As many as two games remain for NHL teams in the regular season. The heat is on if a club wants into the postseason. While the Eastern Conference has shaped up and is essentially set for the playoffs, the Western Conference still has a few moving pieces with the last few games. The Detroit Red Wings are back in the eighth spot in the standings and look to stay there. The Chicago Blackhawks are not one of them as the team officially won the Presidents' Trophy Wednesday night as the NHL's best regular-season team.
Chicago won the trophy for the first time since the 1990-91season. It is the second Presidents' Trophy in franchise history. They beat the Edmonton Oilers 4-1 on Wednesday to officially earn the honors. The victory game the Blackhawks 75 points, placing them ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins who cannot earn more than 74 points this season.
Chicago finished out the final stretch going 10-1-2 in its past 13 games. They are the top seed in the Western Conference, securing the home-ice advantage going into the Stanley Cup Playoffs next week.
"Everyone had a hand in it. Everybody contributed. But we don't want to get too excited. We've still got some serious work to do," head coach Joel Quenneville said.
The team is aware that winners of the Presidents' Trophy do not always go one to win the Stanley Cup, which is the ultimate prize for a team. Vancouver won the trophy two years ago and was eliminated by the Boston Bruins. The Los Angeles Kings were the eighth seed in last year's playoff race and ended up winning the championship, becoming the first eighth seed to do so.
The Detroit Red Wings are hoping to become the second eighth seed to win the Stanley Cup. After days of dancing around outside the playoff bubble, they officially reclaimed the eighth seed after beating the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday night. Detroit earned the 3-1 victory to jump Columbus in the overall standings in the Western Conference.
The team has qualified for the playoffs in 21 straight seasons and is hoping to extend that run this year. Detroit currently has 52 total points, while Columbus has 51. They each have two games left in the season. Detroit will finish on Saturday at Dallas and Columbus will be done the same day at home against Nashville. The Western Conference could be a photo finish at the end.
