On Tuesday night, the New York Rangers became the first NHL team to clinch a playoff berth. They handled their business by defeating the Philadelphia Flyers 6-5 in overtime, while the Washington Capitals helped out by beating the Detroit Red Wings 4-3.

As of Thursday morning, the Rangers remained the only NHL team to have punched its ticket to the postseason.

On Wednesday, the Boston Bruins could have clinched a playoff berth if they had defeated or lost in overtime to the Tampa Bay Lightning; however, the Lightning won in regulation 3-1. The Bruins are atop the Atlantic Division with 99 points, but the Rangers were the first team in the East to reach 100 points.

In the West, the Dallas Stars own the most points, with 99.

Twenty-eight of the league's 32 teams will take the ice on Thursday, including teams in wild-card position like the Washington Capitals, Nashville Predators and Vegas Golden Knights.

Let's take a closer look at the NHL playoff picture and wild-card predictions as of Thursday morning.

Eastern Conference Standings

Atlantic

1. Boston Bruins (42-17-15), 99 points

2. Florida Panthers (46-21-5), 97 points

3. Toronto Maple Leafs (40-22-9), 89 points

Metropolitan

1. New York Rangers* (48-20-4), 100 points

2. Carolina Hurricanes (45-21-7), 97 points

3. Philadelphia Flyers (36-27-10), 82 points

Wild Card

1. Tampa Bay Lightning (40-25-7), 87 points

2. Washington Capitals (36-26-9), 81 points

*clinched playoff berth

Western Conference Standings

Central

1. Dallas Stars (45-19-9), 99 points

2. Colorado Avalanche (46-21-5), 97 points

3. Winnipeg Jets (44-22-6), 94 points

Pacific

1. Vancouver Canucks (45-19-8), 98 points

2. Edmonton Oilers (43-23-4), 90 points

3. Los Angeles Kings (38-22-11), 87 points

Wild Card

1. Nashville Predators (43-25-4), 90 points

2. Vegas Golden Knights (39-25-8), 86 points