Pacific Division Breakdown- 2 Weeks Left
As the season is coming to an end, I am going to take a look at the Pacific Division and see where the Edmonton Oilers will likely end up.
As we near the end of the NHL season the Edmonton Oilers and Vegas Golden Knights have 6 regular season games left while the rest of the Pacific Division have only 5 games left. There are some tight races taking place. While the teams are pretty much solidified there is no team locked in their final spot.
While technically it is possible for the 4 Pacific Division teams to finish in any spot, the more likely outcomes are a battle in the top 2 spots and a battle in the bottom. The battle for position between the Oilers and the Canucks for 1st and the battle between the Los Angeles Kings and Golden Knights for 3rd.
Pacific Division Team | Current Points | Games Remaining |
|---|---|---|
Vancouver Canucks | 102 | 5 |
Edmonton Oilers | 99 | 6 |
Los Angeles Kings | 93 | 5 |
Vegas Golden Knights | 92 | 6 |
As mentioned above there is a very small chance that Vegas wins all 12 of their games and end up with 104 points and Vancouver loses all their games, which would put the Knights in first place, but we all know that is very unlikely to happen. The same can be said about either the Kings or Knights catching the Oilers. That is why I am just going to focus on the race between the top two teams, the Edmonton Oilers and the Vancouver Canucks
With less than a point between them, if the game in hand is won, their remaining schedule becomes a major factor in who will come up on top in either of the races. Not only do the opponents matter it matters if the teams face each other. Those games are twice as important as games against other teams not in the race.
With all of the variables left this season, it will be a very exciting race to see where all these teams end up. Not just for standings purposes, but these last couple of games determine who each one of these teams will be playing in the first round. At the end of the day all these teams want to win the cup, so their path to the cup is decided in the last weeks.
The Top Two Teams
The top two teams of the Pacific Division are the Edmonton Oilers and the Vancouver Canucks. They have had quite opposite seasons. The Canucks were unstoppable early on this season while the Oilers were, to be honest terrible.
While the Canucks haven't slowed down to the rate of the early-season Oilers they have slowed down. For the Oilers on the other hand they are one of the hottest teams since they fired Jay Woodcroft and hired Kris Knoblauch.
For the race for the top spot, the Oilers are currently 3 points behind the Canucks with one game in hand. If the Oilers were to win that game in hand they would be back only one point. So with a hypothetical one point separating these teams, how is this does the rest of the season play out of these teams and in the end who is more likely to win the Division?
The Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers have 6 games remaining, three games against playoff teams and three against non-playoff teams. the one game against a playoff team is against the Vancouver Canucks themselves. here is what the full schedule looks like.
April 10th- Vegas Golden Knights @ Edmonton Oilers
April 12th- Arizona Coyotes @ Edmonton Oilers
April 13th- Vancouver Canucks @ Edmonton Oilers
April 15th- San Jose Sharks @ Edmonton Oilers
April 17th- Edmonton Oilers @ Arizona Coyotes
April 18th- Edmonton Oilers @ Colorado Avalanche
The Oilers play their next 4 games at home before finishing the season on the road against the Coyotes and Avalanche. Taking a look a the schedule the Oilers have two sets of back-to-back games with the second half being against the stronger team both times.
That doesn't make the road to the Pacific Division title easy for the Oilers. I would assume that the Oilers will win the games against the Coyotes and the Sharks. I also see them beating the Knights, but losing the the Avalanche on the last game.
The biggest question mark for me on the remaining schedule is that game against the Canucks. While I think the Oilers are going to be very motivated to beat them as they have lost all the previous meetings, they will be coming off a game the night before.
So I have a feeling after the Oilers' final 6 games they will end up with 8 more points finishing with a total of 107 points.
The Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks have 5 games left in their regular season, three against playoff teams and two against non-playoff teams. As above one of the playoff teams is the Oilers, so take away the Oilers and it is half and half difficult games. Here is their full schedule.
April 8th- Vegas Golden Knights @ Vancouver Canucks
April 10th- Arizona Coyotes @ Vancouver Canucks
April 13th- Vancouver Canucks @ Edmonton Oilers
April 16th- Calgary Flames @ Vancouver Canucks
April 18th- Vancouver Canucks @ Winnipeg Jets
The Canucks just like the Oilers only have two road games the rest of the season. They face most of the same opponents because of the teams coming through on a Canadian road trip. Unlike the Oilers though they have lots of breaks between games. At least one day off in between all their games.
With this schedule, it looks as if the Cancucks should be able to hold on it the top spot. That doesn't mean they will. Just a few nights ago the Golden Knights lost to the Coyotes, so just cause you should win doesn't mean that you will.
For the schedule of the Canucks, I think they only lose twice the rest of the way. I think they get beat by both the Vegas Golden Knights and the Winnipeg Jets. The Jets may still have something to play for on the last game where I think the Canucks will be clinched atop the Pacific by then.
If it plays out like the Canucks will add 6 points to their 102 points, leaving them with a total of 108 points. This would mean if the Oilers get an overtime point or if the Canucks lose when I thought they should have won then the Oilers will come out on top.
dark. NEXT. Waking Up With The Edmonton Oilers- Victory In The BOA. Waking Up With The Edmonton Oilers- Victory In The BOA
While I think the Edmonton Oilers will end up in second place in the Pacific Division, there is still a pretty good chance they do end up in first place with a home-ice advantage for the first two rounds of the playoffs.
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