The Wanderer
Kid A
the race in the Western Conference is shaping up as one of the greatest of all-time, with just 8 pts separating teams 2 through 10 in the Conference, and only 3 pts separating teams 6 through 10
Edmonton is red-hot but had their 9-game unbeaten streak snapped last night with a crippling loss last night against a terrible Anaheim team, will this trigger a downward sprial to lose a game like that, or will they come back even more focused in their remaining 4 games? Their next two are at home, including a critical affair with Phoenix, a team that is just 2 pts ahead of them.
Vancouver is playing some great hockey, but have a tough schedule coming up, and like Edmonton have only 4 games left, while the rest of the teams they are fighting with have 5 games remaining
Dallas hasn't picked up their play since their trade-deadline shakeup, they have some very winnable games left on their schedule, but have to go to LA on monday night, a team that is already 3 pts ahead of them, they really cant afford to lose that game, they dominated Colorado last night, but which team will show up from one night to the next? Coaching changes and trades have been unable to solve these problems all season...
LA, Phoenix, St. Louis and Chicago all are playing solid hockey, but clearly the teams chasing them like Vancouver and Edmonton are playing better hockey.
Now... my next question is: will these teams that are playing virtual playoff games right now be playing at an intenisty level above teams at the top like Detroit and Colorado once the playoffs start? In short, could we see some major upsets in the 1st round of the Western Conference playoffs?
as far as the Eastern Conference, Boston appears to have locked up that #1 seed now, while Philly continues to struggle and Toronto does the best they can to get by without CuJo, one of those teams will likely get dubiously rewarded by having to face New Jersey in the 1st round, the Devs have gone 10-3-1 and are starting to look like a contender again, I will be the first to admit that the deadline trade has clearly given the Devils a much sharper and focused outlook, but an injury to Scott Gomez could prove fatal if he is unable to return in time for the playoffs (broken hand), still, I am quite certain Toronto and Philly are in a state of horror and dismay at the idea of having to face a red-hot NJ team in the 1st round (with Brodeur playing like a superstar once again in nets, remember he had been having a sub-par year prior to the Olympics, which have re-juvinated his confidence)
Montreal has a slight edge over Washington right now for the last playoff spot, with a game at hand and a 1-pt lead
my predictons:
Montreal will go 3-1-1 to finish with 88 pts, Washington will go 3-1 to finish with 86 pts
Chicago's schedule is extremely difficult the rest of the way, and they will only get 4 more pts, netting them 95 pts for the year and a #5 seed
St. Louis has their next 4 games at home, and should get at least 7 pts out of their last 5 games, giving them 97 pts and a #4 seed
Phoenix is a poor road team and will lose at least 2 of their next 3 away from home against, before winning to easy matchups at home the final weekend; so 3-2 will leave them with 95 pts and a #6 seed
Los Angeles has a brutal next 4 games, then Anaheim to close the year, I see them getting 5 pts out of this remaining games, leaving them with 94 pts and a #7 seed
Edmonton will grab 5 pts from their final 4 games, finishing with 92 pts
Vancouver will get 5 or 6 points out of their final 4 games and finish with 92 or 93 pts, giving them at least a tie-break via wins over Edmonton, and thus a #8 seed
Dallas will win at least 3 of their last 5, getting them to 92 pts, but losing out either by a point or via tie-break in the standings
*Jerome Iginla will win the Hart Trophy, though perhaps Jose Theodore of Montreal is the most deserving of MVP
Edmonton is red-hot but had their 9-game unbeaten streak snapped last night with a crippling loss last night against a terrible Anaheim team, will this trigger a downward sprial to lose a game like that, or will they come back even more focused in their remaining 4 games? Their next two are at home, including a critical affair with Phoenix, a team that is just 2 pts ahead of them.
Vancouver is playing some great hockey, but have a tough schedule coming up, and like Edmonton have only 4 games left, while the rest of the teams they are fighting with have 5 games remaining
Dallas hasn't picked up their play since their trade-deadline shakeup, they have some very winnable games left on their schedule, but have to go to LA on monday night, a team that is already 3 pts ahead of them, they really cant afford to lose that game, they dominated Colorado last night, but which team will show up from one night to the next? Coaching changes and trades have been unable to solve these problems all season...
LA, Phoenix, St. Louis and Chicago all are playing solid hockey, but clearly the teams chasing them like Vancouver and Edmonton are playing better hockey.
Now... my next question is: will these teams that are playing virtual playoff games right now be playing at an intenisty level above teams at the top like Detroit and Colorado once the playoffs start? In short, could we see some major upsets in the 1st round of the Western Conference playoffs?
as far as the Eastern Conference, Boston appears to have locked up that #1 seed now, while Philly continues to struggle and Toronto does the best they can to get by without CuJo, one of those teams will likely get dubiously rewarded by having to face New Jersey in the 1st round, the Devs have gone 10-3-1 and are starting to look like a contender again, I will be the first to admit that the deadline trade has clearly given the Devils a much sharper and focused outlook, but an injury to Scott Gomez could prove fatal if he is unable to return in time for the playoffs (broken hand), still, I am quite certain Toronto and Philly are in a state of horror and dismay at the idea of having to face a red-hot NJ team in the 1st round (with Brodeur playing like a superstar once again in nets, remember he had been having a sub-par year prior to the Olympics, which have re-juvinated his confidence)
Montreal has a slight edge over Washington right now for the last playoff spot, with a game at hand and a 1-pt lead
my predictons:
Montreal will go 3-1-1 to finish with 88 pts, Washington will go 3-1 to finish with 86 pts
Chicago's schedule is extremely difficult the rest of the way, and they will only get 4 more pts, netting them 95 pts for the year and a #5 seed
St. Louis has their next 4 games at home, and should get at least 7 pts out of their last 5 games, giving them 97 pts and a #4 seed
Phoenix is a poor road team and will lose at least 2 of their next 3 away from home against, before winning to easy matchups at home the final weekend; so 3-2 will leave them with 95 pts and a #6 seed
Los Angeles has a brutal next 4 games, then Anaheim to close the year, I see them getting 5 pts out of this remaining games, leaving them with 94 pts and a #7 seed
Edmonton will grab 5 pts from their final 4 games, finishing with 92 pts
Vancouver will get 5 or 6 points out of their final 4 games and finish with 92 or 93 pts, giving them at least a tie-break via wins over Edmonton, and thus a #8 seed
Dallas will win at least 3 of their last 5, getting them to 92 pts, but losing out either by a point or via tie-break in the standings
*Jerome Iginla will win the Hart Trophy, though perhaps Jose Theodore of Montreal is the most deserving of MVP