Standings don’t get any tighter than the way it is in the Western Conference right now. The Minnesota Wild are currently hanging on to the last playoff spot with 55 points, but are in a 3-way tie with Edmonton and Columbus. Dead last in the West? St. Louis with 50, count ‘em, 50 points. The difference between 5th and 15th is a mere 9 points. You may remember an article TSN had on January 21, talking about Phoenix being 5th, and how they will be top contenders the rest of the way. Now, barely 3 weeks since the posting of that article the Coyotes sit 13th. Remember when we all thought Dallas was down and out? Well, since the Avery feud the Stars have rebounded with a 17-8-3 record and find themselves right back in the playoff picture.
Things certainly change quickly in the West. Does it have to do with the East playing the West more often, because of the re-worked schedule? The West seems to be taking points away from Eastern conference teams, making things very tight.
I’m interested in seeing how this plays into the upcoming trade deadline. Teams may think they are close and are still in it, but the reality is, 8 teams from the east make it, and 8 teams from the west make it. I have a hunch that Western teams may choose to bulk up on the deadline, and legitimate tanking teams like the New York Islanders and the Leafs will clean up. More buyers means a higher price for players like Doug Weight, Bill Guerin, and Nik Antropov. Brian Burke must be licking his lips in anticipation.
Who are the legitimate contenders in the West, and who do I see falling out of contention shortly after the deadline? If Steve Mason can return from his bout with Mononucleosis (and from what I’ve heard, it can zap the energy from even the healthiest of people) Columbus certainly stick around until the end. I think Anaheim is in there for good. They have battled through injuries the entire year, and have really come together as a team these past few weeks. Jonas Hiller is looking like one of the best signings Brian Burke has ever made. LA, believe it or not, is picking up steam. With shooters like Oscar Moller, and Anze Kopitar, young stud Drew Doughty on defence and an acrobatic Jonathan Quick backstopping them, I can see them turning a few heads. I don’t believe that Nashville has the horses to pull off a comeback, and Colorado simply doesn’t have the goaltending.
With that all said, only 2 teams that were out of the playoffs at the All-Star break last year were in the playoffs at the end of the year. Washington and their miraculous stretch of games at the end was one of them, so it will take an effort similar to that to make it in.
It will be an interesting few weeks indeed, and I’m really looking forward to it. I apologize for the lack of podcasts lately, but school has been very hectic, especially on Thursdays when we are supposed to do the podcast. I promise that Andy and I will drag ourselves to the studio sooner or later, and we’ll get one done before the trade deadline. We will have a trade deadline recap show for sure.
Tags: NHL, playoffs, podcast, predictions, trade deadline, western conference
