1) Its been WAY too long since I last contributed to the blog so I asked FR if I could make a final installment of rating all 30 teams before the final weekend and the playoffs.
1) Pittsburgh: Down the middle the best team in the NHL. their whining/diving capabilities not withstanding, we believe they will be the team to beat for the Cup. have to believe that if they survive their first round against Philly, they have to be the favourite to win it all!
2) Vancouver: Yes, the 'Nucks as Presidents Trophy contenders have to be mentioned as Cup favourites. Even without Daniel Sedin, they have stayed at an elite level. If they get him back it would be difficult to bet against them to win the west, again
3) St. Louis: It looks like the Blues are going to be in the unusual position of sitting the goaltender who set the single-season record for save percentage to start the postseason. Brian Elliott enjoyed a shutout streak of 241:33 but figures to watch Jaroslav Halak get the early playoff starts for the Central Division champions.
4) NY Rangers: Hard to place the potential Presidents Trophy winners at 3rd but they haven't quite looked as strong the past few week. They seemed to have stepped off the proverbial gas pedal recently. can Torts get them to resume that high level of play next week? We wouldn't bet against it!
5) Nashville: A popular 'Dark Horse' Cup pick, The production of late-signee Alexander Radulov (seven points in nine games) make this Nashville team the most-dangerous one ever on offense to go along with their usual tough defense!
6) Boston: Have been up and down, but a part from the initial Cup coma they haven't played poorly all year and have largely flown under the radar sort of speak but remain one of the toughest/best teams in the NHL
7) Detroit: Getting long in the tooth, but still possess enough talent to be a top 10 team in the NHL once again
8) Philadelphia: Staying right in that 4th-5th spot most of the past month. Getting ready for their rumble with the penguins next week. We can't wait!
9) Chicago: Their goaltending remains a bit iffy and that could prove their undoing next week, but for now they appear destined for a 10 point season even if they haven't had the services of captain Jon Towes and an off season by his standars for Patrick Kane
10) New Jersey: Despite Marty Brodeur looking his age at times the Devils have stayed right in playoff position all season. We wouldn't bet against them to win a round.
11) Phoenix: A great story. Few expected the Yotes to be contenders when they lost Bryzgalov to Philly, but Mike Smith had an amazing, almost Vezina callibre season to propel the desert dogs into the post season and maybe even their first division title?
12) Los Angeles: Fighting for a spot and perhaps even the division. have improved their scoring of late so might surprise come the playoffs
13) Ottawa: Have clinched at least the 8th spot, and have coasted the past few weeks. We didn't think they'd get the goaltending to get them here, but we have been proven wrong by Mr. Anderson
14) San Jose: Washington-West. Perennial underachievers who will probably(like their east counterparts) sneak into the post season
15) Washington: Very well will make the post season, and may even win the pathetic SE division, but they still would be in our opinion the weakest playoff team
16) Dallas: Seem to be coming up just a tad short in their playoff run. We never expected they'd even be close so nice job fellas. Too bad the fans didn't respond
17) Florida: Appear destined to win their first EVER division and make the playoffs for first time in 80 years(well 11 anyway)
18) Buffalo: Ran out of gas the final 2 weeks after a mad dash from 15th to 8th. If they would have stayed healthy who knows if things would have been different
19) Colorado: Made some strides, but couldn't get over the hump in the very tough West.
20) Tampa bay- Not this year guys. Stamkos had a magnificent season, but their goaltending was horrible all year. If they plug that hole they will be back in 12-13.
21) Calgary: Finished right about where most expected. Competed for the 8th sot but came up short. Team needs to be 'blown up' and reassembled
22) Columbus: If they played as well as they have the past 2 weeks all season we wouldn't be talking about another 'lottery pick', but a run for the 8th seed. Too little too late, and bye, bye Mr. Nash!
23) Winnipeg: Their horrendous road record finally caught up to them. Things are lookig up, but they do need some upgrades all around to compete for a Cup
24) Minnesota: After such a hot start incredible how low they are about to finish!
25) Carolina: Another disappointing season in Raleigh. Got off to a dreadful start that they never were able to recover from. The coaching change occurred to late
26) Anaheim: Seemed to right the ship for a couple of months, but have fallen back down in recent weeks. Too much talent to be in this position, no?
27) Montreal: Team in disarray as they seek a new GM, and probably new coach. They have more talent than their record indicates. A tweak here, a good coach there and we'd expect them to be fighting for the post season next year
28) NY Icelanders: Another season, another (probable) bottom 5 finish. Three more seasons in Nassau then off to Brooklyn? Until then don't expect much out of them!
29) Edmonton: Unfortunately for their fans, familiar territory for the Oilers. yes, they are young, but at some point they have to improve and get out of the bottom 3
30)Toronto: See above. They collapsed down the stretch. Can Brian Burke survive? Probably, but his tenure won't be long if the team falters out of the gate next season!
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