It's official: Dallas Stars returning to the playoffs in 2022

DALLAS — Just two seasons removed from a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals, the Dallas Stars have now clinched a spot in the 2022 playoffs after tying at the end up regulation against the Arizona Coyotes in Wednesday night's game. 

The Stars did, ultimately, lose the game, 4-3 in the shootout. 

After finishing runner up to the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020, the Stars missed the playoffs in 2021. 

Below, WFAA will keep track of the Stars' playoff picture. The top three teams in each division earn berths in the playoffs. The next two teams in terms of total points in the conference, regardless of division, earn the wild card spots. This provides a total of eight teams from each conference. 

As the 2022 season wanes, the Stars are in the hunt for a wild card spot. Here is a look at where the Stars lie in the standings (as of April 28): 

Western Conference

Central

1. z - Colorado: 118 pts
2. x - Minnesota: 109 pts
3. x - St. Louis: 109 pts

Pacific

1. y - Calgary: 110 pts
2. x - Edmonton: 100 pts
3. x - Los Angeles: 98 pts

Wild Card Race

1. x - Dallas: 96 pts
2. x - Nashville: 95 pts
3. Las Vegas: 92 pts
4. Vancouver: 89 pts
5. Winnipeg: 85 pts
6. San Jose: 76 pts
7. Anaheim: 76 pts
8. Chicago: 67 pts
9. Seattle: 58 pts
10. Arizona: 55 pts

Here are the tiebreaker rules: 

In the event teams are tied in the standings, the following tiebreakers are applied to determine which team receives the higher seeding:

1. The fewer number of games played (i.e., superior points percentage).
2. The greater number of games won in regulation (not including games won in overtime or a shootout).
3. The greater number of games won in regulation and overtime (not including games won via shootout).
4. The greater number of games won in any fashion.
5. The greater number of points earned in games between the tied clubs. If two clubs are tied, and have not played an equal number of home games against each other, points earned in the first game played in the city that had the extra game shall not be included. If more than two clubs are tied, the higher percentage of available points earned in games among those clubs, and not including any "odd" games, shall be used to determine the standing.
6. Goal differential.
7. Goals scored.