The Ottawa Senators and Boston Bruins clinched the two wild-card spots in the Eastern Conference playoffs on Saturday, while several other teams across both conferences were eliminated from postseason contention as the 2025–26 NHL regular season nears its end. Every team has three or fewer games remaining before the regular season concludes on Thursday.

The Senators secured their spot with a victory over the New York Islanders on Saturday, while the Bruins qualified for the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs after a one-year absence despite losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 at TD Garden. Both the Islanders and the Detroit Red Wings lost on Saturday and can no longer catch the Bruins or Senators in the wild-card standings. The Islanders and Red Wings each have 91 points, while the Bruins hold 96 points with two games remaining.

The Bruins returned to the playoffs under first-year head coach Marco Sturm after posting a 33-39-10 record and 76 points in the 2024–25 season. Boston enters the postseason on a five-game losing streak with a 0-3-2 record over that stretch.

The New Jersey Devils defeated the Red Wings in regulation on Saturday, a result that eliminated Detroit from playoff contention. In the Eastern Conference, one playoff spot remains open — the No. 3 seed in the Metropolitan Division. The Pittsburgh Penguins are locked in as the No. 2 seed in the division. A regulation loss by the Washington Capitals to the Penguins would eliminate the Capitals, and a regulation loss by the Islanders to the Montreal Canadiens would end New York's bid for the remaining Metropolitan seed.

The Canadiens have secured a finish no worse than third in the Atlantic Division and can claim first place if they earn more standings points than the Buffalo Sabres and Tampa Bay Lightning. If the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Senators finish tied in standings points, Ottawa will hold the higher wild-card seed based on tiebreakers. The first wild-card team in the East will face the Atlantic Division champion in Round 1, while the second wild-card team will face the Carolina Hurricanes.

In the Western Conference, the Vegas Golden Knights clinched a playoff spot and took over first place in the Pacific Division after defeating the Colorado Avalanche in overtime. The Edmonton Oilers also earned a playoff berth despite losing to the Los Angeles Kings. Two playoff spots remain open in the West.

The St. Louis Blues and the Seattle Kraken were both eliminated from Western Conference playoff contention. The Anaheim Ducks can clinch a spot with a win or an overtime/shootout loss against the Vancouver Canucks, though Anaheim would lose the regulation wins tiebreaker to any team ahead of them in the standings. A win by the Utah Mammoth against the Calgary Flames would put the Mammoth two points closer to clinching the first wild-card position in the West. The first wild-card team in the West will face the Pacific Division champion in Round 1, while the second wild-card team will meet the Avalanche.