NHL Playoff Race: Why Almost Every Team Is Still in the Hunt

Extreme parity has hit the National Hockey League, reshaping the sport’s competitive landscape. 

As most teams hit the halfway point in their 2025–26 schedules this week, the NHL’s standings are showing a clustering that is unprecedented in league history. 

Entering Tuesday’s action, all 16 teams in the Eastern Conference were at a .500 points percentage or better, were within 11 standings points of one another, and no team was more than four points out of the final playoff spot. The Western Conference is somewhat more spread out, with five teams below .500 and 31 points between the dominant Avalanche and cellar-dwelling Blackhawks. 

Still, the NHL’s 27 teams with a points percentage of .500 or better are meaningfully more than the 23 at the midpoint of the 2024–25 schedule, a figure that held to the end of the regular season.

“You look at the standings and if you’re on the top of the mountain, you’re really not on top of the mountain,” said Red Wings coach Todd McLellan. “You’re in the middle of the forest. It’s so tight.”

The league’s hard salary cap, set this year at $95.5 million, certainly is part of the reason for the heightened parity. This season’s compressed schedule, due to the upcoming Winter Olympics in Italy, is another factor. So, too, is a series of team transitions, such as the elevation of the Sharks—the NHL’s worst team last year—into playoff contention due in large part to the scoring exploits of teenage phenom Macklin Celebrini.

The widespread competitiveness is also aiding many of the league’s core business metrics, with attendance up slightly and many of the league’s local and national broadcasters posting viewership increases in double-digit percentages. 

Resurgence in Buffalo

Part of the clustering in the standings is also due to the Sabres, who have forcefully reentered the postseason race with a nine-game winning streak. Buffalo will go for a 10th consecutive win Wednesday night in Dallas, which would tie a franchise record.

The surge is happening as the Sabres installed Jarmo Kekäläinen as GM earlier this month, and his arrival has quickly produced results. Fans are also beginning to take notice, with the last two home games at KeyBank Center selling out and showing a vastly different energy in what had been one of the NHL’s weaker attendance situations.

“It’s a pretty good vibe around here, eh?” said Sabres wing Zach Benson. “It’s awesome to be a part of and [we’re] just looking to keep going here.”