Ducks win Pacific to earn date with Flames, while Oilers get Sharks
Let's go.
The NHL's playoff bracket is finally fully set. The Anaheim Ducks earned two points Sunday at home against the Los Angeles Kings, which means three things:
- The Ducks are Pacific Division champions for a fifth straight season
- Anaheim will meet the Calgary Flames in the first round of the playoffs
- The Edmonton Oilers will face the San Jose Sharks in Round 1
The result is undoubtedly the one the Ducks wanted, since the Flames haven't won a regular-season game in Anaheim in 13 years. (For what it's worth, the Flames beat the Ducks in Anaheim once in 2006 in the clubs' first-round playoff series.) The Ducks won the 2016-17 season series 4-1.
Instead of the first installment of the Battle of Alberta since 1991, the Oilers get the defending Western Conference champions in the Sharks. Edmonton has home ice, and won the season series 3-1-1.
The Pacific was one of the tightest divisions in hockey. The Ducks finish with 105 points, the Oilers 103, and the Sharks 99.
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