Why You Should Root For Each Bubble Team: Part 1

There's less than 1 month of regular season hockey left to play, and we still have no idea who is going to end up with the East's No. 2 Wild Card spot. Here's a reason to root for & against each team.

Happy Monday, hockey fans. I’m here to report that the playoff bubble has only grown more confusing since we caught up last week.

We’ve got a little Montreal Canadiens engine that could brewing, and a New York Islanders team that is like the one dude at the party who is still sitting there in the living room when you’re scrubbing the dishes as hard as you can to get him to leave. Meanwhile, the New York Rangers told you they didn’t even want to come to your stupid party, but they showed up anyway and brought your very tall acquaintance who just punched a whole in the wall.

We’ve also got two teams falling off at the absolute worst time in the Red Wings and the Blue Jackets. Will either turn it around in time? (PS, “in time” is literally right this second. No pressure.)

Surprise! We get two newsletters this week. This first part will update us on the Eastern Conference bubble, and part two dropping at a theatre near you will update us on the Western Conference bubble later this week. I’ll be in Utah for the occasion, after all.

As the bubble teams slide up and down in the standings every night, I’m starting to identify the most compelling reasons I do and I don’t want each team to make it to the postseason. Let’s use those vibes to guide us as we enter crunch time.