With the Buffalo Sabres locked into a postseason spot, the Sabrehood's attention can now turn from simply getting in toward their final playoff seeding. Buffalo enters Tuesday's NHL action on the verge of clinching a top-three finish in the Atlantic Division while their own division title odds earned a boost after the team's 4-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday night.
The full slate for Tuesday's NHL action is as follows; the bolded games are those that directly impact the Sabres' playoff positioning.
Philadelphia Flyers vs New Jersey Devils
Boston Bruins vs Carolina Hurricanes
Tampa Bay Lightning vs Ottawa Senators
Columbus Blue Jackets vs Detroit Red Wings
Florida Panthers vs Montreal Canadiens
Calgary Flames vs Dallas Stars
Colorado Avalanche vs St Louis Blues
Seattle Kraken vs Minnesota Wild
Edmonton Oilers vs Utah Mammoth
Vegas Golden Knights vs Vancouver Canucks
Nashville Predators vs Anaheim Ducks
The results that matter in the Atlantic race, plus a clinching scenario
Even though the Sabres are not playing tonight, there is nonetheless a clinching scenario in play.
In the Atlantic Division, the Sabres currently hold a seven-point advantage over the fourth-place Bruins, with each team having four games left to play. Given that Boston can reach a maximum of 103 points by winning all four of their remaining games and that Buffalo has the regulation wins tiebreaker on the Bruins, the Sabres will clinch a top-three finish in the division on Tuesday night if the Bruins lose to the Hurricanes in any fashion.
That said, there might very well be two games drawing attention from the action in Raleigh.
Such games will take place north of the border, with the first featuring the Senators against the Lightning, who recently beat the Senators on March 28 by a score of 4-2. Ottawa could have the advantage this time as Tampa Bay enters off the heels of yet another tightly-contested and physical encounter with Buffalo on Monday night. Some additional good news for Buffalo fans? Not only is Tampa Bay just 7-6-1 when contesting the second leg of a back-to-back, but they've also lost four of their last five games on less than a day of rest.
In Montreal, the Habs will host the former defending Stanley Cup champions, the Panthers, as they aim to continue their push for their first division title since 2017. The Panthers' recent run of form against Eastern Conference playoff contenders came to an end with two blowout losses to the Penguins; they had won five of seven such games before that back-to-back. That said, the Habs will be entering this contest off the heels of a deflating 3-0 loss to New Jersey, which ended an eight-game win streak, and with Cole Caufield's 50-goal/Rocket Richard Trophy push looming large.
The Panthers may be out of playoff contention, but they have shown recently that they are capable of playing spoiler. Add on the many challenges that the Habs face when it comes to completing a big step towards long-term contention, and you have the recipe for what could be a potential curveball in the Atlantic Division race.
There is still a (slim) path for Buffalo to earn the Eastern Conference's top seed
Unfortunately, there is some bad news that I need to bring up with regard to the Bruins-Hurricanes game: it's another "pick your poison" matchup.
While a Bruins loss guarantees that Buffalo finishes in the top-three of the Atlantic Division, it would also restore Carolina's four-point edge for the Eastern Conference's top seed. And after Tuesday's NHL action, both Carolina and Buffalo will have four games to play.
But if Carolina were to lose, it would undoubtedly be a massive win for the Sabres' push to reach the top of the Eastern Conference. That said, there is a caveat: Buffalo would have to beat the New York Rangers to secure a top-three finish in the division and pull even with the Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference standings. Laugh at me if you will, but this is the same Rangers side that ended Buffalo's playoff drought on Saturday via a 4-1 win over the Red Wings, before stalling the Washington Capitals' winning run with an 8-1 thumping.
The Sabres also have a three-game lead on the Hurricanes in the regulation wins tiebreaker; Buffalo has 39 regulation wins compared to Carolina's 36 victories of such nature. If it came down to the two teams, Buffalo would only need to match Carolina's final point total to finish ahead in the final standings.
Could the Sabres' potential first-round opponent change on Tuesday?
While a Bruins loss to the Hurricanes guarantees that Buffalo won't have to play a division winner until at least the second round of the playoffs, it doesn't necessarily affect the teams favored to play them in the first round. Sure, it would guarantee that Buffalo and Carolina won't meet until the Conference Finals, but the odds that one of Montreal, Tampa Bay, and Boston plays the Sabres in the first round would only increase.
Currently, the Habs have a 65% chance of being Buffalo's first-round opponents, with the odds of Buffalo having home-ice advantage in that series being a little higher than a coin flip. Boston has the second-best odds of playing Buffalo in the first round, but those sit at just 14%.
If you're hoping for seven more games of fun between Buffalo and Tampa Bay, you might have to wait a round or two. The Lightning's chances of playing the Sabres in the first round sit at just 9%.
It's also worth noting that the Habs could clinch their own top-three spot in the Atlantic Division as soon as Tuesday, though their scenario isn't as straightforward as Buffalo's. Not only would Boston have to lose to Carolina in regulation, but Montreal would also have to beat Florida in any fashion.
The full Buffalo Sabres rooting guide for Tuesday, April 7
A Bruins loss vs. the Hurricanes
A Lightning loss vs. the Senators
A Habs loss vs. the Panthers