The Box Seats: Edition Twenty-Eight
NHL Games Odds for the Week of April 16th -18th
THE BOX SEATS
(Edition Twenty-Eight, April 16th-18th, 2024.)
Hello, and welcome to “The Box Seats”, a column designed to keep Pro Hockey fans informed, educated and entertained with the news and notes from around the National Hockey League. So kick back, and read along every week during the National Hockey League season for NHL games odds.
The Playoff Picture is almost set for the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs as we are just down to three days left in the Regular Season. We hope that you have enjoyed reading The Box Seats this season, and as we head down the stretch we will give you a full rundown on the Wild Card race in the Eastern Conference, NHL betting picks, as well as some of the strongest trends of the year involving clubs that will be playing on in the postseason. Let’s start things off with a quick rundown in each Conference with the NHL Playoff Picture and NHL Games Odds.
STANDINGS AND PLAYOFF PICTURE
(as of EOD April 15th, 2024)
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Metropolitan Division
Team Record Points
P-New York Rangers 55-23-4 114 (President’s Trophy)
x-Carolina Hurricanes 52-22-7 111 (Playoff Berth)
x-New York Islanders 38-27-16 92 (Playoff Berth)
Atlantic Division
x-Boston Bruins 47-19-15 109 (Playoff Berth)
x-Florida Panthers 51-24-6 108 (Playoff Berth)
x-Toronto Maple Leafs 46-24-10 97 (Playoff Berth)
Wild Card (Top Two Advance)
x-Tampa Bay Lightning 44-29-9 96 (Playoff Berth)
Washington Capitals 39-31-11 89 (31 Regulation Wins)
Detroit Red Wings 40-32-9 89 (27 Regulation Wins)
Pittsburgh Penguins 38-31-12 88 (32 Regulation Wins)
Philadelphia Flyers 38-32-11 87 (30 Regulation Wins)
Wild Card Scenario for Eastern Conference heading into Tuesday, April 16th:
Washington Capitals:
-Any win vs. Philadelphia on Tuesday OR One point vs. Philly AND any Detroit loss vs. Montreal on Tuesday,
OR One point vs. Philly AND any Pittsburgh loss vs. NY Islanders on Wednesday.
Detroit Red Wings:
-Any win vs. Montreal on Tuesday AND Washington earns one point or less vs. Philly on Tuesday, OR One point vs. MTL AND Washington regulation loss AND Pittsburgh to earn one point or less. Detroit is Eliminated with a Regulation loss to Montreal.
Pittsburgh Penguins:
-Any win vs. NY Islanders on Wednesday AND Washington AND Detroit earn one point or less each on Tuesday, OR One point vs. NY Islanders AND Washington AND Detroit both lose in regulation. Pittsburgh is eliminated with a Regulation loss to the NY Islanders.
Philadelphia Flyers
-Regulation win vs. Washington on Tuesday, AND a Detroit loss to Montreal, also on Tuesday AND a Pittsburgh regulation loss to the NY Islanders on Wednesday. Anything outside of a regulation win will lead to elimination.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Central Division
Team Record Points
y-Dallas Stars 51-21-9 111 (Won Central Division)
x-Winnipeg Jets 50-24-6 106 (Playoff Berth)
x-Colorado Avalanche 49-25-7 105 (Playoff Berth)
Pacific Division
x-Vancouver Canucks 49-22-9 107 (Playoff Berth)
x-Edmonton Oilers 49-25-6 104 (Playoff Berth)
x-Los Angeles Kings 44-26-11 99 (Playoff Berth)
Wild Card (Top Two Advance)
x- Nashville Predators 47-30-5 99
x- Vegas Golden Knights 44-28-8 96
Team Trends To Watch For
(as of EOD April 15th, 2024)
- Tampa Bay Lightning: 21-6 run to the 1st Period Over in their last 27 games overall.
- Nashville Predators: 16-4 SU last 20 games overall.
- New York Rangers: 26-6 SU last 32 games overall;
- Winnipeg Jets: 6-0 SU last six games overall.
- San Jose Sharks: 4-24 SU last 28 games overall.
NHL FULL SCHEDULE FOR THE WEEK:
April 16th
– 7:30p ET on ESPN
Two Atlantic Division clubs battle in the Sunshine State on Tuesday as the Panthers look to clinch the division with a win and Auston Matthews looks to score his 70th goal of the season.
April 17th
– 7:00pm ET on TNT/MAX
This game could mean nothing or everything for the Penguins depending on how Tuesday’s results shake out for the other clubs in action looking to grab that Second Wild Card berth in the Eastern Conference.
– 9:30p ET on TNT/MAX
The Dallas Stars have already clinched the Central Division and the Number One seed in the Western Conference, securing home-ice through the first three rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
April 18th
– 9:30p ET on ESPN
The final night of the regular season pits two Hart Trophy hopefuls against one another as Connor McDavid and the Oilers battle Nathan MacKinnon and the Avs in Denver on the Worldwide Leader.
Frozen Fashion: The Hockey Jersey of The Week
Each Week, we will select one NHL team jersey to highlight the design and the history of that specific sweater. For the final week of the Regular Season, we’re going with the best design from a team that’s leaving for a new city next Fall.
Phoenix (Arizona) Coyotes 1998-1999 Green “Peyote Coyote” Alternate Jersey
When the Winnipeg Jets moved to Phoenix, Arizona to become the Coyotes in 1996, many National Hockey League fans wondered how the game would look in a desert state that rarely ever sees snowfall in the valley areas. When the logos came out, we saw the heavy inspiration drawn from the artwork, architecture and culture of the state of Arizona with the Kachina-styled skating coyote.
This element was taken to the next level in 1998, when the club unveiled a green alternate jersey that took the half-masked Coyote head and made it the focal point as the center crest, with a desert facade around the edges and sleeves of the jersey. The optics make it seem like the coyote head is floating in the sky in the middle of the desert, which is something that people have claimed to see in that region when under the influence of certain plants and natural chemicals, hence the informal nickname “Peyote Coyote”, This jersey lasted until 2003, when the team changed their entire color scheme and design pattern.
Thanks to the Adidas Reverse Retro drops in 2021 and 2022-23, we saw returns to this classic design scheme in different base colors like Purple and Sienna. With the Coyotes now moving to Salt Lake City next week, we will most likely see a change in name, and colors, which will now cement this jersey as a relic in hockey history.
National Hockey League Trivia Question
Last Week: Which National Hockey League team became the first to win the modern-day President’s Trophy?
Answer: The 1985-86 Edmonton Oilers were the first team to win the President’s Trophy.
We Hope You Enjoyed this Season of The Box Seats!
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