A big win for the New York Rangers doesn’t help the lottery race
A quiet night in the NHL with only two games on the schedule. With the win, the New York Rangers moved up two slots into 12th from the bottom. Thursday will be a big night for the lottery sweepstakes.
Unexpectedly, the Rangers beat Boston while as expected, Ottawa lost to Toronto, Ottawa remains mired in last place. The Ranger win means that a busy Thursday schedule could have a big impact on the lottery race. They are 12th from the bottom they will need some help from their fellow lottery teams to stay within reach of the bottom.
Here’s an interesting fact. The Vancouver Canucks are in the last wild card spot with 54 points. There are four Eastern Conference teams (including the Rangers) with the same number of points, all out of the playoffs.
The standings (Worst is first)
Teams GP W-L-OTL PTS ROW
1. Ottawa 53 19-29-5 43 19
2. New Jersey 52 20-25-7 47 19
3. Los Angeles 53 22-27-4 48 21
4. Detroit 53 21-25-7 49 19
5. Chicago 54 20-24-10 50 20
6. Florida 50 21-22-8 50 19
7. Anaheim 54 21-24-9 51 18
8. Edmonton 53 23-25-5 51 21
9. Arizona 53 23-25-5 51 21
10. Colorado 53 22-22-8 52 22
11. St. Louis 51 24-22-5 53 24
12. Rangers 53 23-22-8 54 17
13. Philadelphia 53 24-23-6 54 22
14. Buffalo 52 26-20-6 58 23
15. Carolina 53 26-21-6 58 25
Who to root for
28 out of 31 teams will be in action on Thursday. Every lottery eligible team except the Rangers will be in action. If every team below the Blueshirts wins their game, the Rangers will wake up Friday morning with the tenth worst record in the league again. Is that important? Well, 12th from the bottom means a 8.2 percent shot at a top three pick in the NHL Draft. Tenth means an 11.4 percent chance. Every little bit helps.
Blue Jackets @ Coyotes – Arizona is three points behind the Blueshirts and are at home. Columbus has been playing .500 hockey. The Coyotes have a shot in this game.
Oilers @ Wild – Edmonton is still only three points out of a playoff spot and they are three points behind the Rangers. Root for the Oilers.
Ducks @ Senators – Anaheim has lost five in a row as have the Senators. Who will win this contest between two awful teams? It’s a pick’em, but hope they go to overtime.
Penguins @ Panthers – With Florida four points behind the Rangers, an upset over the Penguins would help the Rangers immeasurably.
Canucks @ Blackhawks – Chicago is riding a five game winning streak that has brought them within four points of the Rangers. The Rangers need them to keep winning.
Golden Knights @ Red Wings – Detroit has a three game winning streak and take on the struggling Vegas Golden Knights. Root for the Wings, with a win they are three points behind New York.
Kings @ Flyers – The Kings are showing signs of life after spending the whole season in the cellar. They will need to be at their best to beat the hottest team in the NHL. The Flyers will be looking for their ninth in a row.
Islanders @ Devils – WIthout Taylor Hall and Sami Vatanen the Devils have been pretty bad. Now, they’ve traded away Brian Boyle. Beating the Islanders will be a tall order, but if they can do it, they will stay within five points of the Rangers.
Avalanche @ Capitols – Colorado has lost eight of their last ten and are out of a playoff position. They need wins. Root for Colorado.
Blues @ Lightning – St. Louis finally passed the Rangers in the standings, but have slipped behind them again. They can leapfrog New York if they can upset Tampa Bay.
Hurricanes @ Sabres – Both Carolina and Buffalo have 58 points and are three points out of the wild card. Root for either to win, but this should be a great game.
Next. What we learned from beating the Bruins. dark
Friday night the Rangers will play the Carolina Hurricanes. It is the only game on the NHL schedule.