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Sunday, January 17, 2010 3:51 PM

The playoff push: 90+ points or bust

James Mirtle

UPDATED after Monday's games

What follows below is a projection I've been doing for a few years; a look at the record teams likely need to close the season in order to make the playoffs. There's a little bit of guesswork involved -- but it generally works out quite close to what's listed here.

(What's unique about this season is that the playoff teams in the West are on pace for far more points than those in the East, which is why I've set the projected playoff mark at 94 in one conference and only 87 in the other. As I've written earlier this year, Western Conference teams have really beaten up on the East this year.)

I'll keep this updated throughout the rest of the regular season, so check back as we go.


Western Conference (94 points)

1. San Jose - 3-19-1
2. Chicago - 6-17-1
3. Phoenix - 8-13-1
4. Los Angeles - 9-13-1
5. Vancouver - 11-14-0
6. Colorado - 11-13-0
7. Nashville - 14-11-0
8. Calgary - 13-9-1
9. Detroit - 15-9-0
10. Dallas - 15-8-1
11. Minnesota - 16-8-0
12. Anaheim - 15-7-1
13. St. Louis - 17-5-1
14. Columbus - 18-3-1
15. Edmonton - eliminated (max: 90 pts)

Eastern Conference (87 points)

1. Washington - qualified (on pace: 122 pts)
2. New Jersey - 6-17-1
3. Buffalo - 8-17-0
4. Pittsburgh - 7-15-1
5. Ottawa - 8-14-1
6. Philadelphia - 13-12-0
7. Tampa Bay - 13-12-0
8. Boston - 14-11-0
9. Montreal - 12-9-1
10. Atlanta - 14-10-1
11. NY Rangers - 14-9-0
12. Florida - 15-9-0
13. NY Islanders - 16-7-1
14. Carolina - 19-5-0
15. Toronto - 19-3-0

What is this?

It's the return of the playoff push. To the chagrin of hockey-stat junkies everywhere, consider this the most basic standings watch you'll see anywhere.

It's all based on the premise that, if you get to around 90 to 95 points in the standings, you'll make the playoffs. There's a chance you can sneak in with less, especially in the Eastern Conference this season, but under the NHL's kooky everybody-gets-a-point system, this is what teams generally need to get in.

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Eric Duhatschek

Eric Duhatschek

Eric was the winner of the Hockey Hall Of Fame's Elmer Ferguson award for "distinguished contributions to hockey writing" in 2001. A graduate of the University of Western Ontario's grad school of journalism, he began covering hockey in 1978 and after spending 20 years covering the NHL and the Calgary Flames, joined The Globe in 2000. Eric has covered four Winter Olympics, 19 Stanley Cup finals, every Canada Cup and World Cup since 1981, plus two world championships.

 
Allan Maki

Allan Maki

Allan joined The Globe in 1997 after spending 19 years as a reporter and columnist at the Calgary Herald. Born in Thunder Bay, he graduated from the Ryerson School of Journalism in 1977. A past president of the Football Writers of Canada, Allan has covered every Grey Cup since 1980. He's been to seven Olympic Games and covered everything from rodeos to the World Series to the Super Bowl.

 

James Mirtle

James Mirtle joined The Globe as an editor and reporter in the sports department in 2005 and now covers the Toronto Maple Leafs. A graduate of Ryerson University and Thompson Rivers University, he has written about hockey from junior on up the past decade and has a background in new media, statistical analysis and blogging. You can follow him on Twitter here.

 

Matthew Sekeres

Matthew is The Globe's national sports correspondent in B.C., covering the Canucks, Lions and other sports happenings on the west coast. Montreal-born and Ottawa-raised, Matthew is a graduate of Carleton University's School of Journalism. He has worked at four metropolitan dailies and for TSN. Matthew has covered the Beijing Olympics, three Super Bowls, the NBA Finals, nine Grey Cups and the Stanley Cup playoffs.

 

David Shoalts

A native of Wainfleet, Ont., David joined The Globe in 1984 as a layout and copy editor in the sports section. He attended the University of Waterloo and Conestoga College. After graduating in 1978, he worked at the Calgary Herald and the Calgary Sun, and later the Toronto Sun. He has covered the Toronto Maple Leafs and the NHL since 1990 and became a hockey columnist in 2003.

 

Darren Yourk

Darren is the editor of globesports.com and host of the Hockey Roundtable podcast.