And then there were two.
Just two games separate the Columbus Blue Jackets from the end of their 2025-26 regular season. They hope there isn’t two games left to play this season. But in order for that to become reality, they will need to take care of some business and get a little outside help.
The Blue Jackets won a massive game Saturday night in Montreal by a 5-2 score. Boone Jenner, Charlie Coyle and Jet Greaves in particular shined in one of their best games of the season. That helped them keep pace with the Philadelphia Flyers, who won their own massive game, a 7-1 trouncing of the Winnipeg Jets.
The Blue Jackets remain alive for the third spot in the Metropolitan Division. They host the Boston Bruins on Sunday, who clinched a playoff spot of their own on Saturday despite losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Bruins may elect to not play their full lineup in order to get rested and ready for the playoffs.
The Blue Jackets cannot be eliminated Sunday against the Bruins even with a loss. But that would put them on the edge of elimination. Let’s go over all the different scenarios in play coming into Sunday’s big game.
The Blue Jackets & the Metro
Here is what below the top-two of the Metropolitan Division standings looked like before any games were played Sunday.
- Flyers 94 points (RW 26)
- Blue Jackets 92 points (RW 28)
- Capitals 91 points (RW 35)
- Islanders 91 points (RW 29)
Each team had two games remaining. What makes this an interesting race is the first tiebreaker component. That is the number of regulation wins.
As you can see above, the Capitals and Islanders own the first tiebreaker on the Flyers. Should the Blue Jackets defeat the Bruins in regulation Sunday night, they would clinch the first tiebreaker on the Flyers and tie the Flyers in points with 94.
Coming into Sunday, the Flyers magic number to eliminate the Blue Jackets is three. Any combination of Flyers’ points gained and Blue Jackets’ points lost totaling three would allow the Flyers to clinch third in the Metro.
Because the Blue Jackets currently own the first tiebreaker, the Flyers would have to finish with a higher point total than the Blue Jackets to make the playoffs. This is where Sunday night’s game at Nationwide Arena becomes massive.
A Blue Jackets’ regulation win would guarantee them that Game 82 means something. Then if the Blue Jackets won their finale against the Capitals, that would force the Flyers to take three out of four points in their games Monday and Tuesday against the Hurricanes and Canadiens both at home.
The Blue Jackets are not guaranteed a playoff spot even if they win out. They would need the Flyers to lose two points in their games. That could be accomplished by one or more Flyers’ regulation losses or two overtime losses.
If the Blue Jackets lose in these two games, they’d open an easier path to the playoffs for the Flyers. There are other possibilities too involving the Capitals and Islanders. But both could be eliminated Sunday if they don’t take care of their own business.
The Bottom Line
At the end of the day, the Blue Jackets want to win their final two games, at least one in regulation so they own the tiebreaker should it come to that.
Any loss on Sunday for the Blue Jackets would set the Flyers up to clinch third in the Metro on Monday with a win.
If the Blue Jackets get one point out of Sunday, the Flyers can eliminate them by gaining two points in their last two games in any combination.
If the Blue Jackets lose in regulation Sunday, the Flyers can eliminate them by gaining a single point in their last two games in any combination.
The Blue Jackets end their regular season on Tuesday night against the Capitals. Depending what happens Sunday, that could be a massive game for multiple reasons. Besides the playoff implications for the Blue Jackets, it could be Alex Ovechkin’s last regular season game depending on what he decides. But then also, should the Flyers falter, that could be a win and in the playoffs game.
There might be only two games left to play. But there are still plenty of possibilities that could work out in the Metropolitan Division. The Capitals play the Penguins and the Islanders play the Canadiens on Sunday night. The picture should be a lot clearer by the time those games are over.
