Draft Position

Atlanta's loss means that the Isles could still finish as high as 23rd (8th seed).  Columbus took Detroit to a shootout, but lost.  The one point could be critical though--if the Isles lose their last two in regulation, they'll finish 1 point behind Columbus.

With two days left in the regular season, the Isles can still finish anywhere from 23rd to 28th.

Standings:
1 Edmonton Oilers             79 25 46 8 58
2 Toronto Maple Leafs       80 29 37 14 72
3 Tampa Bay Lightning      80 32 36 12 76
4 Florida Panthers              80 32 36 12 76
5 New York Islanders         80 34 36 10 78
6 Columbus Blue Jackets  82 32 35 15 79
7 Carolina Hurricanes        81 35 36 10 80
8 Atlanta Thrashers           81 34 34 13 81

Saturday's Draft position schedule:

CAROLINA  - BOSTON  1:00 PM    Carolina ends their season in Boston against a desperate Bruin team.  If Carolina wins, the Isles can not catch the Hurricanes because Carolina owns the tie-breaker

NY ISLANDERS  -  NEW JERSEY  7:00 PM   The Isles can have no earlier than the 6th seed if they win either of their final two games.

PITTSBURGH - ATLANTA 7:00 PM  If the Thrashers win or the Isles lose in regulation, the Isles can not finish ahead of Atlanta.

FLORIDA - TAMPA BAY 7:30 PM  The Isles are indifferent as to who wins this game as both teams won the season series from the Isles but the Isles' draft positioning would be enhanced if the game goes to OT.

The Isles could still get the third seed if:
2 Isles regulation losses (to NJ and Pit)
Tampa and Florida split their two games, but both games go to OT

 Forever1940 is the nom de plume of Eric Hornick, statistician on Islander home telecasts since 1982. Visit my blog: forever1940.blogspot.com and follow me on Twitter @ehornick