NHL Off the Post: February 23rd
by Sean Murphy
Friday, Feb 23, 2024We're just two weeks away from the NHL Trade Deadline as a number of teams jockey for positioning and decide whether they'll be 'buyers' or 'sellers'. Here's a look at some notes from around the league as we approach the end of February.Cleared for takeoffThe Winnipeg Jets stumbled out of the All-Star break, scoring a grand total of one goal in consecutive losses against the Penguins and Flyers. Since then, they've turned it around, securing four wins in their last five games entering Friday's matchup with the lowly Blackhawks. The good news is, the first-place Vancouver Canucks have stumbled lately, leaving the door open for the Jets to gain ground in the Western Conference standings. Winnipeg currently sits seven points behind Vancouver but has a whopping five games-in-hand. The bad news is, the Jets face a difficult upcoming schedule with 11 of their next 17 games being played on the road. Winnipeg has posted a winning record away from home this season but there is reason for concern as it has averaged just 2.8 goals per game along the way. Seeing StarsIt's been a tough road trip for the Dallas Stars as they've lost all three games on their current jaunt out East. In fact, Dallas has lost four consecutive games overall and draws another difficult matchup in Carolina on Saturday before returning home for one game against the struggling New York Islanders. It seems the Stars nine-goal outburst in Nashville back on February 15th may have led to a bit of complacency as they've produced only eight goals in four games since. Dallas does remain in second-place in the Western Conference standings and continues to lead the Central Division. With that being said, the Colorado Avalanche are nipping at their heels, sitting just a single point back. A showdown with the Avs in Denver awaits on Tuesday night. Red hot BlueshirtsI noted prior to the All-Star break that the then-struggling New York Rangers would be a team we'd be looking to get behind in the coming weeks. Right on schedule, the Rangers have gone on a tear, reeling off nine straight victories culminating with a decisive 5-1 win over the New Jersey Devils in Newark on Thursday. The schedule doesn't get much tougher until the start of March as the Blueshirts will close out February with a stop in Philadelphia followed by a home-and-home series with the lowly Blue Jackets. New York's recent surge has strengthened its grip on the Metropolitan Division lead as it currently sits six points ahead of the second-place Carolina Hurricanes. The Rangers and Canes will next meet in Raleigh on March 12th, marking their final matchup of the regular season. Decision timeThe Philadelphia Flyers were an afterthought when it came to preseason playoff prognostication but as we approach the Trade Deadline they find themselves in third-place in the Metropolitan Division, holding a seven-point advantage over the 'first team out' in the Eastern Conference playoff picture (the Washington Capitals). Whether Philadelphia will be buying or selling prior to the deadline remains to be seen. Standing pat is an option as well should the organization decide it is still a year or two away from making legitimate noise come playoff time. A glimpse ahead shows that the Flyers will play 12 of their final 25 regular season games against opponents that are currently outside of the playoff picture.
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