Will the 2027 playoffs see five Atlantic Division teams?

Heading into the NHL season, it was seen as a virtual certainty that for the third year in a row, both of the wild card spots available in the Eastern Conference would go to teams from the much-deeper Atlantic Division.

But another injury to Florida Panthers super star center Aleksander Barkov has muddied the waters on Florida’s status as an elite team, and hot starts from the Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers represent a couple of early signals that the Metropolitan may not be quite as vulnerable as it appeared to be on paper before the puck dropped.

On Monday’s episode of Daily Faceoff Live, host Tyler Yaremchuk and co-host and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton were joined by Cameron Gaunce to discuss whether or not the first week of regular season action suggests that the pre-season consensus of the Atlantic nabbing both of the East’s wild card spots still looks realistic.

Tyler Yaremchuk: I still believe, even though the Penguins have been a good story this year so far… I still think it’s going to be three from the Metro and five from the Atlantic. I think the Atlantic is that much deeper that Florida should be able to stay higher than the Islanders, the Blue Jackets, and whoever you want to name. So, your first fill-in-the-blank, Cam, I’ll start with you: There’s a [blank] percent chance that five Atlantic teams end up making the playoffs this year?

Cameron Gaunce: I think there’s a 70% chance. I just see them being so strong. I think the three that are most likely… Montreal, even in the games they’ve played so far… Tampa will figure it out. They’re loaded. They’re going to be a very good team. Florida, I still think makes it… I think it’s going to be really tight for Buffalo, Toronto, Ottawa. I really like Ottawa. I’m really bullish on Ottawa because they play such a simplistic style… And then when I look at the Metro, yes they have to have three teams, you’ve got Washington, you’ve got Carolina. But Rangers have had a good start. Columbus, we’ll wait to see if they can continue the way they’re playing. I still think with those teams in the Atlantic, there’s a 70% chance that those teams make it in. I don’t have much faith in Philly getting back to where they were last year. I don’t have a ton of faith in [the Islanders] maintaining it… I go 70%.

Carter Hutton: I’m just gonna go a little under that. I think 60%, I’m trying to pull a number here. To your point, I look at the Atlantic Division, and maybe I wipe Detroit off… Everyone else, it feels like has a potential chance. Judging the Barkov injury and where it’s gonna go from here, the Sabres are kind of that team I’m not sure of because you lost Alex Tuch, you lost Bowen Byram… Can they get on that run again? I think they have potential. The lock for me is Montreal, I think they’re just too deep… And the Metro just feels like, outside of Carolina and Washington, it’s like, is Pittsburgh for real? And then for me the x-factors come down to, I think, goaltending. Are the Devils going to get goaltending from 36-year-old Jake Allen? And can the Rangers and Islanders, the Russian duo of Shesterkin and Sorokin, be enough to push them into the factor? I think that’s where it comes down to.

You can watch the full segment and the rest of the episode below…