Before the Wings play again on Friday, the Capitals will have used up their 2 games in hand:
- Tuesday at Buffalo
- Thursday vs Pittsburgh
The Caps will be favored in both, but if they lose at least one of those then the Wings could tie Washington with a regulation win over them when they play.
Like the Wings, the Flyers are off until Friday.
The Islanders, currently 3 pts behind but with 1 game in hand on the Wings and 3 games in hand on the Flyers, could be ahead of both by Friday because NYI plays two weak opponents:
- Tuesday vs Chicago
- Thursday at Columbus
The Islanders are the one team with whom the Wings are in good shape with respect to the tiebreaker, as the Wings currently lead NYI in regulation wins 26-23.