Central Division Race Intensifying as Playoffs Approach

The Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars and Minnesota Wild are all jockeying for position as the regular season wanes.

Mar 6, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Colorado Avalanche left wing Gabriel Landeskog (92) skates between Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger (29) and defenseman Esa Lindell (23) during the game between the Stars and the Avalanche at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The race to win the Central Division is heating up like never before.

It’s been a well-known fact for pretty much the entire season that the three best teams in the Western Conference — the Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars and Minnesota Wild — all reside in the Central Division. Those three squads have been duking it out from the very beginning, but never before has the competition been fiercer. With the trade deadline in the rearview mirror and the Stanley Cup Playoffs right on the horizon, the battle is just beginning, too.

Colorado’s reign atop the division has been almost a certainty for the entirety of the campaign. It jumped out into the lead from the start and hasn’t looked back since. Yet the Stars and the Wild just won’t give up, perhaps because of how important it is to win the division and get an easier matchup in the first round of the postseason.

Regardless of the reasoning — if there needs to be one in the first place — Colorado, Dallas and Minnesota are all putting their best foot forward at just the right time. Which team will come out on top? And which teams will find themselves pitted against one another in the first round of the playoffs? As the cliché goes, only time will tell.

Here Comes the Stars

Mar 8, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen (4) celebrates after he scores the game winning goal against the Chicago Blackhawks during the overtime period at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Stars have been on an absolute roll over the past month. Even the three-week-long break for the Winter Olympic Games and some injuries to key pieces like Mikko Rantanen and Roope Hintz couldn’t stop their mojo. The team has earned a point in 13 consecutive games and has looked dominant in the process. It's coming right off the heels of two straight victories over the Chicago Blackhawks and Vegas Golden Knights, the latter of which saw goalie Jake Oettinger make an impressive 26 saves in a 2-1 win, showing that this hot stretch isn't over just yet.

The recent run of good play has put the Stars just five points back of Colorado for not only first place in the Central Division but also the top spot in the entire NHL. Dallas is in good shape. All it has to do is keep winning.

Don’t Count Out the Wild

Mar 3, 2026; Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Wild goalie Filip Gustavsson (32) and defensemen Quinn Hughes (43) celebrate a victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning at Grand Casino Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nick Wosika-Imagn Images | Nick Wosika-Imagn Images

While Minnesota hasn’t been invincible like the Stars have over the past month, the Wild have still been a formidable foe that can be counted on to compete night in and night out. Recent wins over the Utah Mammoth, Vegas Golden Knights and Tampa Bay Lightning have shown that the team means business, and that not even the best and brightest of the NHL can stop the Wild when they’re performing at a high level.

They’ll need to keep it up, especially in the coming weeks. After an “easy” stretch of games versus the Philadelphia Flyers, New York Rangers and Toronto Maple Leafs, the Wild will settle down into a challenging couple of weeks that will see them play the Stars, Lightning, Panthers and Bruins. How the Wild fare over the remainder of March will show us a lot about what they can do moving forward. If recent results are to be believed, however, then they should be just fine.

The Avalanche Still Reign Supreme

Mar 6, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Colorado Avalanche left wing Gabriel Landeskog (92) celebrates the game tying goal scored by right wing Valeri Nichushkin (not pictured) against Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger (29) as defenseman Thomas Harley (55) looks on during the third period at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Even though both the Stars and Wild have been steamrolling through most of their opponents as of late, they still haven’t been able to get over one obstacle in their path: the Avalanche. Colorado has beaten Dallas and Minnesota over the past week — the Stars in a thrilling shootout and the Wild in another entertaining 3-2 affair. Both those wins did wonders for Colorado’s chances of claiming the Central Division, which would make its path to a Stanley Cup all the easier.

Nothing is set in stone, of course. The Avalanche just lost to the Edmonton Oilers, and there’s certainly a possibility that more defeats could follow in the wake of that disappointing outcome. Colorado has slowed down from its torrid pace over the first half of the season; it’s not invincible anymore. Even then, it’s hard to see a world where it completely falls off a cliff.

So even though the battle is getting more competitive, it appears that the Avalanche still have the upper hand over the Stars and Wild. Sometimes the simplest solution to the problem is the right one.

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