2025 NHL Playoffs: Bracket, standings, playoff picture for postseason

The Stanley Cup Playoffs are coming into view, as the 2024-25 NHL regular season comes down to its final few games.

The Winnipeg Jets — who have already claimed the Presidents Trophy for the best regular-season record — will be among the favorites after finishing atop the Central Division. Over in the Metropolitan Division, Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals have locked up the East’s No. 1 seed.

Tuesday’s results saw nearly the entire playoff bracket come into full definition. The Vegas Golden Knights have held off the Los Angeles Kings to win the Pacific Division, while the Toronto Maple Leafs clinched the Atlantic Division over the Tampa Bay Lightning. The only playoff spot left up for grabs could be sealed Wednesday night, but only if the Montréal Canadiens

can get at least a point against the Carolina Hurricanes. Should the Habs stumble, the door is open for the Columbus Blue Jackets to dramatically leap ahead of them in the Eastern Conference wild-card race.

Here’s what to know about the NHL playoff bracket heading into the final push of the 2024-25 season:

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NHL playoff standings

An asterisk (*) denotes a team that has clinched a playoff spot.

Eastern Conference

Note: All teams from 10th place down have been mathematically eliminated from playoff contention.

Western Conference

Note: All teams from 9th place down have been mathematically eliminated from playoff contention.

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How does the NHL playoffs bracket work?

From NHL.com:

First round:

The division winner with the best record in each conference will be matched against the wild-card team with the lesser record.
The wild card team with the better record will play the other division winner.
The teams finishing second and third in each division will meet within the bracket headed by their respective division winners.

Second round:

First-round winners within each bracket play one another to determine the four participants in the Conference Finals.

Conference Finals and Stanley Cup Final

In the Conference Finals and Stanley Cup Final, home-ice advantage goes to the team that had the better regular-season record – regardless of the teams’ final standing in their respective divisions.

NHL Eastern Conference bracket

Here’s how the first-round playoff matchups would look based on the current standings in the Eastern Conference:

A1 Toronto Maple Leafs* vs. WC1 Ottawa Senators*
A2 Tampa Bay Lightning* vs. A3 Florida Panthers*
M1 Washington Capitals* vs. WC2 Montréal Canadiens
M2 Carolina Hurricanes* vs. M3 New Jersey Devils*

An asterisk (*) denotes a team who is locked into a given position in the bracket.

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NHL Western Conference bracket

Here’s how the first-round playoff matchups would look based on the current standings in the Western Conference:

C1 Winnipeg Jets* vs. WC2 St. Louis Blues*
C2 Dallas Stars* vs. C3 Colorado Avalanche*
P1 Vegas Golden Knights* vs. WC1 Minnesota Wild*
P2 Los Angeles Kings* vs. P3 Edmonton Oilers*