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ST. PAUL - In dramatic fashion, the Minnesota Wild clinched a playoff spot in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs after beating the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night. 

The Wild entered Tuesday just in need of a point in their last game of the season to clinch a playoff spot. It started off well when Marcus Johansson gave the Wild a 1-0 lead. 

Anaheim ended up scoring the next two goals and put the Wild on their heals. Minnesota pulled its goalie late in the third to try and tie it up. 

After great passing by Mats Zuccarello and Matt Boldy, Joel Eriksson Ek was able to tie the game with 20.9 seconds left on a play in his office, the crease. 

CLUTCH WOULD BE AN UNDERSTATEMENT 🤯 pic.twitter.com/rwLRMYl0dE

— NHL (@NHL) April 16, 2025

Since all they needed was a point, the Wild put Marc-Andre Fleury in for overtime in what could be his final game in his Hall of Fame career. 

Boldy ended up scoring in overtime to win it, minutes after Fleury stood on his head in overtime. The Wild all came off the bench and went straight to Fleury. 

They have now made the playoffs 11 times in their last 13 seasons and will be facing the Vegas Golden Knights in a seven game series. 

It's time to preview the NHL's Stanley Cup playoffs from a betting and fantasy hockey lens on The Cheat Sheet.

First-Round NHL Playoff Odds, Early Conn Smythe Look And More by The Cheat Sheetundefined

Here's what George Nassios and Andrew McInnis discussed in this episode:

0:00: Do the New Jersey Devils have any chance at taking down the Carolina Hurricanes?

3:32: Are the Dallas Stars (+104) a smart underdog bet against the Colorado Avalanche? (-125)

6:55: Betting the length of the Battle of Ontario series

10:15: Best bets to target in the Battle of Florida series

14:11: Can the St. Louis Blues (+188) have a tight series with the Winnipeg Jets? (-230)

17:46: How should bettors look at the Minnesota Wild (+195) in their series against the Vegas Golden Knights? (-240)

22:58: Could the Los Angeles Kings (+116) be a strong upset candidate in their series against the Edmonton Oilers? (-146)

27:11: Is Jack Eichel (+1700) a strong candidate for an early Conn Smythe bet?

30:38: Would you rather have Jake Sanderson or Lane Hutson in a fantasy keeper league?

33:24: Should Kirill Marchenko be a high fantasy draft pick next season?

Subscribe to The Hockey News Cheat Sheet on your preferred platform and come back on Wednesdays for the latest episodes.

By hockey standards, the disaster that is the New York Rangers has a touch of the Titanic and Hindenberg about it. 

Everybody – even in distant Edmonton – seems to be talking, wondering. how the richest NHL team in America has become the square root of ignominy and ineptitude.

Well folks, Edmonton is part of the problem because the Oilers got the right coach in Kris Knoblauch and the Rangers did not.

What's more, you could say that Knoblauch was purloined right from under GM Chris Drury's watch. After all Kris was doing wonderful things in Hartford where the Wolf Pack just happens to be the New Yorkers supply store.

"The natural order of progression," says The Old Scout, "should have been Knoblauch replacing Gerard Gallant when Drury fired Gallant. Ignoring Knoblauch was a huge mistake on Drury's part."

Nobody who knew Knoblauch in Hartford was surprised when Kris orchestrated McDavid, Inc. to within one win of the Stanley Cup last spring. Nor will they be surprised if he does it again.

Kris can coach. Period!

As for Laviolette,  nobody will be particularly surprised if –  by next week – Pistol Pete will be on the unemployed line alongside John Tortorella.

These things happen when a veteran coach's game plan falls apart like an ill-built Lego set.

Put it this way, "The Disaster On Seventh Avenue" would not have happened had Kris Knoblauch been in charge; as he should have been.

Thus the NHL equation: Lucky Oilers=Ruined Rangers!

The American Hockey League has officially announced the 2024-25 All-Rookie Team.

The team is voted on by players, coaches and media from all 32 teams.

The 2024-25 team is:

• Goaltender ― Nikke Kokko, Coachella Valley Firebirds (32 GP, 20-9-2, 2.23 GAA, .914 SV%)
• Defenseman ― Luca Cagnoni, San Jose Barracuda (62 GP, 14-35-49, 10 PPG)
• Defenseman ― Tristan Luneau, San Diego Gulls (56 GP, 7-41-48, 1 PPG, 2 GWG)
• Forward ― Justin Hryckowian, Texas Stars (66 GP, 20-38-58, +14, 4 PPG, 1 GWG)
• Forward ― Ville Koivunen, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (62 GP, 21-34-55, 4 PPG, 2 GWG)
• Forward ― Bradly Nadeau, Chicago Wolves (63 GP, 30-26-56, 8 PPG, 7 GWG)

Nadeau leads all rookies in goals and is second in rookie scoring to Hryckowian. He is the fifth U20 player in AHL history to score 30 goals in a season. He was selected 30th overall by the Carolina Hurricanes in 2023. 

Koivunen is third in AHL rookie scoring and his offensive ability has immediately come through for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. He has five assists in seven NHL games this season. A second round pick of the Hurricanes in 2021, he was acquired by Pittsburgh in the trade that sent Jake Guentzel to Carolina. 

Hryckowian leads all rookies in scoring in what is his first full pro season. He has one point in five NHL games this season. He was signed as a free agent by the Dallas Stars in 2024 after three seasons at Northeastern University. 

Cagnoni was a fourth round pick of the San Jose Sharks in 2023 and has been dominant offensively in his rookie season, sitting fourth in scoring by AHL defensemen this season. He recorded two assists in six NHL games this season.

Luneau is fifth in scoring amongst AHL defensemen this season after missing most of what was intended to be his rookie year last season due to injury. A second round pick of the Anaheim Ducks in 2022, Luneau won QMJHL Rookie of the Year in 2021 and Defenseman of the Year in 2023. He is pointless in six NHL appearances this season.

Kokko has stepped up admirably for Coachella Valley this season as they look to make their third straight Calder Cup Final. A second round pick of the Seattle Kraken in 2022, he made his NHL debut earlier this season. 

Make sure you bookmark The Hockey News' AHL Page for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more.        

ST. LOUIS – For the St. Louis Blues to accomplish what nobody thought they could do coming out of the 4 Nations Face-Off on Feb. 22 was nothing short of remarkable.

And even in going 19-4-3, good for a .788 points percentage, it still took until the final game of the regular season to punch their ticket to the Stanley Cup playoffs.

That’s just the degree of difficulty of gaining entry into the playoffs as the second wild card from the Western Conference, no less, was what it took to get this done.

So how did it happen?

Coach Jim Montgomery knows.

“Great leadership, led by our captain who scored the first goal tonight,” Montgomery said, referring to Brayden Schenn. “I thought consistency by the staff and the players with our communication and I just thought that we grew so much culturally and in our team identity. And those two things, when our players started using words like togetherness. The words I used were their words this morning. Selfless, sacrifice, love.”

Let’s start at the top:

When Montgomery was hired to replace Drew Bannister on Nov. 25, mere days after being fired by the Boston Bruins, the Blues were 9-12-1 and sort of running amuck, through a quagmire of sorts.

And sure, there was a coaching surge initially, winning five of their first seven games under Montgomery, but then there were also challenges of not being able to string wins together regularly. Consistency was a topic of discussion. The Blues were the last team in the NHL to put together a three-game winning streak this season.

How could they possibly be a playoff team, let alone be considered to be taken seriously? Their coach stayed the course, and the players bought in.

“System, positivity, always great to be around, believing in you, how you’re a good player, let you do stuff in the offensive zone,” forward Pavel Buchnevich said of Montgomery. “Everybody was super-pumped when ‘Monty’ was coming. Half of the team know him from previous work here (2020-22 as an assistant coach under Craig Berube) and we know how good he is as a coach and even a better person.”

The Blues won their last game prior to the 4 Nations, 6-5 against the Chicago Blackhawks, and came out of the gates and dropped a 4-3 shootout loss against their first-round playoff opponent, the Winnipeg Jets, a game in which they led in the final minute of regulation. It’s a game in which the Blues liked more so than the one they lost, but then on the following night on Feb. 23, the team began a stretch of what’s laid the foundation for where they are now, winning six of seven before starting their franchise-record 12-game winning streak on March 15, and here we are.

“A lot goes into it,” Schenn said after scoring his 18th and final goal of the regular season Tuesday. “This is what you train for in the summer, and this is what you play for all year -- to have a chance at the Stanley Cup. You just have to get in and anything can happen. We saw that years ago. We've been on a good run here and, at the same time, we just can't be happy that we're in. Playing Winnipeg, Winnipeg is obviously a good team and they're going to present a good challenge for us. But I don't think anyone gave us a chance really, where we were. I'm glad we kept it together. They're too many good pieces in this locker room to not get in the playoffs. We felt if we played hard for one another, we can get the job done and it just took 82 games.”

Several things stood out, too many to name.

“I mean, there's a lot of things,” Schenn said. “I've talked about it all along, guys being selfless, playing hard for one another. Something we've been trying to do for a couple of years now ... when you start winning hockey games, you actually start getting more individual results and guys feel better about themselves individually and about the team. It's just a mindset that you have to come in and play for a team and good things happen when you do that. It's nice to be in and some pressure relieved of how the past week’s gone, and it's nice to seal it that way.”

In goal, things tightened up as well between Jordan Binnington and Joel Hofer.

At the break, Binnington was 15-19-4 with a 2.89 goals-against average and .897 save percentage. Hofer was 10-7-1, 2.88 GAA and .903 save percentage.

From the break on, Binnington was 13-1-1 with a 2.10 GAA and .910 save percentage; Hofer went 6-1-2 with a 2.19 GAA and .904 save percentage.

When the Blues lost Colton Parayko on March 5 to a left knee injury that required it to be scoped in a 3-2 shootout win against the Los Angeles Kings, much hope was lost.

Parayko was having a career season offensively and leading the Blues in minutes played. But instead of playing the oh-woe-is-me card, the Blues went on a 13-3-1 run without their top defenseman, who returned on Saturday in a 4-3 shootout loss at the Seattle Kraken. The Blue line held it together, including Cam Fowler, who was acquired from the Anaheim Ducks on Dec. 14 and chose St. Louis because he thought he would win here.

The 33-year-old, who last played in the playoffs in 2016-17, really helped fuel his career with an incredible run with the Blues from the moment he played his first game.

Now that the season is over, Cam Fowler's breakdown between the #stlblues and #nhlducks:

Ducks: 17 games, 0g-4a=4 points; minus-7; 21:04 TOI

Blues: 51 games, 9g-27a=36 points; plus-19, 21:42 TOI

My goodness, what an acquisition he has been.

— Lou Korac (@lkorac10) April 16, 2025

“There’s a lot that goes into it,” Fowler said. “We looked at the makeup of the team and where I could come in and try and make an impact. You just look at the players they have, guys that have won the Stanley Cup (Schenn, Parayko, Oskar Sundqvist, Robert Thomas, Binnington), world class goaltending, high-end players offensively. I just felt like it was a good fit for me and my family and I’m grateful that they trusted me to come in here and try and help this team. It’s been a heck of a ride for the last few months and I feel like I’ve been here much longer than that just by the way everyone’s treated me and the guys that we have in this locker room. I’m thankful for that and looking forward to the opportunity of playing in the playoffs again.”

The Blues were third in goals against average at 2.31 per game, behind the Jets (2.20) and Kings (2.29) since the break.

From a forward perspective, it starts with Robert Thomas.

Thomas finished the season with a 12-game point streak (four goals, 21 assists) and was tied for second in the NHL since Feb. 1 in points with 45 (nine goals, 36 assists) behind Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov (46 points; 14 goals, 32 assists) and Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak (45 points; 19 goals, 26 assists).

Thomas is first since the 4 Nations break with 40 points (eight goals, 32 assists); Jordan Kyrou was a point-per-game player (26 points; 13 goals, 13 assists) in 26 games; the injured Dylan Holloway (lower-body injury suffered April 3 against the Pittsburgh Penguins) had 23 points (10 goals, 13 assists) in 21 games, followed by Pavel Buchnevich, who also had 23 points (nine goals, 14 assists) in 22 games; Fowler had 22 points (three goals, 19 assists) in 25 games, and Jake Neighbours had 21 points (nine goals, 12 assists) in 26 games.

The Blues were No. 1 in the NHL since the break averaging 3.81 goals per game.

“I feel like break really help us,” said Buchnevich, who scored in six of the final eight games. “Everybody kind of (reset) thinking how their game (is) going and now we start playing for each other, support everywhere, sacrifice blocking shots. You look at all lines, everybody contribute. We come (together) as a team, but everybody like to be around (each other). It’s positive energy every time and it’s helped us.”

And let’s not discount the young guys, like Zack Bolduc, who tied Kyrou for most goals since the break (13). Bolduc finished the season with 19 goals, and Jimmy Snuggerud, playing in just his sixth game since coming out of college at the University of Minnesota, had a goal and an assist, his first NHL goal and multi-point game, in a 6-1 convincing win over Utah Hockey Club on Tuesday to punch their ticket.

“What they’ve learned is what it takes to win in this league,” Montgomery said. “It’s such a great experience to understand the grind and the mental grind, more than a physical grind, that it takes to win battles, to win every foot of ice in this league that’s the greatest league in the world in big moments and being able to come through in big moments. This is going to give us years of good vibes because the experience of learning how to win, it’s not easy to find that in the league.”

For Snuggerud, it’s gone fast, but it’s been enjoyable.

“It's cool, honestly,” he said. “I grew up watching hockey and the dream goal is to play in the Stanley Cup playoffs and to have this group in here to do it with, it's so special. It should be a fun upcoming few weeks.”

And now they go in playing with house money as the underdogs against the Presidents’ Trophy winners and Central Division winners.

“Everyone looks at Winnipeg and that's the first-place team in the league,” Schenn said. “We've got a lot of work to do, they're a good team and they don't give up much. You don't really pay attention to Winnipeg a whole lot, and then I started watching when my brother [Luke] got traded there and they're a good defensive hockey team with a good goalie. It's going to be an exciting series and we're looking forward to the challenge.”

What does a Stanley Cup winner actually look like? It’s a question that all 32 NHL teams ask every season. 

By analyzing the regular-season profiles of the last 10 champions, there are statistical trends that consistently lead to post-season success and can be used to see which 2025 Cup contenders match the mold.

The general framework for this experiment prioritizes some key aspects that have historically dictated a team’s success in the playoffs: offensive depth, puck possession, defensive strength and goaltending.

Here’s a rundown of the stats and criteria being used, and why each of them is important.

After that, it's time to see which NHL teams fit the bill the most.

(Stats courtesy of moneypuck.com, naturalstattrick.com and hockey-reference.com.)

What Stats Often Determine A Stanley Cup Champion?

Goals against per game: While offensive efficiency in the regular season has varied across previous champions, defense has always been consistent. Seven of the last 10 Cup winners have ranked in the top 10 in goals against per game.

Expected goals differential: How dangerous are the chances you are creating, and how dangerous are the ones you are giving up? They can individually be valuable, but the best teams are good at both. Eight of the last 10 champions finished in the top 12 in expected goal differential.

Goal differential: While expected stats provide a good measurement of a team’s overall process, results are truly what matter. Seven of the last 10 Stanley Cup champions finished in the top four in goal differential.

Power-play percentage and penalty-kill percentage: Special teams have always had the potential to decide which team wins a game, which can apply to an entire playoff run. Seven of the last eight winners finished with a top 10 power play in the regular season.

Corsi-for percentage: Possession dominance at even strength has increasingly become a factor leading to success in the regular season, which translates to success in the playoffs. Seven of the last 10 Stanley Cup winners finished in the top 10 in Corsi-for percentage during the regular season.

PDO: Every team needs bounces to go their way in the quest for the Stanley Cup. While not perfect, PDO is the best indicator of favorable bounces throughout a season. It measure shooting percentage plus save percentage. Five of the last 10 teams that won it all finished in the top five in PDO, and nobody finished lower than 13th.

Regulation wins: With no 3-on-3 overtime, wins in regulation can be a way of measuring even-strength dominance. Nine of the last 10 Stanley Cup champions have finished top-10 in regulation wins.

Here are some other factors being taken into consideration that aren’t accounted for with the analytics above.

Weight: Playing “heavy hockey” has been an important part of today’s game. While the 2014-15 Chicago Blackhawks and the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2015-16 and 2016-17 ranked in the bottom half of average weight, five of the last seven Stanley Cup rosters have been in the top 10.

Star talent: Defining a “star” isn’t always a linear process, but for the sake of this exercise, it’s defined as a player who averages over a point per game throughout the regular season. Seven of the last 10 champs have had at least one in their lineup, and five of them have had two or more.

Depth scoring: While the stars lead you to the playoffs, having offensive depth has always been an important part of every Stanley Cup run. Six of the last 10 winners had four or more 20-plus-goal scorers, and every team other than the 2020-21 Tampa Bay Lightning (shortened season) had three.

Goaltending stability: When nothing seems to be going right, the best teams have historically had a goaltender to rely on to potentially steal a game or two in the post-season. Seven of the last 10 champions have had a goaltender with at least a .915 save percentage, and six teams had at least one that finished top-10 in goals saved above expected (GSAx)

2024-25 NHL Teams That Match The Blueprint The Most

Winnipeg Jets

Canada’s best chance of winning a Stanley Cup in 2025, according to this exercise, lies in the hands of the Winnipeg Jets.

The Presidents' Trophy winners are primed for a deep playoff run with Hart Trophy candidate Connor Hellebuyck and the dynamic offensive duo of Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele. This team has long felt like a contender, but now the pieces might finally fall into place.

This year is different. The Jets’ offense seemingly struggled throughout the regular season last year, finishing 15th in goals-for per game (3.16). With scoring dropping around the league this year, the Jets have only produced offense at a slightly higher clip (3.37) and rank fourth in goals per game. For even further context, that pace would have them finish ninth in league scoring last season.

Last year’s first-round matchup with the Colorado Avalanche was a track meet the Jets simply could not keep up with, especially with a power play that ranked in the bottom 10 in the NHL. Now, the Jets are the best team in the NHL with the man-advantage and have the best goaltender in a league where nearly every other team has had offensive regression.

NHL Power Rankings: Each Team's MVP As Jets Finish On TopWelcome to the last edition of the NHL power rankings for the 2024-25 season. Thanks for following along in what has been another unpredictable and exciting season. 

Los Angeles Kings

What the Los Angeles Kings lack in star power, they make up for in structure and depth. 

They’ve arguably been the best defensive team in the NHL this season, ranking first in expected goals against and second in total goals conceded. Their penalty kill is also among the league’s best, ranking seventh.

While the Kings play a tight brand of defense, goaltender Darcy Kuemper deserves a ton of credit for his efforts. 

The 34-year-old is outperforming his 2021-22 Cup-winning campaign with a .922 save percentage, a top-six GSAx ranking and a 2.02 goals-against average – tied with Hellebuyck. 

The Kings haven’t had any real stability in their crease since the departure of Jonathan Quick, and a resurgence like this could give them the edge in playoff rounds where they might not be favored.

Offense has, and will continue to be, the biggest question for the Kings. 

Adrian Kempe is their only player with over 70 points. They rank 28th in power-play percentage and 13th in goals-for per game (3.06). 

That said, their formula seems to be working, putting together an absurd 41-0-2 record when scoring three goals or more. 

Aside from Kempe, Anze Kopitar, Kevin Fiala and even Quinton Byfield have all been significant contributors to this balanced offense. It will be guys like Alex Laferriere, Warren Foegele and Trevor Moore who leverage matchup opportunities and drive them on a deep run.

Tampa Bay Lightning

The Lightning just won’t go away. 

Even after losing two integral pieces to their core in Steven Stamkos and Mikhail Sergachev last off-season, the Lightning built a regular-season resume that has them looking just as dangerous as they were in their pursuit of back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021.

The Lightning arguably have the most star power out of any playoff team this season, led by Art Ross leader and Hart Trophy candidate Nikita Kucherov. They also have three other players who have scored at least 35 goals and averaged over a point per game in Brandon Hagel, Brayden Point and Jake Guentzel. 

This high-powered offense is third in even-strength goals while also having the fifth-best power play, leading them to score more total goals than anyone in the NHL. There isn’t an on-ice scenario where the Lightning aren’t capable of scoring, and they do it at a rate higher than any other team in the league.

GM Julien BriseBois also deserves credit for the additions made in the summer and at the trade deadline. Aside from Guentzel fitting in perfectly as the Lightning’s new trigger man, re-acquiring Ryan McDonagh has also been a huge win, covering up a lot of the defensive shortcomings this blueline looked to have heading into the season. 

Oliver Bjorkstrand was also a nice pickup, adding a defensively responsible winger with some scoring upside to a bottom-six group that already wins most of its matchups offensively. Having him recovered from injury would give the team another depth boost in the playoffs, but he's currently out week-to-week.

The Lightning also have the best goal differential in the Eastern Conference, largely due to a Vezina-caliber season from Andrei Vasilevskiy. The Russian netminder is quietly having one of the best statistical years of his career, boasting a .921 SP and 2.18 GAA while sitting only behind Hellebuyck in GSAx.

There’s no perfect formula for winning the Stanley Cup – but there are some patterns. Teams that have depth scoring, dominant goaltending and strong defensive structure tend to be the ones lifting the Cup this summer. The margin between contenders and pretenders is razor-thin, but these three teams have set themselves up for success in the coming weeks.

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