Three games to go in playoff race

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

It's shaping up to be quite a finish for the QMJHL's final playoff spot.

With three regular season games remaining, the Saint John Sea Dogs and Quebec Remparts are in a race for the 16th and final playoff position. Both teams have 46 points but Saint John owns the tiebreaker, meaning if the regular season ended right now, the Sea Dogs would get in.

Here's the upcoming schedule for both clubs and their record this season against each opponent.

Saint John: Wednesday vs Moncton (1-7-0-0), Friday vs Halifax (2-3-1-0), Saturday vs Halifax (2-3-1-0)

Quebec: Wednesday vs Blainville-Boisbriand (1-2-0-0), Friday at Rimouski (0-5-1-0), Saturday vs Rimouski (0-5-1-0)

Again, both teams have 46 points and Quebec can't catch Saint John in the tiebreaker (regulation wins plus overtime wins, which are 18-14 in favour of the Sea Dogs). So Saint John just needs to match Quebec in points to get in.

How will this all shake down? Quebec's game on Wednesday feels like the Remparts' best chance to earn a point a two. They're winless against the Oceanic this season and Rimouski is still fighting for playoff positioning in the middle of the Eastern Conference. Both weekend games could have meaning for Rimouski.

The biggest wildcard for Saint John is what the Halifax Mooseheads opt to do on the weekend. The Moose already know their first playoff opponent (Bathurst) and the weekend games could mean very little to nothing for them. Will they opt to rest some regulars? That could open the door for Saint John if they're in need of a point or two.

No matter who gets the final playoff spot, they'll crossover to the Western Conference and be the No. 8 seed. They'll face either the Drummondville Voltigeurs (96 points) or Rouyn-Noranda Huskies (94 points) which... will not be an easy task.

The QMJHL's regular season ends for all 18 teams on Saturday. The playoffs begin March 29.

Three first round series have been locked in: Baie-Comeau/Charlottetown, Halifax/Bathurst and Sherbrooke/Blainville-Boisbriand. Here's what all the matchups would look like if the playoffs started today.

La saison ⁦@LHJMQ⁩ se termine samedi! Voici le portrait des séries, qui débutent le 29.
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Season ends Saturday. Here is the playoff picture (start: March 29). ⁦@QMJHL⁩ pic.twitter.com/4PEGImK0Y2

— Raphaël Doucet (@raphdoucet) March 18, 2024