With the New York Rangers beating the Philadelphia Flyers in the shootout, and the Carolina Hurricanes losing to the Buffalo Sabres in OT (was it not obvious that the worst possible result for the Toronto Maple Leafs was going to happen?) it would take nothing short of a miracle for the Canes or Leafs to crack the top eight in the conference. While the Canes are only two points behind the Rangers, they are playing both the Red Wings and Penguins over their final three games, making it very unlikely that they will make up the necessary points.
The Eastern Conference, colloquially known as the Leastern Conference, is clearly inferior this season, and does not have the same type of depth as the Western Conference teams. To put things into perspective, the Blackhawks are the last seed in the West, compared to the Rangers holding that spot in the East. The fact that the Cup champions, even with all their personnel changes, are in the eighth spot, speaks volumes to the competitiveness at the top of the conference.
Teams like Washington and Philadelphia may have a comparative advantage to their West counterparts, in the later rounds of the Playoffs, after play ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by A.J. Warner
NHL Beasts of the East: What Are Their Strengths and Weaknesses
April 4th, 2011 by A.J. Warner Leave a reply »
Advertisement