Eastern Promising: The 93 Point Dash To The NHL Playoffs

(Photo via washingtonpost.com)

93. This is the magic number for all NHL clubs. This has been, in recent seasons, the average number of points needed to get access to the second season. Most teams have about 10 games left to play and, in my view, this is one of the most exciting times as a hockey fan. The playoffs are tops in any fans heart, but the lead up to the first round is where winners and losers are made.

The Race In The East

The West is the Best: Stats (Like Hips) Don't Lie

This is the best picture that I can find that represents East vs West. Nuff said. (photo via smartassradio.com)

For those of you who don't know, I'm an Ottawa Senators fan. I don't need a shoulder to cry on or any type of consolation for this Club's luck (or lack of it) this year. 29th overall. Worse than the always crappy Islanders. Not doing much better than the young and rebuilding Oilers. And most painfully, the Leafs are in the hunt for that 8th seed in the home stretch while the Sens are planning their strategy for the 2011 Entry Draft. 1st or 2nd pick? Nugent-Thompkins, Laarsen, Landeskog, or Couturier? Not the kind of conversation you want your team to have at this point in the season. For more of my Sens ranting, check out my other blog Stranger In Leaf Nation.

The Race is On

I can't remember the last time the NHL Western playoff race was this tight. As of Saturday, March 12th, 8 points separate the 11th seed from 4th. Within that range we are looking at the Kings, Stars, Flames, Ducks, Predators, Coyotes, Hawks, and Wild. The top might change with Detroit, Vancouver and the Sharks sitting comfortably in the top 3 seeds, as the red hot Hawks are knocking on the door. The craziest part of the Western race has to be the 12th seeded Blue Jackets playing with a winning record at 31-26-8. Flip it to the East in the same spot, we're looking at the Devils at 31-32-4. The spread from 4th to 11th on the Atlantic side of the league is 18 points. The West continues to be the strongest side in the NHL year over year. But I've also noticed this trend in the NBA. Was Jim Morrison right all along? Is the West the best?