Today was a great day in sports. The MLB playoffs began (with a Pirates win!), and it was Opening Night in the NHL. Yesterday I took a look at the Eastern Conference, which I think, top to bottom, is a little stronger than the West. However, the top of the Western Conference is slightly better than the top of the East. While the West also boasts some of the worst teams in hockey, there are more Stanley Cup contenders on that side of the draw.
And one of my reservations about the playoff system could be put to an early test...because it's not much of a stretch to think some combination of LA, San Jose and Vancouver could end up with the most and second-most amount of points in the conference. Then, of course, there's defending champion Chicago.
Speaking of the Blackhawks, they're obviously the team to beat in the Central Division. Especially now that archrival Detroit has finally gotten its wish and been moved to the Eastern Conference. While the death of the Blackhawks-Red Wings rivalry is certainly sad, the realignment has reaffirmed the Blackhawks' place at the top of the Central. Unlike last time they won, Chicago is poised to make another Cup run again this year. No team has repeated since the 1997-98 Red Wings, but the Blackhawks have a real shot at ending that drought.
The second-best team in the Central Division is probably St. Louis. The Blues have been a team on the rise for the last several seasons, including a conference finals run in 2012. While not on the same level as Chicago or the top teams in the Pacific Division, St. Louis should have no problem making the playoffs. That third guaranteed playoff spot is probably up for grabs between Minnesota, Nashville and Winnipeg. Personally, I think the Wild are the best team in that group. They're the only one of the three that made the playoffs last season and are only going to get better this year. The Predators (the team I would've moved to the Eastern Conference), though, just missed out and don't need to do much to overtake Minnesota.
Winnipeg finally moved out of the Southeast Division and into a more travel-friendly situation. However, their chances of making the playoffs were probably better in the old Southeast. Instead of playing Florida, Tampa Bay and Carolina regularly, they'll have a heavy dose of the Western Conference's elite. That improved travel situation should help, though. The same can be said about Dallas and Colorado. While I don't expect either the Stars or Avalanche to contend, they're the other teams that should benefit the most from the new schedule. Dallas doesn't have to repeatedly go to the Pacific time zone for division games anymore, and Colorado doesn't have to make all those trips to Western Canada. In the long run, they'll both see the benefits.
I know what I said yesterday about the new Atlantic Division potentially being the most competitive in the league, but the Pacific Division is arguably the best. Perennial contenders Los Angeles, San Jose and Vancouver are all among the NHL's elite and have legitimate Stanley Cup visions. Throw in the Ducks, Coyotes and an improving Edmonton team, and you're going to have at least one good team that misses out on the playoffs out of the Pacific.
Let's start with that three-headed monster at the top. The Kings came out of nowhere to win the Cup two seasons ago, then returned to the conference finals last year. They're good, playoff-tested and have one of the best goalies in the league in Jonathan Quick. San Jose, meanwhile, has to eventually get over the hump and reach the Final, right? The have to. There's just too much talent there. Unless they do something drastic and completely blow up that team, the Sharks are always going to be in the mix and a threat to make a run deep into June. It's almost a similar thing in Vancouver, where the perennially underachieving Canucks got swept out of the playoffs by those very Sharks last season. That led to Alain Vigneault's ouster and trade to the Rangers for John Tortorella (they weren't really traded for each other, but they may as well have been). The Canucks went to Game 7 of the Final with essentially this same team in 2011. If they can figure out their goalie situation, doing that again is entirely possible.
There's also plenty of talent in Anaheim. It wouldn't surprise anybody if the Ducks cracked into that triumvirate. They did, after all, win the division last season. Two years ago, Phoenix won the division two years ago before regressing and missing the playoffs last year. Which Coyotes team is the real one? The one that made the conference final, or the one that finished in the middle of the pack? I think it's some sort of combination, which means making the playoffs will be tough.
Edmonton is finally on its way back to respectability, but a return to the postseason will probably have to wait a year or two. The Oilers remind me a lot of the Penguins about 10 years ago, though. They've been so bad for so long that they've accumulated so many high draft picks, who are all reaching the NHL at the same time. A resurgence in Edmonton isn't far away. Unfortunately, I can't say the same about Alberta's other NHL team. In this division, the Flames' playoff chances are slim at best.
So here's who I forsee making the playoffs out of the Western Conference, as well as my Stanley Cup Final pick...
Central: Chicago, St. Louis, Minnesota, Nashville
Pacific: Los Angeles, San Jose, Vancouver, Anaheim
Stanley Cup Final: CHICAGO over Pittsburgh
No comments:
Post a Comment