Nhl Playoff Bracket Tightens as Less Than Two Weeks Remain
The nhl playoff bracket is coming into focus with less than two weeks left in the 2025-26 regular season, and the races are still razor-thin in both conferences. In the Eastern Conference, six teams are separated by three points for two spots, while six teams in the West are within eight points of the final berth.
Eastern Race Stays Packed at the Top
The Eastern chase is centered on a cluster that still has room to shift the bracket in several directions. The Tampa Bay Lightning, Buffalo Sabres, Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins are all still part of the picture, with the Lightning and Sabres tied at 102 points and the Canadiens close behind at 100.
The Lightning enter the stretch after a 4-2 loss at Buffalo on Monday, following two straight wins before that result. They now face four straight division opponents, with three of those games on the road, and still have a path to the division title and the No. 1 seed in the East.
The Sabres already have clinched a playoff berth. Their win over Tampa Bay gave them a major boost, and they still have a chance to win the division even though they could also finish third behind Montreal.
The Canadiens had a chance to pull even in points for first in the division but fell 3-0 at home to the New Jersey Devils on Sunday. Even so, they remain in the hunt for both the division and the top seed in the East. The Bruins appear locked into the first wild card in the East, but they still have a chance to move into the top three in the division.
Western Picture Remains Open
In the West, the race is equally tense, with six teams packed within eight points of the last playoff spot. The broader picture remains unsettled as the final week-and-a-half of games continues to reshape the nhl playoff bracket from night to night.
That wider field includes teams being tracked by points percentage, from the Colorado Avalanche at. 724 and the Dallas Stars at. 662 to the Minnesota Wild at. 649, Utah Mammoth at. 566, Edmonton Oilers at. 565, Anaheim Ducks at. 565 and Vegas Golden Knights at. 558. Each club has a different mix of strengths and concerns, but the common thread is that no cushion remains.
What Teams Are Carrying Into the Stretch
Among the sharpest strengths cited in the current race, Colorado is scoring 3. 74 goals per game and allowing 2. 50, while Utah’s power play has been running at 31. 4 percent since play resumed after the Olympics. Edmonton still leans on Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, though Draisaitl’s status for Game 1 is described as up in the air.
The concerns are just as clear. Minnesota’s need for a top center remains a recurring issue, while Anaheim’s youth is matched by a defense that allows 3. 52 goals per game. Vegas, meanwhile, is carrying goaltending questions into the final push.
What Comes Next
The next few games will decide whether the final nhl playoff bracket takes shape cleanly or stays crowded until the end. With so many teams still separated by a narrow margin, every result in the final stretch can change seeding, division position and the last wild-card places before the regular season closes.
