Happy Monday y'all! We are one month away from the end of the regular season! I can't believe how quick this season has been, but as we sit here, there are still a number of playoff pictures to be painted.

First place to fifth in the Pacific Division is only separated by eight points and with how inconsistent every team has been thus far, anything can happen. Here are the five teams in contention.

Anaheim Ducks

The Anaheim Ducks jumped back into first place in the Pacific Division with a win against the Montreal Canadiens on Sunday evening. They received a couple of reinforcements in the contest, with Troy Terry returning from injury and John Carlson also making his Ducks debut while recovering from a previous ailment. The two were pivotal in Anaheim's victory; Terry scored a goal, recorded two assists and had three shots on goal while Carlson was a plus one with a shot on net, playing 23 minutes. 

The American winger found himself on the team's top line with Leo Carlsson and Chris Kreider and they found some of that early season chemistry. If all three skaters can stay healthy for the stretch run, they could be league winners because they have a pretty nice fantasy playoff schedule.

Anaheim is a funny team, as they are the only squad with a winning record (wins and combined regulation and overtime losses), but they sit with a -10 goal differential. The organization has a good mix of youth and veterans for a playoff run while also possessing one of the top coaching staffs so with everyone starting to get healthy, watch out.

Vegas Golden Knights

Don't look now, but the Vegas Golden Knights are starting to heat up. They currently sit in second place in the division, one point behind the Ducks. In the nine games coming out of the Olympic break, the Golden Knights had averaged 2.4 goals per game. Now on a current two game win streak (I know it is only two games), but the offense is starting to find their groove (10 goals in their last two contests) and Adin Hill has put together three straight strong starts. A big part of playoff success is peaking at the right time, and this is one team that you don't want to see hitting their stride this late into the season. 

Edmonton Oilers

Whenever you have Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, you can never give up hope. Those two have carried the Edmonton Oilers for years and continue to do so. Only two points out of first place and one point back from second, this dynamic duo could flip a switch and it would be over. Once again, the depth just does not seem to be there, along with the defense and shaky goaltending situation. 

Connor Ingram appears to have taken over the net for the Oil, so hopefully you were able to pick him up midseason and stashed him because adding a starting netminder for a playoff team probably means your fantasy team is still fighting for a championship of their own. 

Seattle Kraken

The Seattle Kraken added exactly what they did not need at the trade deadline… another 50-point player in Bobby McMann. Fortunately, he had his visa issue cleared up and has been able to suit up for the Kraken in their last two games and maybe he is more than that in a Seattle uniform. The ex-Maple Leaf has three goals (two with the man advantage) and five points in his two games thus far, to go along with eight shots and six hits. Seattle could ruin the Colorado Avalanche's plans in the playoffs again, if they are able to hold onto that second wildcard spot. 

San Jose Sharks

These kids up in the bay area will not go away! The San Jose Sharks are still floating around the playoff race because of Macklin Celebrini and their young core. This team should be a mainstay atop the Pacific Division for years to come and while the Cinderella story for this year felt good, the management team made the right call in keeping their unrestricted free agents as their own rentals and not spending any of their assets until the summer/next season. The one addition they made, they were able to keep as they signed Keifer Sherwood to a big five-year extension.

Los Angeles Kings

With Anze Kopitar breaking Marcel Dionne's all time point record for the LA Kings in his final season for the only franchise he has ever known, it will end in disappointment as they look like they will not make the spring dance. They are only two points out of that final wildcard spot, but the organization seems to know where they are at for this year. With the injuries suffered at and right after the Olympics, management became sellers at the trade deadline and moved a couple of their healthy wingers for draft picks, essentially waving the white flag. You play until the whistle blows, but in this case, it seems like the Kings have heard the final whistle.

Bringing on DJ Smith looks to have invigorated some of the veterans on their team, but this looks like it was too little too late.

Enjoy your week, I hope you have a great one!