Through the remainder of the regular season, we'll take a look at how the night's action impacts the playoff race, highlighting which teams' postseason odds went up or down significantly.

"So you're saying there's a chance ... " - Lloyd Christmas

The Toronto Maple Leafs have left the door open for a somewhat dramatic final weekend of the regular season.

Presented with an opportunity to clinch a playoff spot on home ice, the Leafs proceeded to drop a 4-1 decision to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday, keeping the latter's slim playoff hopes alive.

Meanwhile, the New York Islanders are still in the running thanks to a shutout win over the Carolina Hurricanes.

While Toronto's still in the driver's seat, Thursday's results made things a bit more interesting, as the table shows:

(Courtesy: Sports Club Stats)

The Ottawa Senators, by the way, clinched a spot Thursday, leaving these three teams to battle it out for the 16th and final berth.

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The moribund Colorado Avalanche got a glimpse of a brighter future Thursday night.

Highly touted prospect Tyson Jost fired a wrister past Minnesota Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk from in tight to notch his first NHL goal.

Jost was playing his fourth game with the Avalanche after signing with the club last week.

He left the University of North Dakota after the conclusion of his freshman season, in which the 19-year-old scored 16 goals and piled up 35 points in 33 games.

Jost was taken 10th overall by Colorado in last year's draft.

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The Anaheim Ducks will be without defenseman Cam Fowler for "anywhere between two and six weeks" after he suffered a lower-body injury from a knee-on-knee collision Tuesday night, general manager Bob Murray announced.

While the news puts a damper on Anaheim's momentum gearing up for the playoffs, Murray told Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register that there's no tear, and the Ducks will have a better read on a possible return closer to the postseason, which begins April 12.

Fowler was injured and helped to the dressing room after colliding with Calgary Flames defenseman Mark Giordano, who wasn't assessed a penalty on the play.

The Ducks have an opportunity to win the Pacific division, which very well could result in a first-round meeting with the Flames, who are vying for a wild-card spot in the West.

In 80 games this season, Fowler's recorded 11 goals and 28 assists, averaging a career-high 24:51 of ice time.

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The Ottawa Senators are heading back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Their berth was secured after earning a single point by pushing Thursday's game in Boston to overtime. The Senators went on to complete the win in a shootout, moving two points ahead of the Bruins for sole possession of second spot in the Atlantic Division.

Apparently their postseason motto will be "All In."

Ottawa will return to the playoffs after a one-year absence, and after losing a first-round series against Montreal back in 2015.

The Senators were playing without potential MVP candidate Erik Karlsson, although he could return to the lineup as early as Saturday, according to general manager Pierre Dorion.

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Vladimir Tarasenko inched one step closer to his second consecutive 40-goal season with an absolute laser of a wrist shot Thursday night, notching his 38th tally of the campaign.

Rumor has it, James Reimer and the Panthers are still trying to locate the puck.

(Video Courtesy: NHL.com)

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Toronto Maple Leafs fans held their collective breath Thursday night, and not just because of the possibility of the club clinching a playoff berth.

Auston Matthews took a knee-on-knee hit from Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Jake Dotchin after entering the offensive zone late in the first period.

The Leafs phenom's parents were in the building, and their reactions were exactly as you'd expect.

Leafs fans - and the Matthews family - would eventually exhale, as Matthews came back out on to the ice shortly thereafter.

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Hockey players are a special breed.

The latest to demonstrate this point is Vladislav Namestnikov of the Tampa Bay Lightning, who required immediate medical attention after blocking a William Nylander shot with his face.

The puck appeared to have been deflected by his stick, but the sting was no less painful, to be sure.

Namestnikov was patched up and returned to the game with haste.

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The eyes emoji was made for plays like this by Sidney Crosby.

The Pittsburgh Penguins star pulled off a jaw-dropping dish Thursday night, drawing coverage from a trio of New Jersey Devils, then going between his legs to find Conor Sheary, who made no mistake with a nearly wide-open cage.

Crosby's 44th assist and 87th point helped stake the Penguins to a 4-2 lead early in the second period, and he added another helper on Patric Hornqvist's goal that made it 5-3 later in the frame.

(Video courtesy: NHL.com)

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John Gibson is healthy and ready to lead the charge.

The Anaheim Ducks goaltender, who's appeared in only two games since aggravating a lower-body injury on March 10, feels he's shown enough over the course of the season to merit entering the playoffs as the team's clear starter.

"It's like I didn't forget how to play, right?," he asked tongue-in-cheek, per Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register. "Just had an injury. Came back a little too soon the first time. Now everything's pretty good."

The thing is, Jonathan Bernier was fantastic in relief of Gibson, making a case for meaningful playing time down the stretch and even in the postseason.

Here's how the two have performed this season:

And it's not as if Gibson is showing any rust since his return, stopping 60 of 64 shots against in April for a save percentage of .938.

Bernier did indeed fill in admirably, but the crease clearly belongs to Gibson moving forward.

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John Gibson is healthy and ready to lead the charge.

The Anaheim Ducks goaltender, who's appeared in only two games since aggravating a lower-body injury on March 10, feels he's shown enough over the course of the season to merit entering the playoffs as the team's clear starter.

"It's like I didn't forget how to play, right?," he asked tongue-in-cheek, per Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register. "Just had an injury. Came back a little too soon the first time. Now everything's pretty good."

The thing is, Jonathan Bernier was fantastic in relief of Gibson, making a case for meaningful playing time down the stretch and even in the postseason.

Here's how the two have performed this season:

And it's not as if Gibson is showing any rust since his return, stopping 60 of 64 shots against in April for a save percentage of .938.

Bernier did indeed fill in admirably, but the crease clearly belongs to Gibson moving forward.

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