You can split the eight Pacific Division teams into three camps. The first camp are the three teams in the race to finish first in the conference. Moving to the next camp, there are three teams in the hunt for the Wild Card spot. And finally, the last two teams are in the “Gavin McKenna sweepstakes” camp.

This is What’s Going On In the Pacific Division, the weekly article where we look at how teams from the division fared, as well as setting up what’s next for all eight teams.

Anaheim Ducks

As of Friday morning, the Anaheim Ducks sit first in the Pacific Division with a 37-27-4 record and 78 points. They went 1-1-1 this past week, falling 2-0 to the Ottawa Senators, beating the Montréal Canadiens 4-3, and falling 3-2 to the Philadelphia Flyers.

They’ll play three games this coming week, facing the Utah Mammoth on Friday on the road, returning home to host the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday, before hitting the road again to take on the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday. That’ll begin a three-game road trip against the three Canadian teams in the Pacific Division, including a game against the Calgary Flames on Thursday.

Calgary Flames

Speaking of the Flames, they are firmly in the “Gavin McKenna sweepstakes” camp, as their 27-34-7 record gives them 61 points, second-fewest in the league. They fell 3-2 to the New York Islanders on Saturday, then fell 5-2 to the Detroit Red Wings on Monday. Unfortunately, they won a tank bowl game over the St. Louis Blues, winning 2-1 in a shootout. That would’ve been useful last season.

The game against the Blues kick-started a six-game home stand, with the team hosting the Florida Panthers on Friday, the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday, the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday, and the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday.

Edmonton Oilers

Up Highway 2, the Edmonton Oilers received some bad news for one of their most important players, as Leon Draisaitl is out for the remainder of the regular season. That injury was sustained in a 3-1 win over the Nashville Predators on Sunday, which followed a 3-2 overtime loss last Friday. They managed to win their next game, defeating the San Jose Sharks 5-3, but they lost 4-0 in a Stanley Cup Final rematch against the Florida Panthers.

They’ll be back in action on Saturday, as they host the Tampa Bay Lightning for the final game of a four-game home stand. After that, they’ll head to Salt Lake City to take on the Utah Mammoth on Tuesday, then face the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday. The Oilers are in the hunt to win the Pacific Division, as they have a 34-27-9 record with 77 points, one behind the Ducks.

Los Angeles Kings

The next three teams are firmly in the “wild card hunt” camp. Starting with the Los Angeles Kings, who currently occupy the second wild card spot, they had a solid week. They defeated the New York Islanders 3-2 on Friday, fell 6-4 to the New Jersey Devils on Saturday, but rebounded with a 4-1 victory over the New York Rangers on Monday. Their most recent game was a 4-3 shootout loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday.

Next up for the Kings is a home game against the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday. They’ll then hit the road for three games, playing the Utah Mammoth on Sunday, the Calgary Flames on Tuesday, and the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday.

San Jose Sharks

Also in the hunt for a wild card spot are the San Jose Sharks, who have a 32-29-6 record with 70 points. They didn’t have a great week, winning 4-2 against the Montréal Canadiens, but losing 7-4, 5-3, and 5-0 to the Ottawa Senators, Edmonton Oilers, and Buffalo Sabres respectively.

Up next for the Sharks is a home game against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday, before hitting the road to take on the Nashville Predators on Tuesday and the St. Louis Blues on Thursday.

Seattle Kraken

The Seattle Kraken sit on the outside looking in with a record of 31-28-9. They had a mediocre week, beating the Vancouver Canucks 5-2 and the Florida Panthers 6-2, before dropping a 6-2 decision to the Tampa Bay Lightning and a 3-1 decision to the Nashville Predators.

That game against the Predators starts a six-game road trip for the Kraken, with their next opponents being the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday, the Panthers on Tuesday, and the Lightning on Thursday.

Vancouver Canucks

No one has better odds to land Gavin McKenna than the Vancouver Canucks. Just two seasons ago, the Pacific coast team finished first in the Pacific Division, but after trading Quinn Hughes and others, they have a 21-39-8 record with 50 points, by far the fewest in the league. They did, however, defeat the Florida Panthers by a score of 5-2 on Tuesday, but lost 5-2 to the Seattle Kraken and 6-2 to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

They’ll be back in action on Saturday, as they host the St. Louis Blues. The Canucks have two more games during this home stand after the Blues game, as they host the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday and the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday.

Vegas Golden Knights

Lastly, the Vegas Golden Knights currently sit third in the Pacific Division with a 31-24-14 record, one fewer point than the Edmonton Oilers with a game in hand. There were a lot of goose eggs on the board this past week, as they shutout the Chicago Blackhawks 4-0 on Saturday, but followed that up with a 2-0 and 4-0 loss to the Buffalo Sabres and Utah Mammoth respectively.

They’ll hit the road for three of their next four upcoming games. On Saturday, they’ll head to Tennessee to play Nashville Predators on Saturday, then to Texas to play the Dallas Stars on Sunday, and then Manitoba to play the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday. Finally, they’ll play an important game against the Oilers on Thursday at home.

Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for FlamesNation, Oilersnation, and Blue Jays Nation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

Sponsored by bet365:

Editorials

Recent articles from Ryley Delaney

What’s Going On In the Pacific Division: Sharks, Kraken, and Kings are all in the wild card hunt

Flames prospect roundup: Trevor Hoskin scores overtime winner in Hockey East quarterfinals

NHL Notebook: Matthew Schaefer becomes youngest defenceman to reach 50 points