It’s easy to take a look at the current Western Conference and assume that the season will wrap up with the teams locked in their current position.
However, the Anaheim Ducks have cooled off a bit and the top six teams have shown the streakiness that could see a complete reshuffling by the time the playoffs start.
There is currently six points between the top seeded Ducks and the Colorado Avalanche in fifth.
The Orange County rivals Los Angeles have won seven straight games and though they may not be able to unseat their nemesis for the top spot, they have made up a ton of ground to secure their spot in the playoff hunt.
Anything can happen with less than twenty games and with several teams heading in different directions, every game matters that much more.
Let’s handicap the Stanley Cup odds of the top six teams in the Western Conference.
Anaheim Ducks-5:2 (43-14-7, 93 points)
With two straight losses the Ducks have to be wondering if they are in for a sustained streak in the wrong direction or if they are just a victim of some unlucky breaks. After winning their first 20 games at home, they have lost six of their last eight at the The Ponda. The last two were shootouts/coin flips so I would expect them to bounce back and start another streak in the right direction.
St. Louis Blues-2:1 (43-14-6, 92 points)
Something just feels right about this year’s version of the Blues. The addition of Ryan Miller has the “missing piece” feel that we will be lambasted with by announcers throughout their sustained playoff run. I’ll stop short of pre-ordering my St. Louis Blues championship t-shirt and thermal fleece, but they have to be considered favorites right now and are on a blistering run with four straight wins.
Chicago Blackhawks-5:1 (38-13-14, 90 points)
How can I possibly have the defending champs with such low odds!!?? The answer is quite simple: There are no overtime points in the playoffs, meaning that the 14 overtime defeats that Chicago has suffered would just be losses. Add that to the bull’s eye on the back of the reigning kings of the castle and I think that Chicago is almost a long shot to repeat.
San Jose Sharks-3:1 (41-17-7, 89 points)
The Sharks started the season as the NHL’s hottest team before cooling off and tumbling through a puzzling couple of losing streaks. They are getting healthy at the perfect time of the year and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them take a legitimate run up the standings for a shot at home ice throughout the playoffs. If that is the case, the west could go to San Jose. No team has been tougher on home ice than the Sharks. The difference this season is that San Jose can win on the road too.
Colorado Avalanche-10:1 (41-18-5, 87 points)
I could be dead wrong on this, and let’s be honest, everyone has been about the Avs all year, but I think that Colorado is a year away from being a viable Stanley Cup contender. The ride for them this year feels like a sustained adrenaline rush that eventually has to come to a crashing halt. Patrick Roy is the Jack Adams winner for the job he has done restoring the glory to the once-mighty Avs, but the talent pool is too deep for the upstart Avalanche.
Los Angeles Kings-7:1 (37-22-6, 80 points)
After struggling for a stretch after they got Jonathan Quick back, the Kings have righted their ship and are now the hottest team in the NHL. They are a nightmare matchup for any team in the league come playoff time and have the core of players that lifted the Stanley Cup in 2012. If Marian Gaborik can develop chemistry with his new team, he could provide an interesting X-factor for a club that has struggled to score when it matters.