At The Midway Point......

1) With most NHL teams having played close to half their 2008-09 schedule we decided to do what FR did at-quarter-pole. Basically taking each teams record and project an 82 game season point total based upon each teams current point total/games played. As FR wrote then, These are NOT Predictions, they are Projections! Also we will place teams in the order that is used for playoff seeding.

2) First in the East:

Boston- 129
Washington- 109
Philadelphia- 107
Montreal- 112
New Jersey- 102
NY Rangers- 101
Buffalo- 92
Florida- 90
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Carolina- 90 (Edged out by Panthers by 0.2 right now)
Pittsburgh- 84
Toronto- 74
Tampa Bay- 68
Ottawa- 66
Atlanta- 63
NY Islanders- 55




3) Next the West:

San Jose- 134
Detroit- 126
Calgary- 108
Chicago- 107
Vancouver- 91
Anaheim- 90
Phoenix- 90 (edged out by goals scored)
Colorado- 88
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Minnesota- 86
Columbus- 86 (85.9)
Edmonton- 84
Nashville- 82
Dallas- 82
Los Angeles- 80
St. Louis- 72


4) Analysis:

• Some teams like Detroit, SJ, Montreal, Washington, and Chicago have maintained their playoff positions since the quarter mark. Some teams like Pittsburgh and Minnesota have fallen out of a play off spot.
• On the flip side the cellar dwellers last time around have rebounded. Especially the Panthers who were dead last at the 1/4 mark, and now find themselves on the edge of a playoff berth.
• We also invite our readers to peer into last year at this time at-half-way-mark of the 2007-2008 season. In one short year Washington has gone from a door mat to a top tier team, while the Senators have done the opposite!
• Also of interest it appears that fewer points will be needed to make the playoffs compared with previous seasons. This season 90 may be the magic number, where its been 92-94 in past seasons

5) Potential 1st round playoff match-ups based upon these projections:
East:
Boston- vs-Florida
Washington- vs- Buffalo
Philadelphia- vs- New Jersey
Montreal- Rangers

West:
San Jose vs- Colorado
Detroit- vs- Phoenix
Calgary- Anaheim
Chicago- vs- Vancouver