The Race Is On: Bruins in the Standings

Look at the top of the Atlantic and you'll find the Black & Gold, sitting at 11-4-1 with 23 points. The Montréal Canadiens are the closest thing to a challenger right now, 2 points back.
Zoom out to the whole East and they're 2nd. Only the Carolina Hurricanes have more points in the conference so far.
As for the wild-card race, the Ottawa Senators and Florida Panthers hold the two spots right now, with the Toronto Maple Leafs first in line on the outside. The Bruins are 5 points clear of that second wild card, which is a cushion you want to keep building, not lean on.
A +20 goal differential says this isn't smoke and mirrors. It's still early, so nothing's decided, but banking points now is how you avoid a sweaty March.
| # | Team | GP | W | L | OTL | PTS | P% | RW | DIFF | L10 | STRK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlantic Division | |||||||||||
| 1 | Boston Bruins | 16 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 23 | .719 | 8 | +20 | 7-2-1 | W2 |
| 2 | Montréal Canadiens | 15 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 21 | .700 | 6 | +5 | 7-1-2 | OT1 |
| 3 | Tampa Bay Lightning | 14 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 20 | .714 | 8 | +7 | 6-2-2 | W1 |
| Metropolitan Division | |||||||||||
| 1 | Carolina Hurricanes | 17 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 26 | .765 | 11 | +24 | 7-2-1 | L1 |
| 2 | New Jersey Devils | 15 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 20 | .667 | 7 | +9 | 8-2-0 | W2 |
| 3 | New York Rangers | 16 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 17 | .531 | 8 | +1 | 4-5-1 | W1 |
| Wild Card | |||||||||||
| WC1 | Ottawa Senators | 16 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 19 | .594 | 7 | +1 | 4-5-1 | L1 |
| WC2 | Florida Panthers | 15 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 18 | .600 | 6 | +3 | 6-4-0 | L1 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | 17 | 8 | 7 | 2 | 18 | .529 | 7 | +6 | 5-4-1 | L1 | |
| Buffalo Sabres | 14 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 17 | .607 | 5 | -6 | 5-2-3 | W3 | |
| Detroit Red Wings | 16 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 17 | .531 | 5 | -2 | 6-3-1 | L1 | |
| Washington Capitals | 14 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 16 | .571 | 7 | +1 | 5-5-0 | L2 | |
| New York Islanders | 14 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 16 | .571 | 5 | +1 | 5-3-2 | L1 | |
| Columbus Blue Jackets | 13 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 12 | .462 | 2 | -5 | 4-6-0 | W1 | |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | 15 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 12 | .400 | 2 | -3 | 3-6-1 | L2 | |
| Philadelphia Flyers | 17 | 4 | 9 | 4 | 12 | .353 | 4 | -21 | 4-4-2 | L1 | |
| # | Team | GP | W | L | OTL | PTS | P% | RW | DIFF | L10 | STRK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central Division | |||||||||||
| 1 | Minnesota Wild | 17 | 11 | 3 | 3 | 25 | .735 | 11 | +18 | 7-1-2 | W2 |
| 2 | Utah Mammoth | 16 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 20 | .625 | 8 | +3 | 6-4-0 | W1 |
| 3 | Dallas Stars | 15 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 19 | .633 | 6 | +8 | 7-3-0 | W2 |
| Pacific Division | |||||||||||
| 1 | Edmonton Oilers | 16 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 25 | .781 | 9 | +19 | 6-2-2 | OT1 |
| 2 | Vegas Golden Knights | 17 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 22 | .647 | 8 | +9 | 5-3-2 | W1 |
| 3 | Seattle Kraken | 14 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 17 | .607 | 6 | 0 | 6-3-1 | L1 |
| Wild Card | |||||||||||
| WC1 | Colorado Avalanche | 16 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 19 | .594 | 9 | +13 | 5-4-1 | L1 |
| WC2 | Nashville Predators | 15 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 17 | .567 | 5 | -2 | 4-3-3 | W2 |
| St. Louis Blues | 15 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 15 | .500 | 7 | 0 | 5-5-0 | L1 | |
| Anaheim Ducks | 15 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 15 | .500 | 6 | -3 | 3-6-1 | W2 | |
| San Jose Sharks | 16 | 7 | 8 | 1 | 15 | .469 | 2 | -12 | 4-5-1 | L2 | |
| Calgary Flames | 15 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 14 | .467 | 7 | -15 | 7-3-0 | W1 | |
| Winnipeg Jets | 16 | 5 | 8 | 3 | 13 | .406 | 4 | -19 | 1-7-2 | W1 | |
| Los Angeles Kings | 13 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 10 | .385 | 2 | -9 | 4-5-1 | L1 | |
| Chicago Blackhawks | 15 | 4 | 10 | 1 | 9 | .300 | 3 | -25 | 3-6-1 | L1 | |
| Vancouver Canucks | 17 | 3 | 13 | 1 | 7 | .206 | 1 | -26 | 1-8-1 | L3 | |