All they needed was a win, maybe by just a goal or two, to clinch the Pacific Division. The San Jose Sharks clearly didn’t want to chance it, though, as they rolled all over the Kings, 6-1, to clinch the title and a top-3 seed in the 2011 NHL playoffs. The Sharks still have a magic number of six points to clinch the No. 2 seed over the Detroit Red Wings, a race that will surely come down to the wire with three games remaining.
NHL Playoff Picture 2011: San Jose Sharks Clinch Pacific Division Title
As a result of the game, here’s where we stand in the Western Conference.
No. 1 Vancouver - clinched everything
No. 2 San Jose - clinched Pacific, needs 6 pts to clinch No. 2
No. 3 Detroit - clinched Central
No. 4 Phoenix - needs 2 pts to clinch playoffs, 6 pts to clinch No. 4 (and tiebreaker over LAK)
No. 5 Los Angeles - needs 2 pts to clinch playoffs, 6 pts to clinch No. 4 (and tiebreaker over PHX)
No. 6 Nashville - needs 3 pts to clinch playoffs, 5 pts to clinch No. 6
No. 7 Anaheim - needs help from CHI to clinch No. 7, needs 4 pts to clinch playoff spot
No. 8 Chicago - needs 6 pts to clinch playoffs, 8 pts to clinch No. 7
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No. 9 Calgary - tragic number: 3 pts
No. 10 Dallas - tragic number: 6 pts
Only three games on Tuesday night impact the playoff race in the West: Chicago at Montreal, Atlanta at Nashville and Columbus at Dallas.
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