What’s at stake on 16-game Saturday

There were zero games last night, so the NHL is making up for it today with a 16-game slate, including a tripleheader on the ABC/ESPN+ Hockey Saturday docket: Pittsburgh Penguins-Detroit Red Wings (1 p.m. ET), Vegas Golden Knights-Dallas Stars (3:30 p.m. ET) and New Jersey Devils-Boston Bruins (8 p.m. ET).

All three of those games have playoff implications — and the nightcap could see the Bruins tie the all-time NHL record for regular-season wins — but those are not the only three games we’ll be monitoring.

Metro division

The Carolina Hurricanes visit the Buffalo Sabres, sitting one point ahead of the Devils for the No. 1 seed in the Metro. The winner gets the Florida Panthers, New York Islanders or Penguins, depending upon how that race shakes out. The No. 2 seed in the Metro draws the New York Rangers in Round 1.

Eastern wild cards

The Panthers (89 points, 35 regulation wins in 79 games) and Islanders (89 and 34 in 79) hold a slight edge over the Penguins (88 and 30 in 79). The Pens play the early-afternoon ABC game, while the Panthers will visit the Washington Capitals (7 ET) and the Isles host the Philadelphia Flyers (7:30 ET). Obviously, every point is critical to these three clubs.

Central division

It’s a multiteam mosh pit at the top of this division, with the Colorado Avalanche (100 points, 33 regulation wins in 77 games) ahead of the Dallas Stars (100 and 36 in 78) and Minnesota Wild (98 and 32 in 78). The non-Dallas teams will know the result of the Stars’ game by puck drop of theirs; the Wild host the St. Louis Blues (8 ET) while the Avs will head to SoCal to play the Los Angeles Kings (10:30 ET). The winner of the Central’s No. 1 seed will likely get the first wild card, which is looking more and more like it’ll be the Seattle Kraken.

Western wild cards

Speaking of the Kraken, they clinched a playoff spot on Thursday night and are seven points…