Top 5 storylines as NHL enters its stretch drive, including trade deadline

There were already a couple of deals involving 100-point scorers from last season prior to the 4 Nations event; Mikko Rantanen went from the Colorado Avalanche to the Carolina Hurricanes, and the Vancouver Canucks sent center J.T. Miller to the New York Rangers. But those may just be the warmup acts for this year’s deadline, so you can expect the 32 general managers to be busy between now and the deadline.

There are only a handful of teams that are certain to miss the playoffs; all but the Buffalo Sabres are in the Western Conference. The GMs of teams chasing the two wild cards in the Eastern Conference and the last spot or two in the West will have to decide soon if they want to be buyers or sellers.

For example, will the New York Islanders listen to offers on center Brock Nelson, a reliable No. 2 center who can score (three straight 30+ goal seasons), defend – and will become an unrestricted free agent this summer. How about Rickard Rakell, who leads the Pittsburgh Penguins with 24 goals and has two seasons remaining on a contract with a $5 million average annual value? A team needing a goalie could be interested in John Gibson, who’s enjoying a comeback season with the Anaheim Ducks? Defensemen like impending UFA David Savard (Montreal Canadiens) could interest a contender, as could UFA forwards like Trent Frederic (Boston Bruins) or Nick Bjugstad (Utah Hockey Club).

While contenders and some playoff hopefuls will look to buy, the half-dozen teams that are already out of the playoff race all have some talented veterans and will be looking to add young talent and draft picks.

Getting two weeks off figures to be a benefit for 39-year-old Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals, who with 879 career goals is 16 shy of breaking Wayne Gretzky’s NHL record of 894.

Ovi has 26 goals in 39 games this season despite missing 16 games with a fractured left fibula on Nov. 18. Ovechkin scored 15 goals in 18 games prior to the injury and has 11 in 21 games since returning on Dec. 28, including four in his final five games before the break.

The Capitals have 27 games remaining; if Ovechkin continues to score at the rate he has so far this season, he will break Gretzky’s record in the final week of the season – perhaps even in the Capitals’ regular-season finale, when they play Sidney Crosby and the Penguins in a meeting between the two greatest players of the 21st century (so far).

The top three spots in the Atlantic and Metropolitan Divisions are all but locked up. The two wild cards are another story.

The Ottawa Senators (62 points) and Detroit Red Wings (61) hold the two wild cards as play resumes. The Senators are trying to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2016-17. The Red Wings haven’t made it since 2015-16 and would like to play their first postseason game ever in Little Caesars Arena, which opened in the fall of 2016.

But four teams – the Columbus Blue Jackets (60 points), Boston Bruins (60), New York Rangers (58) and New York Islanders (57) — all are above NHL .500 and four points or less out of a playoff spot. The Montreal Canadiens, Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers each have 55 points and are below .500 but far from out of it.

The Senators have one advantage over everyone else; they play 16 of their remaining 26 games at Canadian Tire Centre, where they are 16-7-2. None of the other hopefuls has such a big home/road disparity.

The quest for the Presidents’ Trophy as regular-season champion looks like a two-team race between the Winnipeg Jets and the Capitals.

Winnipeg, which entered the NHL as the Atlanta Thrashers in 1999, has never won the trophy since it was first awarded in 1985-86; Washington has won it three times (2010, 2016, 2017). Finishing first gives the winner home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Jets (39-14-3) have 81 points, one more than the Capitals (36-11-8) – but Washington has a game in hand and a slightly better points percentage (.727 to .723). The Jets won the first meeting between the teams 5-4 in overtime at Washington on Feb. 1; the teams play again in Winnipeg on March 25.

No one else is close to the top two. The Dallas Stars (35-18-2), Edmonton Oilers (34-17-4) and Vegas Golden Knights (33-17-6) are tied for second in the West with 72 points. The defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers (34-23-3) are first in the Atlantic Division and second in the East with 71.

The second and final outdoor game of the season will take place March 1 when the Red Wings face the Blue Jackets at Ohio Stadium in Columbus as part of the NHL Stadium Series. It will be the first outdoor game for Columbus and the fifth for Detroit. The Wings are 3-1-0 outdoors but haven’t played one since a 5-4 overtime victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Toronto’s BMO Field in the NHL Centennial Classic on Jan. 1, 2017.

In all, this will be the 43rd outdoor game in NHL history. The St. Louis Blues defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 6-2 in the NHL Winter Classic at Wrigley Field in the Windy City on Dec. 31.

The Blue Jackets are the 30th team to play in an outdoor game. The Florida Panthers will become the 31st when they host the Rangers in the Winter Classic on Jan. 2, 2026. That will leave the Utah Hockey Club as the only team not to play outdoors.