The 2018 Playoff Chase: In the thick of it
By Ryan Pike
6 years agoThe Calgary Flames have 24 games remaining on their regular season docket and they find themselves in a familiar position: snug as a bug in the midst of a fevered playoff race. A couple of them, if you want to get technical. Here’s our weekly look into how the Flames are faring in their attempt to qualify for the postseason.
Where they stand
(Sorted by points percentage.)
| Team | GP | W | Pts | Pct. | ROW | Div | Chances | % Change |
| Golden Knights | 57 | 38 | 80 | .702 | 36 | PAC | 100% | none |
| Predators | 56 | 34 | 77 | .688 | 29 | CEN | 99.8% | +0.2% |
| Jets | 58 | 34 | 77 | .664 | 32 | CEN | 99.4% | +1.2% |
| Stars | 58 | 34 | 72 | .621 | 30 | CEN | 85.7% | -2.6% |
| Sharks | 58 | 31 | 70 | .603 | 28 | PAC | 76.3% | +14.8% |
| Blues | 60 | 34 | 72 | .600 | 31 | CEN | 71.0% | -11.9% |
| Wild | 57 | 31 | 68 | .596 | 28 | CEN | 57.6% | +11.6% |
| Flames | 58 | 30 | 68 | .586 | 28 | PAC | 58.6% | +13.8% |
| Avalanche | 57 | 31 | 66 | .579 | 30 | CEN | 50.0% | -3.3% |
| Kings | 57 | 30 | 65 | .570 | 28 | PAC | 65.8% | -22.0% |
| Ducks | 59 | 28 | 66 | .568 | 25 | PAC | 35.6% | +2.5% |
| Blackhawks | 58 | 24 | 56 | .483 | 24 | CEN | 0.2% | -4.1% |
| Oilers | 56 | 23 | 50 | .446 | 21 | PAC | 0.0% | -0.2% |
| Canucks | 58 | 22 | 50 | .431 | 22 | PAC | 0.0% | none |
| Coyotes | 58 | 16 | 42 | .362 | 15 | PAC | 0.0% | none |
Let’s go from the top:
Vegas has first place in the Pacific locked down. In the Central Division, it’s a safe bet that Nashville, Winnipeg, Dallas and St. Louis will get in. (Well, barring big slides.) That eats up three divisional spots and one wild card spot.
Thus, the Flames are in a five-horse race with Minnesota, Colorado, San Jose, Los Angeles and Anaheim for one wild card spot and a simultaneous four-horse race with San Jose, Los Angeles and Anaheim for two divisional spots. Simply due to the numbers game, the divisional road is probably the easier path into the postseason.
This past week
The Flames won two of their three games this week. They beat the NY Islanders and Nashville, but lost to Boston. Their wins were close games, their loss wasn’t.
This coming week
The locals have four games this week: they host Florida tonight and Boston on Monday afternoon, then it’s back-to-backs on the road with Vegas on Wednesday and Arizona on Thursday.
Recent articles from Ryan Pike
- The Calgary Flames’ AHL affiliate has won (at least) one playoff round three seasons running
- Calgary Wranglers to face Coachella Valley Firebirds in second round of AHL’s Calder Cup playoffs – Game 1 & 2 tickets on sale Saturday morning!
- Calgary Flames regional TV broadcasts will be on Sportsnet through 2034-35
