What’s at stake tonight: Two Central Division powers try to book playoff tickets

The NHL season is winding down, with less than two weeks remaining on the regular-season schedule. We’ve reached the point of the campaign at which some clinching scenario is seemingly in play every night, so we’ll keep you abreast on what to watch for each day between now and the end of the regular season.

So: what’s at stake in the standings for Monday, April 3?

– The Dallas Stars (41-21-14) will clinch a playoff spot at home tonight if they defeat the Nashville Predators in any fashion. Dallas is riding a high with Jason Robertson setting a so-called franchise record for points in a season over the weekend when he got his 94th (it was actually just a record for points since the team moved from Minnesota to Dallas in 1993-94). Dallas could also leapfrog Minnesota and Colorado to take over first in the Central Division if Minnesota gets one point or fewer tonight.

– The Minnesota Wild (44-23-9) have been remarkably strong in Kirill Kaprizov’s absence and can clinch a playoff berth in multiple ways on Monday. A win at home over the Vegas Golden Knights will do it, as will a single point in the Vegas game if Nashville also loses to Dallas in any fashion. The Wild are 6-2-2 in their last 10, enjoying a big hot streak from sophomore goal scorer Matt Boldy, who has 10 (!) goals in his past seven games.

IF THE PLAYOFFS STARTED TODAY…

Western Conference

(P1) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (WC2) Winnipeg Jets
(C1) Minnesota Wild vs. (WC1) Seattle Kraken
(P2) Los Angeles Kings vs. (P3) Edmonton Oilers
(C2) Colorado Avalanche vs. (C3) Dallas Stars

Eastern Conference

(A1) Boston Bruins vs. (WC2) Pittsburgh Penguins
(M1) Carolina Hurricanes vs. (WC1) New York Islanders
(M2) New Jersey Devils vs. (M3) New York Rangers
(A2) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (A3) Tampa Bay Lightning