NHL @ The Break

The NHL has hit its All-Star break. With all the festivities happening this week in Dallas, it is now time to reflect on the surprises and outcomes of the season and predictions for the stretch run.

What's With These Teams (Disappointments):

To be sure, there has not been much to look at in regards to disappointment at this stage of the season. With 30 games left, only a handful of teams are playing toward next year. The rest are in the hunt for the playoffs and this will make the stretch run well worth watching.

That being the case, there are still a few disappointments at the break.

For those familiar with my post on Talk Freedom's sports forum last year ("Approaching 50 (Games)...A Review") this will sound like a broken record, but...Chicago and Columbus have proven (once again) to be the poorest tango partners in the NHL. These teams have been world class underachievers again this season.

In one respect, this is a tale of two teams. Columbus has looked like they could break through at any time since play started again after the lockout. This has not materialised and it has cost the head coach at the start of the season (Gerard Gallant) his job. I can't imagine that GM Doug MacLean would be far behind. If they are not noticeably better down the stretch, I would be surprised if he still had a job when Columbus hosts the Draft Day festivities in June. At least the Blue Jackets had enough sense to hire Ken Hitchcock as head coach. Hitchcock has never failed to lead a team to the playoffs in any full season in his coaching career. Next year will be a stiff test for that claim to fame.

Chicago is quickly becoming a non-factor in the west every year. The Wirtz family seemingly has no inclination to improve this team and that is highly reflective in the performance of the organisation across the board. The tradition of this team in Chicago remains strong, but the losses that continue to pile up for this organisation is making it evident that the Blackhawks are becoming the Cleveland Browns of the NHL (great fan support of a lousy product on the field). They don't look to be a factor in the west anytime soon.

Two teams in the Atlantic have performed dubiously enough to warrent mention in this section. Obviously, one is Philadelphia. I realise that I didn't pick them to be a playoff team this year. That being said, I never expected that they would have the freefall from grace that they have had. This is clearly the worst team in the NHL at present. And being 19 points away from their next closest team in the east and 11 points away from the next closest leaguewide the difference is pronounced. It is nearly safe to assume that the Flyers are on the clock as we speak.

The Rangers are in the middle of the playoff hunt, but they are the one team at this point that has underachieved and is a surprise to be tied for the final playoff slot in the east. Inconsistent defense and no real fire lit under this team in general has to be a cause for concern. There is too much talent on this team to be on the edge of playoff contention. If they fail to make it in to the playoffs heads could roll at MSG.


Pleasant Surprises

The great thing about the 2006-07 campaign is the number of teams that are vying for a spot in the playoffs. Even teams that didn't appear to have a chance at the start of the year (i.e. St. Louis, Phoenix, etc.) look to have a glimmer of hope a a chance with about 30 to 35 games remaining. It would appear that at least 90 points will be necessary to qualify for the playoffs. Two thirds of the teams in the league have 50 to this point. These teams are more than in the hunt. Another six have between 45 and 50. With a great flourish to end the regular season any of these teams could enter the second season.

The biggest surprise at this stage of the season is the play of the emerging Pittsburgh Penguins. Even with the unsettled status of the team past this season, the Penuins appear to be ahead of schedule as far as developing a winning mentality and a style of play that can match with any team in the league. This team will be a handful after this season and should be a perennial playoff team for many years to come. For this season, this appears to be a team that opponents do not want to see down the stretch.

Montreal has also been better than advertised. If the season ended today, they would have home ice for the first round. For a team in a town as religious about hockey as Montreal, the presence of the Canadiens will do the league a world of good.

Teams To Watch

New Jersey has looked exceedingly good and Martin Brodeur has been his usual HOF-bound self. The thing with the Devils is whether they will be able to get any additional scoring punch to help for the remainder of the season. It would stand to reason that unless Brodeur was to take his game up yet another notch (how would that be possible?) that the Devils may be susceptible to a team with an unusually high-powered attack (Buffalo, Ottawa).

Nashville enters the break as the clubhouse leader in team points. Now, along with Detroit, is it that these teams are really that good or are these teams getting fat at the expense of Chicago and Columbus? Detroit was a #1 seed and a first round loser last year. We have seen that result more than once from the Red Wings. Is history poised to repeat itself for the Winged Wheelers?

And what about Nashville? The Preds have looked good...very good...so far. But are they a key injury away from humility like they were last year when they lost Vokoun? Who knows. All I can say is that the Predators should be a handful in any round in the playoffs, but their opposition should be equal to the task.

That said, the western playoffs should have no light touches and right now there are at least six teams in the conference who have a darkhorse chance or better of making it to the Cup finals.

How Do I Look?

So far, it appears that I have done well at projecting the best teams in the league this year from the start of the season. Teams will continue to have high and low points, but a large factor in playoff success will be how the teams that have been there before will show up when the moment of truth startes them in the face. Buffalo and San Jose (the pre-season matchup for the finals) appears to be a good bet at this point.

Buffalo should get its stiffest challenge from Ottawa. So far, the Senators have been a reliable thorn in the side of the eastern runners-up from last year. The Sabres must get better goal keeping from Miller and the defence will need to ramp things up against Ottawa's formidable attack. The Sens, if they are to be knocked out, are going to go by taking a chunk of flesh from whoever eliminates them and they should have a fairly sizeable chip on their shoulder going in to the post-season anyway.

San Jose isn't the clear-cut frontrunner in the west like Buffalo is in the east. They have had, among other good things so far, undeniably quality goalkeeping and a platoon between the pipes that should be noteworthy in the playoffs. Anaheim appears to be in the same boat on the back line, so they are to be feared in any playoff series. One thing to take note of with the western playoffs is that the conference semis and the finals should all be dogfights. There will be one or two teams that could be reliably considered for the conference finals in the east who will knocked out of the first round in the west.

Strap in, hockey fans. The stretch run should be filled with everything that makes a great sport great.