With Kirill Kaprizov scoring the overtime winner for the Minnesota Wild to earn a bonkers 8-7 victory over the San Jose Sharks, the Vancouver Canucks have been mathmatically eliminated from qualifying for the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs.
Kaprizov, 27, played his first game for the Wild since Jan. 26 and scored two goals on nine shots on goal, including the aforementioned overtime winner, and an assist in 19:28 of ice time.
THAT WAS WILD! 🫨
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 10, 2025
Kirill Kaprizov scores the Subway Canada OT winner for Minnesota. pic.twitter.com/0PO8Ya6p0T
The Russian superstar was flirting with Hart contention early in the season with 23 goals and 52 points in his first 37 games, but a significant lower-body injury put him on the shelf for nearly three full months.
Six of eight Western Conference teams have clinched playoff berths at the time of this writing, as reflected on the NHL Media site. Those teams are the Winnipeg Jets, Dallas Stars, Colorado Avalanche, Vegas Golden Knights, and Los Angeles Kings.
The three teams likely to clinch next are, of course, the Wild, the St. Louis Blues, and the Edmonton Oilers.
The Calgary Flames could, in theory, steal a playoff spot, but they are a team only marginally better than the Canucks.
It’s official, the #Canucks are mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. pic.twitter.com/eJ9QtuaziO
— Rob Williams (@RobTheHockeyGuy) April 10, 2025
Out East, Canucks captain Quinn Hughes watched on as the Philadelphia Flyers defeated the New York Rangers 8-5 on Wednesday night, clinching a playoff berth for brothers Jack Hughes and Luke Hughes and their New Jersey Devils.
Quinn has made the playoffs only twice in his seven-year Canucks career, while Luke has made the playoffs twice in three seasons with the Devils.
And while Quinn has quietly been steadfast in his commitment to the Canucks, there is no doubt the spectre of his brothers' success together weighs heavily on him with his contract set to expire in 2027.