louis Blues 77 11. Minnesota Wild 76 12. Dallas Stars 74	Western Conference, 3/25	1.	x-Detroit Red Wings	107 pts	2.	y-San Jose Sharks	106	3.	Calgary Flames	90	4.	Chicago Blackhawks	87	5.	Vancouver Canucks	87	6.	Columbus Blue Jackets	83	7.	Edmonton Oilers	79	8.	Anaheim Ducks	78	9.	Nashville Predators	78	10.	St. Louis Blues	77	11.	Minnesota Wild	76	12.	Dallas Stars	74	Western Conference, 3/26 1. y-San Jose Sharks 107 pts 2. x-Detroit Red Wings 107 3. Calgary Flames 90 4. Chicago Blackhawks 89 5. Vancouver Canucks 87 6. Columbus Blue Jackets 83 7. Anaheim Ducks 80 8. Edmonton Oilers 79 9. Nashville Predators 78 10. Minnesota Wild 78 11. St. Louis Blues 77 12. Dallas Stars 74	Western Conference, 3/26	1.	y-San Jose Sharks	107 pts	2.	x-Detroit Red Wings	107	3.	Calgary Flames	90	4.	Chicago Blackhawks	89	5.	Vancouver Canucks	87	6.	Columbus Blue Jackets	83	7.	Anaheim Ducks	80	8.	Edmonton Oilers	79	9.	Nashville Predators	78	10.	Minnesota Wild	78	11.	St. Louis Blues	77	12.	Dallas Stars	74
Western Conference, 3/25
1.	x-Detroit Red Wings	107 pts
2.	y-San Jose Sharks	106
3.	Calgary Flames	90
4.	Chicago Blackhawks	87
5.	Vancouver Canucks	87
6.	Columbus Blue Jackets	83
7.	Edmonton Oilers	79
8.	Anaheim Ducks	78
9.	Nashville Predators	78
10.	St. Louis Blues	77
11.	Minnesota Wild	76
12.	Dallas Stars	74
Western Conference, 3/26
1.	y-San Jose Sharks	107 pts
2.	x-Detroit Red Wings	107
3.	Calgary Flames	90
4.	Chicago Blackhawks	89
5.	Vancouver Canucks	87
6.	Columbus Blue Jackets	83
7.	Anaheim Ducks	80
8.	Edmonton Oilers	79
9.	Nashville Predators	78
10.	Minnesota Wild	78
11.	St. Louis Blues	77
12.	Dallas Stars	74

Anaheim is on fire. The Ducks won their fifth straight, blowing out Colorado 7-2 in Denver. Edmonton and Nashville each have a game in hand, but with the Ducks' performance lately, they seem like a lock. And who wants to play them in the first round?

San Jose pulled even and took over the top seed because they have played one less game than Detroit. The Sharks lost in a shootout to Chicago Wednesday, but were able to rally from a two-goal deficit to get a point. Chicago maintains fourth in the West with that win.

Minnesota still has a pulse, thanks to a 6-2 win over the lowly Islanders, who appear to be fully in John Tavares mode these days.

What's Next

Florida plays a second straight tough road game in Philadelphia. The Flyers are in great shape for the fourth spot, but they need to keep the momentum going.

Montreal's run for a playoff spot continues with a home date against Tampa Bay.

Calgary has a red-hot Vancouver team in their rear-view mirror, and the Northwest Division title may mean home-ice in the first round for one of them. The Flames visit Columbus, while Vancouver visits St. Louis. That's a huge game for the Blues, who are just a point back in the West race.

Nashville tries to stay right in the mix for a postseason berth as they host San Jose.

x - Clinched Playoff Spot, y - Division Champ, z - Conference Champ; green - Rise in the Standings, red - Fall

Race for the Cup, March 26 originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Thu, 26 Mar 2009 10:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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