It has been quite a week for the Boston Bruins.Teetering on the outside of the playoffs nine days ago, the Bruins are second to the Montreal Canadiens in the Atlantic Division after reeling off five straight victories, including a 3-2 road win over the powerful Chicago Blackhawks Sunday afternoon."It gives us a lot of confidence," center Patrice Bergeron said after the game, per Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe. "It wasn't an easy schedule, by any means, traveling here [after a win over Florida Saturday in Boston], under 24 hours and playing a tough team like the Blackhawks at home."That win gave the Bruins 92 pointsand a one-point edge over the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Ottawa Senators. The Maple Leafs and Senators both have five games remaining while the Bruins have three, but it's clear the Bruins have gone a long way toward securing a playoff spot after missing the postseason two years in a row.However, they still have some work to do to clinch a playoff spot, and so do the Maple Leafs and Senators. The Tampa Bay Lightning, 5-2 winners over the Dallas Stars Sunday night, are their closest pursuers with 88 points.The New York Islanders (86 points) and the Carolina Hurricanes (84) also remain in the fight, although their chances are dwindling.The Philadelphia Flyers also have 84 points, but they were eliminated from playoff contention after their Sunday night loss to the New York Rangers. The Flyers have just three games remaining and could only reach 90 points if they won all of those games, and that's one less than the Maple Leafs or Senators already have.The Senators may be the most vulnerable of the teams that are in the playoff race. They have lost eight of their last 10 games (2-5-3) and have 36 regulation or overtime wins, just one more than the Lightning and two more than the Islanders. That category is the first tiebreaker and could be made up during the final week of the regular season.While playoff positioning is still to be determined this week, all of the other playoff spots have been clinched.The Washington Capitals (112 points), Pittsburgh Penguins (107) and Columbus Blue Jackets (106) are in the top three spots in the Metropolitan Division.The Rangers (100) have clinched the No. 1 wild-card spot and are locked into playing the winner of the Atlantic Division. That will almost certainly be the Montreal Canadiens (99), although the Habs still have a bit of work to do to wrap up that top spot. Since the Maple Leafs and Senators both have five games remaining, either of those teams has a slim opportunity to reel in the Habs.The eight spots in the Western Conference playoffs have been determined, as the Los Angeles Kings were eliminated from postseason consideration Sunday night as a result of their 2-1 home loss to the Arizona Coyotes. While that defeat was painful for Darryl Sutter's team, the Kings only had a slim chance prior to that game and would have needed a complete collapse by the Nashville Predators and a sweep of their final five games (including the Coyotes game) to have had a chance.The Blackhawks (107 points) have clinched the top spot in the Western Conference and will have home-ice advantage as long as they remain alive in that side of the playoff bracket. It is unlikely they would have that edge if they played the Capitals in the Stanley Cup Final, but Chicago could gain an edge if it ends up competing against Pittsburgh or Columbus.The Minnesota Wild (100) and St. Louis Blues (93) are in second and third place, respectively, in the Central Division.The Anaheim Ducks (99), Edmonton Oilers (97) and San Jose Sharks (95) are in the top three spots in the Pacific Division, and they will determine their exact positions in the playoff structure this week.The Calgary Flames (92) and Nashville Predators (91) are in the two Western Conference wild-card spots, but both teams could move up this week.
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