The Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators are somewhat surprisingly in position to challenge for a playoff spot, and both clubs will have their work cut out for them as play resumes following the All-Star break.

By way of having played the second-fewest games among all teams to date, the Maple Leafs and Senators are among four clubs with the busiest upcoming schedules, along with the Colorado Avalanche and New York Islanders.

In other words, both teams have 35 games remaining on the schedule - all of which will be fit into the next 69 days. Toronto will play seven sets of back-to-back games, while Ottawa is in line for six.

The Senators and Maple Leafs rank sixth and seventh, respectively, in terms of point percentage, with the former chasing Montreal atop the Atlantic Division standings and the latter looking to overtake Boston for third spot.

And in terms of a wild-card spot, those aforementioned Islanders have put themselves in position to contend after a seemingly disastrous start.

A compressed schedule, therefore, may make things a bit more difficult for teams expected to be on the playoff bubble at best in 2016-17.

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