All 16 NHL playoff spots are filled with three days remaining in the regular season, but only three series are confirmed. The Pacific Division and wild-card seeds are still undecided.
When do NHL playoffs start? Latest standings, 2026 bracket, tiebreaker picture
All 16 NHL playoff berths are filled with three days left in the regular season.
But only three series have been determined and home ice hasn't been decided in one of those. No seed is set in the Pacific Division and the first and second wild-card seeds aren't nailed down yet.
Games Tuesday, April 14 could provide more clarity.
The Boston Bruins can clinch the first wild-card seed in the Eastern Conference and the idle Tampa Bay Lightning can clinch home-ice advantage in the first round. The Utah Mammoth could clinch the top wild-card seed in the West.
The biggest game, though, has no playoff implications. Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin is playing in his season finale. The NHL's all-time leading scorer hasn't said whether he'll return for another season. ESPN is broadcasting what could be his last game in the NHL.
Here's what to know about theĀ NHL standings, including the latest playoff bracket, Tuesday's clinching scenarios and theĀ tiebreaker proceduresĀ for the 2025-26 season before the postseason begins on April 18:
Feb. 28: Referee Cody Beach stops the fight between the Washington Capitals' Connor McMichael and Montreal Canadiens' Kaiden Guhle (21) during the third period at the Bell Centre.
Feb. 28: The Ottawa Senators' Brady Tkachuk (7) battles along the boards with the Toronto Maple Leafs' Brandon Carlo in the second period at Scotiabank Arena.
Feb. 28: The Nashville Predators' Filip Forsberg hits the boards alongside the Dallas Stars' Nils Lundkvist during the third period at the American Airlines Center.
Feb. 5: The Florida Panthers' Matthew Tkachuk (left) and Tampa Bay Lightning's Victor Hedman fight during the second period at Benchmark International Arena.
Feb. 4: The St. Louis Blues' Brayden Schenn fights with the Dallas Stars' Justin Hryckowian during the second period at the American Airlines Center.
Feb. 1: Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy and Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman fight during the second period of the 2026 Stadium Series game at Raymond James Stadium.
Jan. 29: St. Louis Blues defenseman Tyler Tucker (left) fights Florida Panthers left wing A.J. Greer during the second period at Enterprise Center.
Jan. 27: Vancouver Canucks forward Evander Kane (91) fights with San Jose Sharks defenseman Timothy Liljegren during the second period at Rogers Arena.
Jan. 19: San Jose Sharks goalie Alex Nedeljkovic (left) fights Florida Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky during the third period at Amerant Bank Arena.
Jan. 15: Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Connor Murphy (5) fights with Calgary Flames left wing Joel Farabee (86) during the second period at United Center.
Jan. 15: Boston Bruins center Alex Steeves (21) and Seattle Kraken center Ryan Winterton (26) fight during the third period at TD Garden.
Jan 10: Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin (74) checks Seattle Kraken right wing Kaapo Kakko (84) during the first period at Lenovo Center.
Dec. 30: Toronto Maple Leafs left wing Matthew Knies (23) fights with New Jersey Devils center Nico Hischier (13) during the third period at Scotiabank Arena.
Dec. 20: Philadelphia Flyers left wing Nicolas Deslauriers (44) and New York Rangers left wing Brennan Othmann (78) are separated by officials and teammates after a fight during the second period at Madison Square Garden.
Dec 8: Toronto Maple Leafs forward Dakota Joshua (81) and Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Maxwell Crozier (24) fight during the third period at Scotiabank Arena.
Dec. 4: Pittsburgh Penguins left wing Bokondji Imama (14) and Tampa Bay Lightning center Curtis Douglas (42) fight in the first period at Benchmark International Arena.
Dec. 1: New Jersey Devils defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler (71) and Columbus Blue Jackets center Adam Fantilli (19) fight during the second period at Prudential Center.
Nov. 28: New Jersey Devils right wing Stefan Noesen (11) and Buffalo Sabres center Tage Thompson (72) fight during the first period at KeyBank Center.
Nov. 28: Philadelphia Flyers right wing Garnet Hathaway (19) checks New York Islanders center Casey Cizikas (53) during the second period at UBS Arena.
Nov. 28: Winnipeg Jets center Jonathan Toews (19) checks Carolina Hurricanes center Justin Robidas (46) during the first period at Lenovo Center.
Nov 24: Members of the New Jersey Devils and the Detroit Red Wings fight at the end of the third period at Prudential Center.
Nov. 22: Florida Panthers left wing A.J. Greer (10) and Edmonton Oilers center Trent Frederic (10) fight during the first period at Amerant Bank Arena.
Utah Mammoth center Jack McBain (22) and Vegas Golden Knights right wing Keegan Kolesar (55) fight during the third period at Delta Center.
Nov. 16: The New York Rangers and Detroit Red Wings engage in a major scrum after their game at Madison Square Garden.
Nov. 6: Carolina Hurricanes center Jordan Staal (11) fights Minnesota Wild center Tyler Pitlick (19) after his hit injured Carolina's Jalen Chatfield.
Nov. 6: Los Angeles Kings right wing Corey Perry (10) and Florida Panthers left wing A.J. Greer (10) fight during the third period at Crypto.com Arena.
Nov. 6: Buffalo Sabres center Josh Dunne (44) and St. Louis Blues defenseman Tyler Tucker (75) fight during the first period at KeyBank Center.
Nov 4: New York Islanders and Boston Bruins players get in a scrum after Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer (48) was roughed by Bruins defenseman Nikita Zadorov (91) during the second period.
Nov. 1: Columbus Blue Jackets right wing Mathieu Olivier (24) fights St. Louis Blues defenseman Tyler Tucker (75) in the first period at Nationwide Arena.
Nov 1: Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Ivan Provorov (9) hits St. Louis Blues right wing Jordan Kyrou (25) along the boards in the third period at Nationwide Arena.
Nov. 1: Washington Capitals right wing Tom Wilson (43) and Buffalo Sabres left wing Jordan Greenway (12) fight during the first period at KeyBank Center.
Oct. 24: Calgary Flames right wing Adam Klapka (43) and Winnipeg Jets defenseman Logan Stanley (64) fight in the first period at Canada Life Centre.
Oct. 23: Boston Bruins left wing Tanner Jeannot (84) fights with Anaheim Ducks left wing Ross Johnston (44) during the second period at TD Garden.
Oct. 21: Anaheim Ducks right wing Frank Vatrano (77) and Nashville Predators defenseman Adam Wilsby (83) fight during the third period at Bridgestone Arena.
Oct. 18: Florida Panthers left wing Brad Marchand (63) is held back by a linesman after scuffling with Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin. Marchand is holding Dahlin's helmet and later pulled off the straps in the penalty box.
Oct. 18: Tampa Bay Lightning center Curtis Douglas (42) and Columbus Blue Jackets center Mathieu Olivier (24) fight during the first period at Nationwide Arena.
Oct. 16: Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Kaedan Korczak (6) checks Boston Bruins center Michael Eyssimont (81) during the first period at T-Mobile Arena.
Oct 14: Dallas Stars defenseman Lian Bichsel (6) checks Minnesota Wild center Yakov Trenin (13) during the first period at the American Airlines Center.
Oct. 11: Calgary Flames left wing Ryan Lomberg (70) and St. Louis Blues defenseman Tyler Tucker (75) fight during the second period at Scotiabank Saddledome.
Oct. 11: Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang (58) checks New York Rangers left wing Artemi Panarin (10) during the first period at PPG Paints Arena.
Oct. 11: Los Angeles Kings left wing Jeff Malott (39) and Winnipeg Jets defenseman Luke Schenn (5) fight during the first period at Canada Life Centre.
Oct. 9: Vegas Golden Knights center Tomas Hertl (48) checks San Jose Sharks center Philipp Kurashev (96) at center ice during the third period at SAP Center.
Oct. 9: Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Darren Raddysh (43) and Ottawa Senators left wing Kurtis MacDermid (23) fight during the first period at Benchmark International Arena.
Oct. 9: Carolina Hurricanes left wing Jordan Martinook (48) checks New Jersey Devils center Nico Hischier (13) during the third period at Lenovo Center.
Oct. 9: Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin (26) checks New York Rangers left wing Artemi Panarin (10) as he goes after a loose puck during the second period at KeyBank Center.
Oct 7: Los Angeles Kings left wing Jeff Malott (39) points to Colorado Avalanche left wing Gabriel Landeskog (92) after he finished fighting Josh Manson during the first period at Crypto.com Arena.
Oct. 7: Chicago's Nick Foligno fights with Florida's A.J. Greer during the first period at Amerant Bank Arena.
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Feb. 28: Referee Cody Beach stops the fight between the Washington Capitals' Connor McMichael and Montreal Canadiens' Kaiden Guhle (21) during the third period at the Bell Centre.
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Feb. 28: Referee Cody Beach stops the fight between the Washington Capitals' Connor McMichael and Montreal Canadiens' Kaiden Guhle (21) during the third period at the Bell Centre.
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Feb. 28: The Ottawa Senators' Brady Tkachuk (7) battles along the boards with the Toronto Maple Leafs' Brandon Carlo in the second period at Scotiabank Arena.
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Feb. 28: The Nashville Predators' Filip Forsberg hits the boards alongside the Dallas Stars' Nils Lundkvist during the third period at the American Airlines Center.
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Feb. 5: The Florida Panthers' Matthew Tkachuk (left) and Tampa Bay Lightning's Victor Hedman fight during the second period at Benchmark International Arena.
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Feb. 4: The St. Louis Blues' Brayden Schenn fights with the Dallas Stars' Justin Hryckowian during the second period at the American Airlines Center.
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Feb. 1: Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy and Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman fight during the second period of the 2026 Stadium Series game at Raymond James Stadium.
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Jan. 29: St. Louis Blues defenseman Tyler Tucker (left) fights Florida Panthers left wing A.J. Greer during the second period at Enterprise Center.
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Jan. 27: Vancouver Canucks forward Evander Kane (91) fights with San Jose Sharks defenseman Timothy Liljegren during the second period at Rogers Arena.
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Jan. 19: San Jose Sharks goalie Alex Nedeljkovic (left) fights Florida Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky during the third period at Amerant Bank Arena.
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Jan. 15: Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Connor Murphy (5) fights with Calgary Flames left wing Joel Farabee (86) during the second period at United Center.
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Jan. 15: Boston Bruins center Alex Steeves (21) and Seattle Kraken center Ryan Winterton (26) fight during the third period at TD Garden.
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Jan 10: Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin (74) checks Seattle Kraken right wing Kaapo Kakko (84) during the first period at Lenovo Center.
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Dec. 30: Toronto Maple Leafs left wing Matthew Knies (23) fights with New Jersey Devils center Nico Hischier (13) during the third period at Scotiabank Arena.
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Dec. 20: Philadelphia Flyers left wing Nicolas Deslauriers (44) and New York Rangers left wing Brennan Othmann (78) are separated by officials and teammates after a fight during the second period at Madison Square Garden.
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Dec 8: Toronto Maple Leafs forward Dakota Joshua (81) and Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Maxwell Crozier (24) fight during the third period at Scotiabank Arena.
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Dec. 4: Pittsburgh Penguins left wing Bokondji Imama (14) and Tampa Bay Lightning center Curtis Douglas (42) fight in the first period at Benchmark International Arena.
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Dec. 1: New Jersey Devils defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler (71) and Columbus Blue Jackets center Adam Fantilli (19) fight during the second period at Prudential Center.
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Nov. 28: New Jersey Devils right wing Stefan Noesen (11) and Buffalo Sabres center Tage Thompson (72) fight during the first period at KeyBank Center.
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Nov. 28: Philadelphia Flyers right wing Garnet Hathaway (19) checks New York Islanders center Casey Cizikas (53) during the second period at UBS Arena.
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Nov. 28: Winnipeg Jets center Jonathan Toews (19) checks Carolina Hurricanes center Justin Robidas (46) during the first period at Lenovo Center.
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Nov 24: Members of the New Jersey Devils and the Detroit Red Wings fight at the end of the third period at Prudential Center.
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Nov. 22: Florida Panthers left wing A.J. Greer (10) and Edmonton Oilers center Trent Frederic (10) fight during the first period at Amerant Bank Arena.
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Utah Mammoth center Jack McBain (22) and Vegas Golden Knights right wing Keegan Kolesar (55) fight during the third period at Delta Center.
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Nov. 16: The New York Rangers and Detroit Red Wings engage in a major scrum after their game at Madison Square Garden.
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Nov. 6: Carolina Hurricanes center Jordan Staal (11) fights Minnesota Wild center Tyler Pitlick (19) after his hit injured Carolina's Jalen Chatfield.
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Nov. 6: Los Angeles Kings right wing Corey Perry (10) and Florida Panthers left wing A.J. Greer (10) fight during the third period at Crypto.com Arena.
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Nov. 6: Buffalo Sabres center Josh Dunne (44) and St. Louis Blues defenseman Tyler Tucker (75) fight during the first period at KeyBank Center.
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Nov 4: New York Islanders and Boston Bruins players get in a scrum after Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer (48) was roughed by Bruins defenseman Nikita Zadorov (91) during the second period.
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Nov. 1: Columbus Blue Jackets right wing Mathieu Olivier (24) fights St. Louis Blues defenseman Tyler Tucker (75) in the first period at Nationwide Arena.
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Nov 1: Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Ivan Provorov (9) hits St. Louis Blues right wing Jordan Kyrou (25) along the boards in the third period at Nationwide Arena.
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Nov. 1: Washington Capitals right wing Tom Wilson (43) and Buffalo Sabres left wing Jordan Greenway (12) fight during the first period at KeyBank Center.
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Oct. 24: Calgary Flames right wing Adam Klapka (43) and Winnipeg Jets defenseman Logan Stanley (64) fight in the first period at Canada Life Centre.
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Oct. 23: Boston Bruins left wing Tanner Jeannot (84) fights with Anaheim Ducks left wing Ross Johnston (44) during the second period at TD Garden.
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Oct. 21: Anaheim Ducks right wing Frank Vatrano (77) and Nashville Predators defenseman Adam Wilsby (83) fight during the third period at Bridgestone Arena.
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Oct. 18: Florida Panthers left wing Brad Marchand (63) is held back by a linesman after scuffling with Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin. Marchand is holding Dahlin's helmet and later pulled off the straps in the penalty box.
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Oct. 18: Tampa Bay Lightning center Curtis Douglas (42) and Columbus Blue Jackets center Mathieu Olivier (24) fight during the first period at Nationwide Arena.
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Oct. 16: Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Kaedan Korczak (6) checks Boston Bruins center Michael Eyssimont (81) during the first period at T-Mobile Arena.
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Oct 14: Dallas Stars defenseman Lian Bichsel (6) checks Minnesota Wild center Yakov Trenin (13) during the first period at the American Airlines Center.
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Oct. 11: Calgary Flames left wing Ryan Lomberg (70) and St. Louis Blues defenseman Tyler Tucker (75) fight during the second period at Scotiabank Saddledome.
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Oct. 11: Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang (58) checks New York Rangers left wing Artemi Panarin (10) during the first period at PPG Paints Arena.
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Oct. 11: Los Angeles Kings left wing Jeff Malott (39) and Winnipeg Jets defenseman Luke Schenn (5) fight during the first period at Canada Life Centre.
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Oct. 9: Vegas Golden Knights center Tomas Hertl (48) checks San Jose Sharks center Philipp Kurashev (96) at center ice during the third period at SAP Center.
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Oct. 9: Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Darren Raddysh (43) and Ottawa Senators left wing Kurtis MacDermid (23) fight during the first period at Benchmark International Arena.
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Oct. 9: Carolina Hurricanes left wing Jordan Martinook (48) checks New Jersey Devils center Nico Hischier (13) during the third period at Lenovo Center.
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Oct. 9: Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin (26) checks New York Rangers left wing Artemi Panarin (10) as he goes after a loose puck during the second period at KeyBank Center.
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Oct 7: Los Angeles Kings left wing Jeff Malott (39) points to Colorado Avalanche left wing Gabriel Landeskog (92) after he finished fighting Josh Manson during the first period at Crypto.com Arena.
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Oct. 7: Chicago's Nick Foligno fights with Florida's A.J. Greer during the first period at Amerant Bank Arena.
Eastern Conference:Ā Carolina, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Buffalo, Montreal, Tampa Bay, Boston, Ottawa
Western Conference:Ā Colorado, Dallas, Minnesota, Vegas, Edmonton, Anaheim, Utah, Los Angeles
After April 13 games.Ā x-clinched playoff spot. y-clinched division. z-eliminated.
Metropolitan Division
Atlantic Division
Wild card
Out of the playoffs: **z-**Washington Capitals (93),Ā **z-**Columbus Blue Jackets (92), **z-**Detroit Red Wings (92), **z-**New York Islanders (91), **z-**New Jersey Devils (87),Ā **z-**Florida Panthers (82),Ā **z-**Toronto Maple Leafs (78),Ā **z-**New York Rangers (75)
After completed April 13 games. x-clinched playoff spot. y-clinched division. z-eliminated.
Central Division
Pacific Division
Wild card
Out of the playoffs:Ā **z-**Nashville Predators (86), **z-**San Jose Sharks (84), **z-**Winnipeg Jets (82), **z-**St. Louis Blues (82), **z-**Seattle Kraken (79),Ā **z-**Calgary Flames (75),Ā **z-**Chicago Blackhawks (70),Ā **z-**Vancouver Canucks (56)
Here is how the Eastern Conference playoff bracket would look if the season ended on April 13:
The winner of the first series would play the winner of the second in the second round. The winner of the third series would play the winner of the fourth.Ā Key: M -Ā Metropolitan Division.Ā A -Ā Atlantic Division.Ā WC -Ā wild card
Here is how the Western Conference playoff bracket would look if the season ended on April 13.
The winner of the first series would play the winner of the second in the second round. The winner of the third series would play the winner of the fourth.Ā Key: C -Ā Central DivisionĀ P -Ā Pacific Division.Ā WC -Ā wild card
If two teams are tied in points at the end of the regular season, here are the tiebreakers:
The NHL regular season is scheduled to end on Thursday, April 16, with six games.
The NHL's Stanley Cup playoffs are scheduled to begin on Saturday, April 18.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 2025 NHL playoff schedule, picture, bracket, tiebreaker scenarios
The NHL playoffs are set to start after the conclusion of the regular season, which ends on April 14, 2026.
As of now, all 16 playoff berths are filled, but the exact standings and matchups are still being finalized.
Currently, only three playoff series have been determined, with home ice still undecided in one of those matchups.
The Pacific Division's seedings are not yet finalized, and the first and second wild-card seeds are also still up for grabs.
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