We’ve reached the finish line.
The Edmonton Oilers will wrap up their 2024-25 regular season schedule on Wednesday night in San Jose against the Sharks.
1. Two days are left in the regular season and there’s only one spot in the playoffs left for grabs: The Montreal Canadiens and Columbus Blue Jackets are down to the wire for eighth place in the Eastern Conference. Otherwise, we know who’s in the playoffs and who’s playing who.
Either Montreal or Columbus will face the Washington Capitals in the first round, who have the Metro Division wrapped up with 111 points. The Toronto Maple Leafs have clinched the Atlantic Division and will host the Ottawa Senators in the first Battle of Ontario since 2004.
The Tampa Bay Lightning will be the home team in this year’s Battle of Florida as the Panthers look to reach the Stanley Cup Final for the third year in a row. The Carolina Hurricanes and New Jersey Devils will also meet in the first round as the second and third-placed Metro Division teams.
2. The Western Conference is entirely set after Tuesday’s games. The Calgary Flames fell to the Vegas Golden Knights and both the Minnesota Wild and St. Louis Blues clinched Wild Card spots with wins.
The Blues will face the Winnipeg Jets in the first round, who have clinched their first-ever Presidents’ Trophy with one game left to play. The Wild will play the Golden Knights, who won the Pacific Division for the fifth time in eight years as an NHL team this season.
The Oilers and Kings will meet in the first round of the playoffs for the fourth year in a row. Los Angeles is the home team for the first time and they’ll be looking to finally get past Edmonton after three consecutive defeats. Finally, the Dallas Stars will host the Colorado Avalanche in what’s likely the biggest heavyweight matchup in the first round.
3. The Sharks also have their spot in the standings locked up heading into their final game of the season. They’re 20-49-12 with 52 points, nine points back of the Chicago Blackhawks for 31st in the league.
San Jose will have the highest odds of winning the first overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft at this year’s Draft Lottery. There’s a 25.5 percent chance the Sharks will have the top pick for the second consecutive year, but winning again would keep them out of the running for the next three seasons.
Back in 2021, the rules were changed so that teams could only win the lottery twice in five years and teams could only jump up 10 spots if they won the lottery. To pick first this summer while remaining in next year’s lottery, the Sharks would need a team outside the top-11 to win the lottery.
4. The Sharks are coming into this game looking to finish their season on a positive note. They’re struggling through a season-high 10-game losing streak and they’ve won just three of 17 games since the March 7 trade deadline.
The bright spot in San Jose this year was 2024 first-overall pick Macklin Celebrini, who leads the team with 25 goals and 63 points in his 18-year-old season. Will Smith, the team’s fourth overall pick from the 2023 draft, has also had a successful rookie season with 18 goals and 45 points in 73 games.
5. Connor McDavid has 99 points in 66 games this season and is one point shy of reaching the 100-point mark for the eighth time in his career. Veteran winger Corey Perry is two goals away from reaching the 20-goal mark for the ninth time in his career and the first time since back in 2015-16 with the Anaheim Ducks.
Beyond those individual milestones, the Oilers don’t have anything to play for in San Jose on Wednesday. They know they’re about to get into a rough, physical series with the Kings and the important thing against the Sharks is to stay healthy.
