What to watch for in the NHL this weekend

The 2015-16 season wraps up Sunday with divisional, wild card and lottery races still to be decided. Here's a guide for what you need to watch out for this weekend in the NHL. 

Third And Final Spot In The Atlantic Division

The Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings are in a dogfight for third place in the Atlantic Division. The Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning have their spots nailed down with the Wings and Bruins tied for third with 93 points apiece. Detroit currently holds the tiebreaker over Boston as they have a higher ROW.

Boston, which has posted a record of 3-6-1 in their last 10 contests, picked up two big points Thursday night, beating Detroit 5-2 to keep them in the playoff hunt. The B's take on the Ottawa Senators at TD Garden to close out their regular season while the Wings have a much tougher task in their finale as they'll battle the New York Rangers, who are trying to climb out of their Wild Card spot. Both games go Saturday afternoon at 12:30pm et, so scoreboard watching will most definitely be needed.

The Red Wings have made the playoffs in each of the last 24 seasons while the Bruins will look to get back to the postseason after missing out last year.

Whoever doesn't grab the final spot in the Atlantic will still have a chance for the Wild Card.

Eastern Wild Card Race

As seen above, the team that falls short of the final spot in the Atlantic will still have a shot for the Wild Card, but will need to outlast the Philadelphia Flyers. Despite having one less point than the Red Wings and Bruins, the Flyers might still have the advantage as they have two games on the schedule this weekend as opposed to one.

Philadelphia plays the surging Pittsburgh Penguins Saturday afternoon followed by the New York Islanders Sunday night. 

The Rangers have already clinched a playoff spot, but can jump out of the Wild Card and into third in the Metropolitan Division if everything works out this weekend. The Rangers have one game remaining (vs. Red Wings on Saturday afternoon) while the Islanders, the club the Blue Shirts are chasing, have contests with the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday and the Flyers Sunday.

Division Titles Up For Grabs In Central And Pacific

The eight playoff spots in the Western Conference are locked in, but there are still some scores to settle atop the divisions. 

The Dallas Stars and St. Louis Blues each have 107 points and will look to win the Central this weekend. The Stars face off with the Nashville Predators while the Blues take on the Washington Capitals in their respected finales. The division winner will avoid playing the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks in the first round.

In the Pacific, the Los Angeles Kings have a two-point advantage over the Anaheim Ducks, but the Ducks have a game in hand. LA takes on the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday while the Ducks have contests with the Colorado Avalanche and Capitals. 

The Race For Last

On the other side of the standings, the Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers will determine who finishes last and a 20 per cent chance at the first overall pick for this summer's NHL Entry Draft. Each have 69 points and each have one game remaining on the schedule. The Leafs have a road date with the New Jersey Devils and the Oilers will close out the season in Vancouver against the Canucks.

If the Oilers and Maple Leafs finish with the same amount of points, Toronto would finish last due to a lower ROW. 

Can Ovi Get 50?

The Washington Capitals have long clinched a playoff spot and the Presidents' Trophy. Now the only question is if their Russian superstar in Alex Ovechkin can reach the 50-goal mark for the seventh time of his career. Ovechkin currently has a league-leading 47 with games against the Blues and Ducks this weekend.