“The Silver Shield” is a column by Kasey Kazliner about the National Hockey League.

Last week, I wrote about every team currently holding a playoff spot. While some squads, like the Dallas Stars and New York Rangers, have officially secured their trips to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, a handful of teams still have yet to solidify their spots, like the Philadelphia Flyers, Washington Capitals and Los Angeles Kings. These teams sit in playoff positions, but they could very well be jumped by fringe teams just barely staying alive.

It’s time to dive in on the potential postseason teams hoping to catch a spark in the final games of the regular season. In this column, I define fringe teams as those within 10 points of the second Wild Card spot in their respective conferences (sorry Ottawa Senators, Montreal Canadiens and Calgary Flames).

Eastern Conference

Detroit Red Wings

Finishing top-three in the Atlantic Division is out of the question for the Red Wings, but they’re even with the Capitals for the second Wild Card spot in the East, with one more game played. Detroit’s story has been a puzzling one; following a six-game winning streak in February, the Wings immediately proceeded to lose seven straight, which plummeted their playoff chances.

Goaltender Alex Lyon has been up and down this year. Lyon stood tall in Detroit’s win over the Tampa Bay Lightning but was also entering the game on a personal 10-game skid. The Red Wings will need the 31-year-old to stay resilient in the final stretch.

As far as skaters, winger Patrick Kane knows what it takes to make a playoff push; the three-time Cup winner has tallied points in nine of his last 10 games and should continue to provide veteran mentorship to younger players like winger Lucas Raymond. Raymond is having a phenomenal season — with a team-leading 61 points — but he was a nonfactor in Detroit’s recent slide, so he’ll also need to step up when it matters.

Throughout all the turmoil, the Red Wings are still breathing. Detroit lost four straight to conclude March but took an extremely crucial victory over the division-rival Lightning to get back in the win column. With eight games left on the calendar, Detroit will have quite a few critical bouts, but it will be fiending to take down the Caps on April 9, a game that could heavily influence the playoff picture.

New York Islanders

The Islanders still have a shot at finishing top-three in the chaotic Metropolitan Division, as they only trail the Flyers by two points. The Wild Card could also be an option for New York, as it sits behind Detroit and Washington by one point. The Isles have been inconsistent under the helm of head coach Patrick Roy, who was hired on January 20.

Like the Red Wings, New York is also very streaky. From late February to mid-March, the Islanders went on a six-game winning streak, including wins over the dominant Stars and Boston Bruins, but then lost six consecutive games, including back-to-back shutouts.

Since then, New York has recorded some crucial victories to keep it in the thick of the race, including a gritty one over Philadelphia in overtime on April 1. Netminder Ilya Sorokin finally got back in the win frame against the Chicago Blackhawks on April 2 after a series of subpar performances. The other half of the tandem, Semyon Varlamov, has provided consistency between the pipes lately and is looking to rise up as the more reliable option.

Center Bo Horvat has scored in the Islanders’ last two games following a stretch of six goalless games. Horvat, alongside forwards Mathew Barzal, Brock Nelson and others will look to anchor a New York offense that has been shaky lately.

The Isles will have some tough matchups on tap to close out the regular season. They’ll notably face the dangerous Nashville Predators, plus the Rangers twice. Consistency will be key for the Islanders if they want to sneak into the Stanley Cup Playoffs and potentially make a run.

Pittsburgh Penguins

This season has been an utter disappointment for the Penguins. While acquiring reigning Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson was supposed to make Pittsburgh dangerous, the Pens have been very underwhelming and frustrating. They had no choice but to deal superstar winger Jake Guentzel at the trade deadline and have had their fair share of peaks and valleys.

However, more recently, Pittsburgh has made noise in the Metropolitan race. The Penguins have won four of their last five games and have tallied points in their last six. Four points behind the Flyers in the division and three back of the Wild Card, the Pens have a legitimate chance to put this season’s woes in the past and make a playoff run.

Pittsburgh’s upside is its experience. This is not Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin’s first rodeo by any means, and both have been on tears lately. Crosby has registered a whopping 20 points in his last 11 games and Malkin is coming off a huge three-point performance in the Penguins’ intense comeback victory over the New Jersey Devils.

Goalie Alex Nedeljkovic has also been a bright spot in Pittsburgh’s recent games. The 28-year-old has started in the Penguins’ last six contests and has been significantly more dependable than Tristan Jarry, who’s currently injured.

The Pens won’t be able to slack off in their upcoming games, as every matchup remaining on their schedule will be tough. Pittsburgh will have meetings with the Capitals, Lightning, Maple Leafs and other playoff teams. However, the Penguins might’ve found a spark and will look to ignite their energy heading into the final games.

Buffalo Sabres

The Sabres have the NHL’s longest active playoff drought, 12 seasons, and will need to be nearly perfect to end it this year. Buffalo has only alternated wins and losses since taking three straight games in mid-March. The Sabres are five points back of the Wild Card with six matches to play.

It’s no secret that winger Tage Thompson has been disappointing this season; he’s posted a mere 52 points following a 94-point campaign in 2022-23. Thompson missed significant time this year with injuries, but it’s still a surprisingly low total. However, his last few games have shown that he has the capacity to step up when it matters. The 26-year-old posted three points in a crucial victory over Washington and notched four goals in a win over New Jersey.

Winger JJ Peterka has also been hot as of late, scoring in five of the last six games. Alex Tuch has been a needed assist machine recently and has helped his linemates score in all but one game since March 14. Buffalo may not be star-studded, but it has some quality depth.

Crucially, the Sabres will need netminder Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen to stay composed. The 25-year-old collected personal win No. 25 on April 2 and has been a bright spot for his inconsistent team this year. However, he has had some blunders lately, including allowing eight goals to the Edmonton Oilers, so he’ll need to tighten some screws if he wants to lead his team to the postseason.

Buffalo has some important games coming up. The Sabres will especially need to avoid complacency against the Red Wings and Capitals, who they’ll see this week.

New Jersey Devils

The Devils are another team having a shockingly frustrating season following a playoff series victory in 2023. New Jersey has fallen in its last three games, slimming its playoff chances significantly. The Devils sit six points back of the Wild Card and will need a miracle to make the postseason.

New Jersey made changes to its goaltending cast at the trade deadline, bringing in Jake Allen and Kaapo Kähkönen. Both have crumbled during the losing streak; Allen completely fell apart against the Penguins and Kähkönen allowed a goal late to seal the Devils’ losing fate against the Rangers.

On the bright side, winger Jesper Bratt has been on a tear. Bratt is riding a six-game point streak despite his team’s woes. Captain Nico Hischier has been productive offensively as well, but it’s just not translating to victories.

New Jersey will need to completely turn things around and will need a bit of luck to make the playoffs. The Devils will have four consecutive matchups with playoff teams following a date with the Senators and will close out the regular season against the Islanders.

Western Conference

St. Louis Blues

The Kings’ recent woes have allowed the Blues to step right into the playoff conversation in the West. St. Louis has played a solid brand of hockey over the past month; the Blues have only lost three games since March 11, placing them just five points behind Los Angeles for the second Wild Card spot.

Unsung hero Brandon Saad has been St. Louis’ reliable scorer lately. The winger has tallied goals in five of his last six games, but critically, has notched three game-winners over the stretch.

Goalie Jordan Binnington has had some nice starts lately and appears vastly improved after a couple of down years. He’s taken the Blues through three overtime games recently and stayed confident to win two of them.

While it’s not technically out of the question, St. Louis likely won’t make the playoffs. The Blues will have a variety of opponents ranging from contenders to tankers in the final stretch, so they’ll hope to surprise the doubters.

Minnesota Wild

The Wild are eight points back of the second Wild Card spot and it’s pretty much safe to say they’ll be making offseason plans early. But alas, they’re hanging on by a thread and are still alive in the race, with only one regulation loss in their last 10 games.

Winger Kirill Kaprizov has been Minnesota’s point-producing catalyst for some time now, and he’s picked up his game even more as of late. The 26-year-old tallied 19 points in March and along with the team’s young core including blueliner Brock Faber and center Marco Rossi, could help the Wild become a more successful team down the line.

Like St. Louis, Minnesota will battle teams with varying levels of success to close out the year. Both the Blues and Wild will be praying for the Kings to crumble, which would make the Western Conference playoff picture a bit more interesting.

“The Silver Shield” runs every Thursday.