ANAHEIM, Calif. – Stars coach Dave Tippett doesn't have to familiarize himself with the standings in the Pacific Division and the Western Conference.

"I began looking at them the day the season started," Tippett said Friday before the Stars faced Anaheim. "I look at them every day; every single day. We're in a fight for a division lead."

With the NHL season heading into the final 20 games, the stakes and the interest have only increased.

Entering Friday night's games, just five points separated the Stars, Anaheim and San Jose in the Pacific – the third-place Sharks have played four fewer games than their division rivals.

"To make the playoffs, you either have to win your division or be top eight [in the conference]," Tippett said. "So you better give yourself the best chance."

The Pacific winner might have another edge. If the playoffs had begun Friday, runners-up Anaheim and San Jose would have met in a grueling first-round series. Meanwhile, the Stars, as the division champion and second seed, would have gotten Nashville in the first round.

Here's the outlook for the three Pacific contenders, including the games remaining at home and on the road beginning today:

The good: The Stars recently put together a seven-game winning streak. The Pacific surge has come without top defensemen Sergei Zubov and Philippe Boucher, both of whom are expected to return from injury in March. Six Stars are enjoying career offensive seasons. Marty Turco and Mike Smith form a solid one-two goaltending combo.

The bad: The offense-by-committee approach has occasionally been inconsistent. Can Mike Ribeiro continue to excel as a first-line center? The young players, while solid so far, will face increasingly pressurized situations.

The good: The Ducks brought back defenseman Scott Niedermayer and pure scorer Teemu Selanne during the season. It's almost like the Ducks are putting the band back together for another title run.

The bad: Entering Friday, the Ducks had dropped seven of their previous nine games with the Stars, and the teams meet twice more. With the status of Niedermayer and Selanne uncertain, the Ducks added defenseman Mathieu Schneider and power forward Todd Bertuzzi. Are there enough minutes to keep everybody effective and happy?

The good: Center Joe Thornton leads the NHL in assists and remains a matchup nightmare. Goaltender Evgeni Nabokov ranks among the league leaders in wins (31) and goals-against average (2.20). Coach Ron Wilson has been through this drill before with Anaheim and Washington. The games in hand could be a key.

The bad: Marquee forwards Patrick Marleau and Jonathan Cheechoo (24 goals combined) have struggled. The defense is thin. And the schedule is brutal, with the Sharks beginning an eight-game trip Sunday.