The NHL Standings Look Like They Got Sauced On Eggnog This Christmas

The NHL standings after Christmas almost need to be seen to be believed

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Christmas is a good time to check in on the NHL standings to really get a sense of where all teams stand, a little over a third of the way into the season.

This year, however, it's fair to ask if the standings have been hitting the sauce, because upon hitting the three-day Christmas break, these may be some of the strangest standings in years.

Let's start with the Eastern Conference. Take a look at the battle currently unfolding in the Metropolitan Division.

  1. Carolina Hurricanes — 22-11-3, 47 pts 
  2. Philadelphia Flyers — 19-10-7, 45 pts  
  3. New York Islanders — 20-13-4, 44 pts  
  4. Washington Capitals — 19-13-5, 43 pts  
  5. New York Rangers — 19-16-4, 42 pts  
  6. New Jersey Devils — 20-16-1, 41 pts  
  7. Pittsburgh Penguins — 15-12-9, 39 pts  
  8. Columbus Blue Jackets — 15-15-6, 36 pts

That's right, just 11 points separate the first-place Hurricanes from the last-place Columbus Blue Jackets. 

The Carolina Hurricanes lead the Metropolitan Division, but it's so tight, that it could change in a week. (Photo by Cato Cataldo/NHLI via Getty Images)

Meanwhile, the Flyers, Islanders, Capitals, Rangers, and Devils, in second through sixth respectively, have just four points between all of them.

Now, look at the Atlantic: 

  1. Detroit Red Wings — 22-13-3, 47 pts  
  2. Montreal Canadiens — 20-12-5, 45 pts  
  3. Tampa Bay Lightning — 20-13-3, 43 pts  
  4. Florida Panthers — 20-14-2, 42 pts  
  5. Ottawa Senators — 18-13-5, 41 pts  
  6. Boston Bruins — 20-17-1, 41 pts  
  7. Buffalo Sabres — 18-14-4, 40 pts  
  8. Toronto Maple Leafs — 16-15-5, 37 pts

Only ten points separate the first-place Red Wings and last-place Toronto Maple Leafs, and, yes, you read that correctly.

So, with so few points separating teams, we are going to see some crazy movement in the standings almost every night, especially as teams gear up for a spring through January and into the Olympic break. I think we should expect the teams in wild card spots to change almost daily.

It'll be nuts.

Now, out west, it's nuts too, but in an entirely different way.

The Colorado Avalanche are on a tear this year are the top dogs in the entire league. (Photo by Nick Wosika/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Let's take a peek at the Central Division:

  1. Colorado Avalanche — 27-2-7, 61 pts  
  2. Dallas Stars — 25-7-6, 56 pts  
  3. Minnesota Wild — 22-10-6, 50 pts  
  4. Utah Mammoth — 18-18-3, 39 pts  
  5. Nashville Predators — 16-16-4, 36 pts  
  6. St. Louis Blues — 14-16-8, 36 pts  
  7. Winnipeg Jets — 15-17-3, 33 pts  
  8. Chicago Blackhawks — 13-17-6, 32 pts

Look at that. Colorado is on fire and is 14 points clear of the teams leading the divisions in the Eastern Conference. Meanwhile, some teams are not where we thought they'd be, and I'm looking at you, Winnipeg. The reigning Presidents' Trophy winners are sitting at just 33 points and are in danger of getting passed by the Chicago Blackhawks at any moment. 

Notice the top three teams — Colorado, Dallas, and the Quinn Hughes-ified Minnesota Wild are pulling well clear of the rest of the division. The Wild are already 11 points clear of Utah for the third spot in the Central.

And, last but not least, the Pacific:

  1. Vegas Golden Knights — 17-8-10, 44 pts  
  2. Anaheim Ducks — 21-14-2, 44 pts  
  3. Edmonton Oilers — 19-13-6, 44 pts  
  4. Los Angeles Kings — 15-12-9, 39 pts  
  5. San Jose Sharks — 17-17-3, 37 pts  
  6. Seattle Kraken — 15-14-6, 36 pts  
  7. Calgary Flames — 15-18-4, 34 pts  
  8. Vancouver Canucks — 15-18-3, 33 pts

Things are much tighter in the Pacific Division, with three teams — the Golden Knights, the surprising Anaheim Ducks, and the Edmonton Oilers — tied at 44 points.

Meanwhile, there's a bit of a logjam between the Kings, Sharks, and Kraken, with any of those teams having the potential to make a run into the postseason.

But what's even weirder is that of the nine worst teams in hockey, eight of them play in the Western Conference. I don't think I remember a time when the conferences were so weirdly aligned with a tight race in one and a few teams almost lapping the field in the other.

Seriously, it's like the standings have been double-fisting eggnog this Christmas.

Things could get wilder thanks to the Olympic break, which could shake things up again by allowing teams to reset.

There's still a long way to go, but there aren't too many teams that look like playoff shoo-ins yet.