As far as the Flyers are concerned, Saturday's game against the Bruins may as well be their season. Trailing the Bruins by four points in the standings, the Flyers could gain some ground as they try to keep pace in a tightening Eastern playoff race. This will be the last time Philly meets Boston and the previous two meetings didn't go so well. The Bruins won each of those games and allowed the Flyers to score just once in both. So there's that to deal with and Flyers goaltender was blindsided Friday with the unexpected departure of Flyers goalie coach Jeff Reese. Under some mysterious circumstances and even more mysterious timing, reports are swirling that Reese had a falling out with management despite his close relationship with Mason. It has been a weird season for the Flyers, so why should it finish normally? Regardle s of what's happening behind closed doors, if Philadelphia doesn't come out ready against the Bruins, they're going to face an uphill battle going forward. Pick: Bruins 3, Flyers 1 The Islanders have a chance to put a little more distance between themselves and the second-place Rangers with a win over the Panthers, but the boys from South Florida have a lot riding on this one as well. The Panthers are dealing with injuries and illne s throughout the team, but they still remain just two points behind the Bruins for the last wild-card spot. As Boston continues to struggle, Florida has to find a way if it wants to sneak into the postseason. It won't be easy against an Islanders squad that owns the second-best record in the Eastern Conference. The Islanders also have , who is now tied for the league lead with 67 points. Unlikely to have goaltender at their disposal, the Panthers are looking at quite a test. The Bruins have opened the door for the Panthers, and now they have company as the Ottawa Senators have vaulted back into the playoff conversation. Pick: Islanders 3, Panthers 0 Losing defenseman for two to four weeks is not how the Jets wanted to go into their final push to maintain playoff position. Making matters worse, they take on the division-leading Predators on Saturday. The good news for Winnipeg is that the Preds are limping through a five-game Colombia Jersey losing streak right now. They've won just three of their past 10 games and are experiencing their toughest stretch of the season to date. The bad news is that on top of mi sing Byfuglien and , who remains sidelined, Winnipeg is also expected to be without . That's a lot of offense mi sing from the team. Meanwhile, the Wild have been winning like crazy, rattling off five straight and taking a three-point lead on the top wild-card spot. Also, if the Jets fail to nab a point and the Kings win Saturday, LA will knock Winnipeg out of the last wild-card spot. There's a lot of heat on Winnipeg right now. Pick: Predators 3, Jets 2 In meeting of two of the league's most star-studded rosters, this game carries a heck of a lot of implications for the postseason. With six wins in their past 10 games, the Penguins are just two points behind the Rangers for second in the Metropolitan Division and four back of the division-leading Islanders. A big win over Los Angeles on the road, following a big one over the league-leading Anaheim Ducks on Friday, would be a nice little springboard for the Pens into the stretch run. The Kings, meanwhile, have a nice carrot dangling in front of them. If they can get some help from the Predators, a win would put the Kings into at least the second wild-card spot for now. They're also just two points behind the Vancouver Canucks and Calgary Flames, who sit second and third in the Pacific Division. With , , , , and all on the same ice, this should be a ton of fun to check out. Pick: Kings 4, Penguins 3 at , 7 p.m., NHL Network at , 7 p.m. at , 7 p.m. at , 7 p.m. at , 7 p.m. at , 10 p.m. ET 1. , Los Angeles Kings: Coming off of his two-goal performance against the Montreal Canadiens, perhaps Gaborik is starting to heat up. He is one goal shy of hitting 20 this season and he has had some decent succe s against Pittsburgh in his career. In 30 games against the Pens, he has 23 points including 10 goals.2. John Tavares, New York Islanders: With 16 points in his past 11 games, Tavares is on fire and does not look prepared to slow down. The 24-year-old captain is now tied for the league lead with 67 points. In two games so far this season against Florida, Tavares has a goal and an a sist. He has seven goals against Florida in 18 career meetings with the Panthers. 3. , Montreal Canadiens: The Arizona Coyotes are depleted and offensively starved. That could create the right kind of recipe for Subban to open things up offensively. He didn't get on the scoresheet the last time these two teams met, but this game looks like a good chance to pad some stats as Subban tries to build on his Norris Trophy campaign. Lionel Messi Jersey