For the Columbus Blue Jackets http://www.billsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-tremaine-edmunds-jersey , it’s about playoff positioning.
For the Nashville Predators, it’s about fun and tuning up for what they hope will be a long playoff run.
Saturday night’s regular-season finale in Bridgestone Arena can make the difference between a potential first-round series with two-time Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh for Columbus (45-29-7) or maybe falling all the way to a wild card and a matchup with a division champion.
As for Nashville (52-18-11), it took care of its remaining regular-season business in one fell swoop Thursday night. Shortly after clinching the Central Division title and the Western Conference’s top seed with a 4-3 win in Washington, the Predators watched the end of Boston’s 3-2 loss in Florida on locker room TVs.
That assured Nashville of the league’s top regular-season record, which means it will have home-ice advantage for any playoff series. Or to put it another way, if it carries its home games, it will hoist the Cup for the first time in franchise history.
“All year we’ve talked about doing the best we can and it’s always been just about home ice,” Predators coach Peter Laviolette said. “The guys did an incredible job of staying really focused and fairly consistent with their game, and because of it Blake McLaughlin Ducks Jersey , we sit where we sit.”
Which means Nashville has earned the right to play this game any way it sees fit. It can play to win, it can play some of its mainstays to keep them sharp, or it can rest everyone and basically call up its AHL affiliate from Milwaukee for the night.
Laviolette is tight-lipped under any circumstance, and with the playoffs looming, doubly so. Don’t expect any big pronouncements concerning a lineup until Saturday’s morning skate, if then, but it wouldn’t be surprising if multiple regulars got the “maintenance night” treatment they’ve received during the last month.
“It’s big for the organization,” said right winger Craig Smith, who scored two goals Thursday night. “A lot of guys have put in a lot of hard work and a lot of time to produce a season like that. We’re having fun with each other and holding each other accountable to get out there and play for each other Lamar Jackson Color Rush Jersey , so it’s great.”
While the Predators can treat this game however they desire, the Blue Jackets are likely chasing the two points. Even though they’ll open the Eastern Conference playoffs on the road, they’re at least in there, clinching despite Thursday night’s 5-4 overtime loss to Pittsburgh.
This will be the first time that Columbus has made consecutive playoff appearances.
“We were the youngest team in the league most of the year,” Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella said. “If you want to continue to build your organization and find your way and be that team that’s going to be there all the time, you have to experience it. You can’t be in one year, lose in five games and then take two years to be back in it.”
Nashville is looking for a sweep in the season series. It posted a 3-1 win on Nov. 7 in Columbus, scoring two goals in the last five minutes.
Back in the playoffs for the second straight year for the first time since 2003 and 2004, the Milwaukee Bucks can hardly afford a second straight slip-up when they face the New York Knicks on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden.
Two days after allowing the Brooklyn Nets to claw back from a fourth-quarter deficit http://www.eaglesauthorizedshops.com/authentic-josh-sweat-jersey , the Bucks head over the Brooklyn Bridge to square off with a Knicks squad that rebounded from a 73-point performance with a 122-98 win over Miami on Friday night. Before the game, the Knicks were the coldest team in the Eastern Conference, losers of four straight.
And speaking of cold: The Bucks had better heat up in a hurry after shooting 25 percent from 3-point range against the Nets in the 119-111 loss.
“We couldn’t shoot it in the ocean,” Bucks forward Jabari Parker said. “They did a really good job, though, you got to put your hands up to them.”
The Bucks hardly did that on defense against the woeful Nets, allowing Brooklyn to shoot 48 percent from 3-point range in the loss.
With the Bucks having an outside chance at the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs, now is no time for Milwaukee to get lazy on defense.
“This would not be good enough to win a game in the playoffs,” Bucks coach Joe Prunty said. “I’m not worried about the playoffs right now. … We need to play very good basketball regardless of our opponent and tonight is an example of (not playing well enough).”
In the Knicks http://www.saintsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-marcus-davenport-jersey , the Bucks find a team with any postseason hopes long in the rear-view mirror. The Knicks are out of the playoffs for the fifth straight year and, if anything, the team appears to be playing for better lottery odds.
Too bad they dealt themselves too good a hand on Friday.
A 24-point win over the Heat put the Knicks a game behind the Chicago Bulls for the eighth-worst record in the NBA, and every lottery ping-pong ball matters.
“If you ask any of the players or coaches, that’s not (a thought),” Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek told reporters early this week. “We’ve said it all along that that’s not what we’re trying to do. With the guys out there, we’re trying to win the game, and that’s what we want from them.”
The two teams will meet for the fourth time in nine weeks, with Milwaukee claiming a 3-0 lead in the season series. The Bucks beat New York 92-90 at home on Feb. 2 and followed four days later with a 103-89 road win. A little over a month later Sylvester Williams Color Rush Jersey , the Bucks again won at home, 120-112, behind Khris Middleton’s 30 points. Middleton has kicked up his scoring of late, scoring 31 against the Nets, six days after producing 28 points in a 124-122 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.
After Saturday’s matchup, the Knicks close their season with a home-and-home against the Cleveland Cavaliers, beginning Monday at Madison Square Garden for the final time this season before heading to Cleveland on Wednesday to wrap up the campaign.
Milwaukee hosts Orlando on Monday before heading to Philadelphia to play the 76ers on Wednesday for the Bucks’ final regular-season game.
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