It's certainly shaping up to be a strange season as far as the playoff push is concerned.

If you haven't seen this before, it's a little standings watch I've done the past few years. There's an explanation at the bottom, but essentially what this is is the record teams need through the rest of the regular season to hit the point mark I think will guarantee them a playoff spot.

It's not rocket science, but generally comes within a win or two of the intended target.

This year, with 44.5 per cent of the season completed after last night's games, the teams projected to finish in eighth are on pace for extremely low point totals compared to recent years. Edmonton is currently in that spot in the West and headed for 86.7 points; Buffalo and Carolina are tied in the East and on pace for just 86.4 points.

The average of the six eighth-place teams in three postlockout seasons has been 93.3 points, and it stands to reason that teams that make the playoffs in 2008-09 will pick up the pace as the contenders and also rans are sorted out.

For now, however, I'll go with 90 points as the 'guaranteed' number and raise or lower it as necessary. Keep in mind that a team has not made the playoffs with fewer than 91 points since the introduction of the shootout:

Western Conference (90 points)

1. San Jose - 15-31-0
   
2. Detroit - 18-27-1
   
3. Chicago - 21-26-1
   
4. Calgary - 22-24-0
   
5. Anaheim - 24-21-0
   
6. Vancouver - 23-20-1
   
7. Colorado - 25-20-1
   
8. Edmonton - 26-20-1
   
9. Phoenix - 25-19-1
   
10. Minnesota - 27-20-0
    
11. Nashville - 26-19-1
    
12. Columbus - 27-19-0
    
13. Dallas - 27-19-1
    
14. Los Angeles - 27-18-0
    
15. St. Louis - 29-15-1
    

Eastern Conference (90 points)

1. Boston - 15-30-0
   
2. Washington - 19-24-1
   
3. Montreal - 21-25-0
   
4. New Jersey - 22-24-1
   
5. Philadelphia - 21-23-1
   
6. NY Rangers - 20-22-1
   
7. Pittsburgh - 24-21-0
   
8. Carolina - 25-19-1
   
9. Buffalo - 25-19-1
   
10. Florida - 26-19-1
    
11. Toronto - 27-18-0
    
12. Ottawa - 29-17-1
    
13. Tampa Bay - 30-16-0
    
14. Atlanta - 30-14-1
    
15. NY Islanders - 32-13-0

All right, so what does this tell us, in general terms? For one, if a team has a record above that is below .500, they need fewer than an 82-point pace over their remaining games to get to 90 points. If a team's record above is above .500, they need more than an 82-point pace to get there.

The Islanders, for example, need to start winning on an 116-point pace over their final 45 games after heading for less than 58 in the first 37 games. They, along with the Blues, Thrashers and Lightning, are all out of the running. 

On the flip side, San Jose and Boston need to play at just a 53- and 55-point pace over the last 55 per cent of the season to get in. Which means they're as good as already in.

Teams that can play under a 75-point pace and still get to 90 points: San Jose, Boston, Detroit, Washington, Chicago, Montreal

Teams that need to play at a 100-point pace or better to get to 90 points: NY Islanders, Atlanta, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, Ottawa

What is this?
It's the return of the playoff push. To the chagrin of hockey-stat junkies everywhere, consider this the most basic standings watch you'll see anywhere. (Here's what it looked like last season at the end of the year.)

It's all based on the premise that, if you get 90 to 95 points in the standings, you'll make the playoffs. There's a chance you can sneak in with less, especially in the Eastern Conference, but under the NHL's kooky everybody-gets-a-point system, this is what teams generally need to get in.