The 2019 Playoff Chase: Going streaking

The Calgary Flames have won seven games in a row. As you might imagine, that’s done a great job strengthening their placement in the various playoff chases they’re involved in.

(Playoff spot odds throughout these tables via Sports Club Stats.)

The Flames are 21 points up on the ninth place team. The Athletic’s projections right now have the playoff cutline in the Western Conference at around 88 points. The Flames haven’t mathematically clinched – that happens when the team chasing them mathematically cannot catch them – but they’re in. The ninth place team should lose enough games between now and the end of the season to account for the Flames’ magic number.

The bottom of the Western Conference is an absolute chaotic horror show. The Flames will potentially play the best of those awful, awful teams in the first round.

The Flames are 16 points up on Vegas. Third place in the Pacific projects to around 94 points right now. Unless something drastic happens, the Flames will have home ice in the first round. They’ll be first or second in the Pacific. San Jose will be first or second. Vegas will be third.

A week ago, the Flames were one point up on the Sharks. But now they’re seven points up, their largest cushion in awhile. Second place in the Pacific projects to around 106 points right now. They’re not locked in, but if the Flames go .500 the remainder of the season they’ll end up with 107 points and the Sharks would need to go on a heater to pass them.

The run that the Flames have gone on has provided a lot of separation between them and everyone else – really them and San Jose and everyone else. The Predators aren’t as close as they appear, as they’ve played two more games than Calgary and San Jose (and three more games than Winnipeg). As with the divisional race, a .500 record and 106 points should be enough to cement first in the conference.