The Calgary Flames beat the Ottawa Senators 6-1 on Sunday night to keep their extremely slim playoff hopes alive.

By the time they take the ice for the next game on Thursday night, the Flames will either be eliminated from playoff contention or in complete control of whether they make or miss the postseason.

Calgary is eight points back of the Montreal Canadiens for the fourth and final spot in the North Division.

The Canadiens have back-to-back games against the Edmonton Oilers on Monday and Wednesday night.

All they need is a single point to clinch a playoff spot.

But if the Habs lose both games against Edmonton in regulation it will open the door for the Flames. Calgary would still need to close out the regular season with four straight wins over the Vancouver Canucks beginning on Thursday night to beat out Montreal for that final spot.

Here is the Morning Coffee for Monday May 10, 2021.

Too Little, Too Late For Calgary?

As of this morning, Sunday night’s win really does seem like too little, too late for Calgary.

Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk each picked up three points. Mark Giordano had a goal and an assist.

Jacob Markstrom made 19 saves for his 19th win of the season.

While the Flames technically kept their playoff hopes alive, both their fans and fantasy hockey managers have to be wondering where that effort was at points throughout what has been a disappointing season.

It was Calgary’s third win in nine games versus Ottawa this season – they’ll finish with a 3-5-1 record in their head-to-head meetings.

At the start of the season, the Flames and Jets were both +700 to win the North Division – the fourth choice behind the Toronto Maple Leafs (+120), Edmonton Oilers (+450) and Montreal Canadiens (+500).

If Calgary falls short, the inability to pick up more points against the lowest-seeded team in the division will be a major factor.

Another important factor has been the lack of consistency at the offensive end of the ice.

Since April 10, the Flames are 7-0-0 when they’ve scored three goals or more – 0-5-0 when they’ve scored two goals or fewer.

Gaudreau is up to 15 points in his last 12 games. Tkachuk has six in his last four.

Those two have played their best on a line with Elias Lindholm, but have struggled to consistently produce when separated.

If head coach Darryl Sutter wants to keep that trio together to maximize their potential moving forward, Calgary will need to find some help to fill out its scoring depth, particularly a winger to skate with Sean Monahan at even strength.

For now, the Flames will sit and wait to see what happens with the Habs and Oilers.

Who would have thought that Tkachuk and company would be cheering on their most hated rival at this point in the season?

While Montreal can clinch a playoff spot with a point against Edmonton, the Jets can clinch third place in the division with a win over Vancouver.

If both of those things happens, then the North Division playoff bracket will be set by the end of the night.

NBA playoff races heating up

Speaking of playoff brackets, there’s plenty of intrigue in the NBA heading into the final stretch.

The New York Knicks took a one-game lead for the fourth spot in the Eastern Conference with a 106-100 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday.

The Knicks, which were a +270 moneyline underdog, snapped a streak of eight straight losses at the Staples Center.

They also covered, getting 7.5 points to improve to 43-24-1 against the spread– the best mark in the NBA this season.

New York improved to 8-3 straight up in its last 11 games as an underdog.

While the Knicks have the inside edge on the fourth seed in the standings, ESPN’s Basketball Power Index gives the Atlanta Hawks the best chance of finishing fourth thanks to the easiest remaining schedule in the NBA.

Meanwhile, the Miami Heat are still in the mix for the No. 4 seed but have the most difficult remaining schedule of that group, per ESPN’s BPI.

With the Knicks, Hawks and Heat likely locked into the top six spots, the play-in tournament will feature some combination of the Boston Celtics, Charlotte Hornets, Washington Wizards and Indiana Pacers.

Meanwhile, the Western Conference race is even more intriguing after the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers followed up a loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday with a win over the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.

The Lakers are one game back of the Trail Blazers for sixth in the standings with four games to go.

The Lakers will host the Knicks and Houston Rockets, before wrapping up their regular season on the road against the Indiana Pacers and New Orleans Pelicans.

Meanwhile, Portland will host Houston, then close out the regular season against three of the five teams ahead of them in the standings in the Utah Jazz, Suns and Denver Nuggets in that order.

The Lakers undoubtedly have the easier path to the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference.

Still, L.A.’s odds to repeat as NBA champions have lengthened from +230 to +450.

Dodgers’ struggles continue

MLB favourites went 8-4 on Sunday, with the Los Angeles Angels pulling off the biggest upset – a 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers as a +165 underdog

The Dodgers opened the season with a 13-2 record. Since then, they’ve gone 5-15.

The defending champs entered the season as the favourite to repeat at +200 odds.

As of this morning, they’re still the favourite only their odds to win it all have lengthened to +330.

LA has lost 10 games by one run this season – the most such losses in the majors.

The Dodgers will play a back-to-back against the Seattle Mariners before a three-game set against the Miami Marlins this week.

It will be interesting to see if they can get back on track.