The Dallas Stars sit just three weeks away from the end of the 2014-2015 season, and remain on the outside looking in.
The Dallas Stars currently rest eight points out of the final wild card spot and nine points out of the first wild card spot. With 11 games to go in the season, they have a chance at 22 more points. At the moment, they rest at 76 points. With a schedule packed full of hard-nosed teams remaining, and the other teams the Stars are battling with in the standings going on outrageous winning streaks, their playoff hopes grow slimmer and slimmer as each day passes.
The Dallas Stars next chance at two points is Saturday night against the Chicago Blackhawks at the American Airlines Center, a place they have not beaten the Hawks at since October 7, 2011. The odds once again seem stacked against the Stars with their pathetic home record and the Blackhawks dominance of the Stars over the last few seasons. But nonetheless, we will continue to watch, at least until mathematics comes in and completely eliminates the Stars postseason hopes.
I thought it would be a good idea to take a hypothetical look at the remainder of the Stars season, as well as a look at all the other teams left in the race, and try and build as clear a picture as possible for how the standings will look after the final regular season game in the NHL has been played and who will qualify for the postseason.
Here is a look at the standings as of Saturday, March 21st:
1. Minnesota Wild 71 GP 85 PTS
2. Winnipeg Jets 71 GP 84 PTS
3. Los Angeles Kings 70 GP 82 PTS
4. Colorado Avalanche 71 GP 79 PTS
5. San Jose Sharks 71 GP 78 PTS
6. Dallas Stars 71 GP 76 PTS
So here is a look and guesstimate of how each team will fare for the rest of the season and where each will land once the regular season clock hits zero:
Next: Estimating The Minnesota Wild