Since we’re down to the final moments of postseason life for teams in contention, Puck Daddy solemnly begins a daily countdown to annihilation.

The Toronto Maple Leafs lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in regulation on Wednesday night, 4-1. The New York Islanders shut out the Carolina Hurricanes.

None of this is good news for the Leafs.

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With two games left in the season, the Leafs now have to gain two points against the Pittsburgh Penguins and Columbus Blue Jackets (neither having anything to play for) or have the Lightning and Islanders both lose two points, or any combination of the two.

Otherwise, this amazing journey for the Leafs will find them outside the playoffs.

Should Leafs fans be worried? Well, Sports Club Stats has them at 88.5 percent to make the playoffs. Money Puck has them at over 91 percent.

Things are … OK?

The Islanders might be the greater threat. The Lightning have to go into Montreal and then beat Buffalo. Neither of these games will be easy, even if Montreal sends out its most diminished lineup possible to subvert the Leafs. The Islanders have the rotting corpse of the Devils and then Ottawa on Sunday, a game that should mean nothing to the Senators.

Here are the current standings. The Death Watch tracks the final Wild Card spot and the teams that are chasing it. Their “tragic number” is the number of points gained by the final wild card team or lost by the team chasing it.

Here’s the Eastern Conference:

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The Penguins will host the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round and the Canadiens will host the New York Rangers. These are locked in.

Boston’s shootout loss means they could still fall to the wild card if they lose to the Washington Capitals in their season finale and the Leafs win twice. Who rests for the Caps in that Saturday game, considering they have one more on Sunday? (Boston can also earn home ice if they gain at least a point against Washington and the Senators drop two straight.)

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Boston has an 18-percent chance of placing in the last wild card, while Toronto has a 66-percent chance. Damn, why couldn’t it be 67 …

Here’s the Western Conference:

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Anaheim’s win over the Chicago Blackhawks gives them an 86-percent chance of finishing first in the Pacific, so begrudging kudos to coach Randy Carlyle for winning a division title in a year in which we all assumed this fuddy-duddy would botch what Bruce Boudreau had left for him.

The Edmonton Oilers can still win the Pacific with two wins, at least one in regulation, against the Canucks and a Ducks’ loss to the Los Angeles Kings. If Edmonton and the Ducks are tied in points and ROW, Edmonton would win the tie-breaker. They played five games against each other; Anaheim hosted three of them. Per NHL rules: “If two clubs are tied, and have not played an equal number of home games against each other, points earned in the first game played in the city that had the extra game shall not be included.”

So the Ducks’ win in November gets tossed, meaning that Edmonton earned six points to Anaheim’s four. Again, if they’re tied in points and ROW.

Despite not having any teams on the bubble, the last weekend will matter in the West. St. Louis needs a point gained in their next two games (or a point lost by Nashville) to clinch third in the Central and draw the Minnesota Wild. The Predators need to finish ahead of Calgary to dodge the Blackhawks and get into the Pacific draw, which would behoove them.

The Sharks need a win over Calgary and two Oilers losses to slip into the No. 2 seed.

Here’s the Money Puck take:





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Greg Wyshynski is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter. His book, TAKE YOUR EYE OFF THE PUCK, is available on Amazon and wherever books are sold.

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