When we talk about NHL teams that almost certainly are going to make the Stanley Cup playoffs, there are two distinct kinds of teams. There are squads that look like they’re going to be dynamic powerhouses – think of Florida, Washington, Winnipeg, Dallas, Vegas and Colorado – but there are also playoff-bound teams trending downward. And in this column, we will identify three squads trending downward – the New Jersey Devils, Minnesota Wild and Edmonton Oilers.
The Devils have been waylaid by major injuries to crucial stars Jack Hughes and Dougie Hamilton, but the truth is, they’ve been a disappointing bunch for months now. For example, since Dec. 27, the Devils have been able to string together three wins in a row just once – in their current three-game win streak. But since Jan. 11, New Jersey has gone 11-10-2. There’s been no extended stretch of excellence to point to with the Devils. Once again, they’re the epitome of mediocrity.
It’s no wonder, then, that Devils fans are worried that New Jersey could fall out of third place in the Metropolitan Division and wind up in a wild-card spot squaring off against elite teams like the Capitals or Panthers in the first round. Would anyone other than Devils diehards bet on New Jersey to make it to the second round of the post-season? We sincerely doubt it. And even when New Jersey was at full strength, they weren’t contending for top spot in the Metro, so it’s hard to envision them doing any damage in the playoffs without Hughes and Hamilton. It’s a bleak picture for the Devils, but it’s an accurate one.
Similarly, in the extremely competitive Central Division, the Wild have tumbled out of third place and are now in the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference. Earlier this season, the Wild were second in the Central, but like the Devils, Minnesota has also had significant injuries to key players, including superstar winger Kirill Kaprizov, center Joel Eriksson Ek, and defensemen Jared Spurgeon and Jonas Brodin. And their downward trend is visible in the results of their recent schedule.
To wit: since Jan. 11, the Wild have gone 11-12-1 – and since Jan. 30, they’ve gone 7-7-1. So we’re not talking about one or two bad weeks with this team. We’re talking about sustained mediocrity, and Minnesota is now in a standings position where they’d be playing against the Vegas Golden Knights, Winnipeg Jets or Dallas Stars in the first round. And like the Devils, the Wild are going to be underdogs no matter which of those teams they face in the post-season.
Finally, the Oilers are struggling without any major injuries like the Devils and Wild have had to deal with. Instead, it’s Edmonton’s goaltending and recent all-around funk that is cause for concern for them heading into the playoffs. Since Jan. 27, the Oilers have gone 7-9-1, and after challenging for top spot in the Pacific Division earlier in the season, the Oilers sit just one point ahead of the L.A. Kings for second place in the division.
The Oilers may not fall any further than third in the Pacific, as they’re currently nine points ahead of the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks, but you never know – another couple weeks of disappointing hockey could allow the Flames or Canucks to slip by the Oilers and put Edmonton in a wild-card spot. That would’ve been unthinkable early in the year, but the sub-par play of Edmonton goalie Stuart Skinner – who had an .867 save percentage in February and an .876 SP thus far in March – has created uncertainty and doubt in the mind of Oilers fans.
There’s still time for the Oilers, Wild and Devils to turn things around and salvage their season, but there’s not much time – just about one month on the dot. And it’s important to bear in mind that those three teams aren’t playing in a vacuum. Because of their recent struggles, New Jersey, Edmonton and Minnesota essentially have had control of their destiny taken out of their hands. Not only do they now have to improve significantly, but they have to hope the teams ahead of them or just behind them in the standings - in New Jersey’s case, Carolina and Columbus, in Minnesota’s case, Colorado and Dallas, and in Edmonton’s case, the Kings, Flames and Canucks – wind up struggling the rest of the season.
For those reasons, we’re not feeling confident in the Oilers, Devils or Wild this year. Their faults have come to light, and there’s no easy fix for them. And if they do fall easily in the playoffs, no one will be able to say they never saw it coming.
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