With Montreal already qualified, Edmonton and Ottawa closing in on NHL playoff spots

Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis speaks to his team in Montreal on Tuesday, April 7, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi

The Montreal Canadiens have already punched a ticket. The Edmonton Oilers are nearly there, too.

The Ottawa Senators also look be on course for a return to the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Winnipeg Jets, meanwhile, have some work to do -- and need a lot of help.

Four of Canada’s seven NHL teams remain in the mix for the NHL’s annual spring dance, with the Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames and Toronto Maple Leafs all set to miss out.

The Canadiens clinched a second straight post-season berth last weekend, but are jockeying for position in the Atlantic Division with the Buffalo Sabres and Tampa Bay Lightning. Buffalo tops the ledger with 106 points, followed by Montreal (104) and Tampa Bay (102).

The Sabres, who hold the first tiebreaker with 41 regulation victories, have two games remaining on the schedule, while the Canadiens and Lightning each play three more times in the regular season.

Montreal, which fell to the Washington Capitals in last year’s first round, could face either of those clubs to open the playoffs, while other possibilities include Ottawa and the Boston Bruins.

The Oilers are on the cusp of making the post-season a seventh year running, a stretch that includes back-to-back Cup final appearances against the Florida Panthers in 2024 and 2025.

Edmonton leads the Pacific Division -- a race captain Connor McDavid called a “pillow fight” last month because of its slow crawl to the finish line -- with 90 points, one better than both the Vegas Golden Knights and Anaheim Ducks. Each team has three games remaining, with the Oilers holding the tiebreaker thanks to 31 regulation victories.

The website MoneyPuck.com pegged Edmonton’s chances of qualifying for the playoffs at 99.98 per cent heading into Saturday after the league took Friday night off. Claiming the division crown would likely mean a first-round matchup with the Utah Mammoth.

The Senators have captured four of their last five games in regulation to push the club’s post-season chances to 92.1 per cent.

Ottawa occupies the Eastern Conference’s second wild-card berth with 94 points and three games remaining.

The Senators are two back of the Bruins for the first wild card, while the Detroit Red Wings and New York Islanders are three points adrift of Ottawa. The Columbus Blue Jackets have 90 points, followed by Washington with 89.

Boston, Ottawa, Detroit, New York, Columbus and Washington all have three games left.

The Senators, who bowed out to the Maple Leafs in last year’s playoffs after making it for the first time since the franchise’s run to the 2017 conference final, could face the Carolina Hurricanes in the opening round, while the Sabres, Canadiens and Lightning are also possible opponents.

Winnipeg sat last in the overall standings on Jan. 8 with a 15-22-5 record. The Jets steadied themselves and have made a 20-9-7 surge in the second half to stay in the playoff conversation in the top-heavy West.

Last season’s Presidents’ Trophy winner with a league-topping 116 points, however, will need a lot to go right to get in.

Winnipeg currently sits on 82 points, three back of the Los Angeles Kings for the conference’s second wild-card slot. The Nashville Predators have 84 points, while the San Jose Sharks are at 81.

The Kings, Jets and Sharks have four games left, one more than the Predators.

Winnipeg still has a shot, but MoneyPuck.com had its chances at 12.6 per cent heading into the weekend. Snagging an improbable post-season appearance would also likely mean a first-round date with the powerhouse Colorado Avalanche.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 10, 2026.

Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press