Two Weeks

Two weeks remain, and still only five teams have clinched playoff spot, 4 in the East, 1 in the West. I only have an hour elft to write this post, so I'm not going to get as in depth as my last standings analysis, but will give a brief rundown of the playoff race and team news. I will consider teams that are more than 7 points out of 8th place to be out of the playoff race.

EASTERN CONFERENCE:
1. Philadelphia Flyers
 Record: 45-20-10, 100 pts
 Games Left: 7
 Last 10: 5-1-4
 Streak: Lost 2
 Playoff Status: clinched
Still going strong, but not as strong as they had been. Last night they were booed off the ice by the Philly fans after losing a close 2-1 game to Boston. Need a spark for a playoff boost.

2. Washington Capitals
 Record: 44-22-10, 98 pts
 Games Left: 6
 Last 10: 8-2-0
 Streak: Won 1
 Playoff Status: clinched
On a serious hot streak. Alex Ovechkin and Jason Arnott close to returning, and Mike Green is recovering as well. Could be very dangerous in the playoffs.

3. Boston Bruins
 Record: 42-23-10, 94 pts
 Games Left: 7
 Last 10: 4-4-2
 Streak: Won 1
 Playoff Status: clinched
Starting to play better after a recent slide. Need to keep up strong play and get hot going into playoffs.

4. Pittsburgh Penguins
 Record: 45-23-8, 98 pts
 Games Left: 6
 Last 10: 8-2-0
 Streak: Won 4
 Playoff Status: clinched
Continue to play surprisingly well in the absence of Sid and Geno. Crosby is practicing again, but still no timetable for return. Extremely hot right now, but 4 straight wins have all been in shootouts. Might not be so dangerous in playoffs, where OT is continuous.

5. Tampa Bay Lightning
 Record: 40-24-11, 91 pts
 Games Left: 7
 Last 10: 3-3-4
 Streak: Won 1
 Playoff Status: in the hunt, in good shape
Thanks to their hot start, the Lightning are still in 5th despite recent struggles. Need to seriously turn their game around soon or will face an early exit in the postseason. The turnaround begins with Steven Stamkos, who is in the middle of his worst dry spell of the season, and just dropped to second in the league in goals for the first time since Sidney Crosby was still in the lineup for Pittsburgh. He is a game-changer. If he is scoring, the Lightning are winning. They are 11 points ahead of 9th place Carolina.

6. Montreal Canadiens
 Record: 40-29-7, 87 pts
 Games Left: 6
 Last 10: 4-6-0
 Streak: Lost 3
 Playoff status: in the hunt, in good shape
After enduring injury struggles all season, the Canadiens continued to shock the hockey world by winning games. But after a crushing 7-0 defeat to the Bruins, the Canadiens seem to have lost their game. They have plenty of talent and the tools to make a run, but they need to improve their play drastically with the playoffs so close. They are 7 points ahead of 9th place Carolina.

7. New York Rangers
 Record: 41-30-5, 87 pts
 Games Left: 6
 Last 10: 8-1-1
 Streak: Won 1
 Playoff Status: in the hunt, in good shape
Riding a recent hot streak, the Rangers have put some more distance between themselves and Carolina. With strong defensive play and the brick wall that is King Henrik Lundqvist, the Rangers are poised to rocket further up the standings. They are also 7 points ahead of Carolina.

8. Buffalo Sabres
 Record: 39-28-9, 85 pts
 Games Left: 7
 Last 10: 6-3-1
 Streak: Won 3
 Playoff Status: in the hunt, in good shape
If the Sabres keep playing strong hockey, the will have the eighth position locked up. They have a 5 point lead on Carolina with 7 games left apiece, so they should be in if they don't stumble

9. Carolina Hurricanes
 Record: 35-30-10, 80 pts
 Games Left: 7
 Last 10: 4-5-1
 Streak: Lost 1
 Playoff Status: in the hunt, not looking good
With mediocre play of late coupled with the recent Sabres and Rangers surges, the Canes playoff chances are getting slimmer. They have 7 games left and are 5 points out of the playoffs.

10. Toronto Maple Leafs
 Record: 34-32-10, 78 pts
 Games Left: 6
 Last 10: 5-4-1
 Streak: Lost 1
Had a surprising run recently, but have since cooled off and with 6 games left and a 7 point deficit, they are all but eliminated.

The rest of the East:
11. Atlanta Thrashers. 9 points out with 7 games left. Nearly insurmountable.
12. New Jersey Devils. 12 points out with 7 games remaining. Basically impossible.
13. New York Islanders. 15 points out with 6 games remaining. Mathematically impossible.
14. Florida Panthers. 16 points out with 6 games remaining. Mathematically impossible.
15. Ottawa Senators. 17 points out with 6 games remaining. Mathematically impossible.

West coming soon.