The usual (unwatched for the most part) All-Star Game festivities. The ice is getting prepared. Skates are being laced up. And the NHL season is about to heat up. Division titles are still plenty up for grabs. A President's Trophy is still to be won. And award races are still about as tight as ever. So we might be in for a thrilling end to a season that has been pretty shocking and unusual given some of the circumstances.
We've seen the continued drama surrounding Sidney Crosby with the questions looming around whether or not he will ever step onto the ice again (after we debated this a few months back). There've been surprise teams aplenty (unless you thought the New York Rangers, St. Louis Blues, and the usual cellar-dwelling Florida Panthers would actually look as good as they have been. C'mon. You know you didn't.) and one incredible fall from grace (looking at you, Minnesota Wild).
Even with all of that said, the top teams still remain near...well, the top. The defending Stanley Cup Champion Boston Bruins still remain a juggernaut and a threat to repeat. The Flyers have stayed near the top of the Eastern Conference. And in the Western Conference, the usual suspects have been spectacular. Detroit is nearly unbeatable at home (but I still question whether or not they can win on the road. Home ice for them is absolutely crucial if they want to make a run at the Cup), Vancouver and San Jose lead their respective divisions, and the Chicago Blackhawks can beat just about anybody with their plentiful amount of scoring threats.
Let's jump out to the wild wild West today. We're a day late since games were played including a rough and tumble battle with Chicago and Vancouver, but one day won't hurt.
Here's how the West shakes out as of right now, 2/1:
1. Detroit Red Wings (34-16-1; 69 Points)
2. Vancouver Canucks (31-15-4; 66 Points)
3. San Jose Sharks (28-14-6; 62 Points)
4. Nashville Predators (31-16-4; 66 Points)
5. St. Louis Blues (29-13-7; 65 Points)
6. Chicago Blackhawks (29-15-7; 65 Points)
7. Los Angeles Kings (24-16-10; 58 Points)
8. Minnesota Wild (24-19-7; 55 Points)
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9. Colorado Avalanche (26-24-2; 54 Points)
10. Dallas Stars (25-21-2; 52 Points)
11. Calgary Flames (23-22-6; 52 Points)
12. Phoenix Coyotes (22-21-8; 52 Points)
Once again, we'll omit the fledgling Ducks, the still youthful Edmonton Oilers, and the pitiful Columbus Blue Jackets.
A few things stick out here. Firstly, the Detroit Red Wings with a victory last night cemented themselves as the current leader in points in the NHL (69). The Red Wings are also nearly unbeatable at home, with a 20-2-1 record. Sick, really, if you think about it. However, they're a mediocre 14-14-0 on the road, and as stated above, home ice for them given this unreal dominance at home is crucial for them if they want to make another run at Lord Stanley's Cup (for their sake they had best hope not to run into the San Jose Sharks again).
Furthermore, the Central Division occupies 4 of the top 8 spots in the conference. So even with the dreadful Blue Jackets dwelling in the bowels of the standings, the Central Division remains the best division in the National Hockey League. The Nashville Predators are winners of 10 of their last 11 games, and 13 of 15 and are rising up the standings. Are they peaking too early? That's let to be determined, but their success as of late cannot be taken away from them and assuming they do hang on to Ryan Suter and don't deal him at the deadline, like the speculation is, this team is a dangerous threat to the rest of the conference, and possibly the entire league with their goaltending (a top 5 netminder in Pekka Rinne), and along with Suter, the dubious defenceman Shea Weber.
With that said, here's how the West will be won (for the regular season, at least).
1. Chicago Blackhawks - While the Blackhawks are stuck in the 6th spot at the moment, their talent is just way too good in my opinion for them to remain near the bottom of the conference for much longer. Mangled by injuries, the Blackhawks have struggled as of late, but last night they did get Patrick Sharp and captain Jonathan Toews back on ice. Their additions to the team will give them a boost as the second half of the season barrels along, and I think they'll have the top spot in the Western Conference at the conclusion of the season.
2. Vancouver Canucks - It may not seem too long ago that the Canucks were looking relatively mediocre and near the bottom of the Top 8. Well, that's because it really wasn't. Now however they have climbed back up to the top spot in the horrid Northwest Division and given the fact that the Minnesota Wild have completely fallen off the map and no other team presents much of a challenge to them, they should do well enough to keep the second spot in the West for much of the rest of the way, maybe shifting in and out between the top spot and the third place spot. 
3. San Jose Sharks - The Sharks were another curious case at the beginning of the season, and 48 games into the season they...well, remain a curious case. Sure, they've gotten enough out of goaltender Antti Niemi and their scoring looks good, as it usually does. But nobody really knows if they're as good as they appear to be. Their road record is nothing spectacular, and of their 28 victories, 22 of them have come in regulation or overtime, one of the largest margins in the league. In the playoffs, games are won in OT and not in a shootout, so a problem could reside around the months of April and May if the Sharks can't get it done within regulation or the 5-minute OT period. Something to watch out for out in the Bay Area.
4. Detroit Red Wings - There's really only one reason I have the Detroit Red Wings not winning the Central Division. Well... 2, maybe I suppose. The first reason is that teams don't generally stay hot for long, and the Red Wings will most likely have a stretch where they can't find ways to win, where their star players will get banged up or put out of action for a couple of games, and they'll be on the bad end of bounces and luck. Y'know, like every other team in the league it seems. The 2nd reason that I have the Red Wings as the runner up in the Central Division is their road record. I'm not going to try and demean their home record at all because it's fanatical how good that they've been at the Joe this season, and, they have a chance to really pull away from everyone if they're as good at home as they seem to be in a couple of days when they start a 6-game homestand on the 8th of February. But they've got a real big Pacific road trip in the middle of March that may prove to be pivotal as the season goes on. This could either make me look like a genius, or it could blow up in my face. But that's the fun in it, really.
5. Nashville Predators - What more is there to say about the Predators? Every year it seems Barry Trotz is a Coach of the Year Candidate given the lack of offensive talent this team has but they continually get it done year in and year out. Last year they finally lost their first round virginity against the Anaheim Ducks, and this year they look ready to strike (or rather, beforehand, prey (har har)) and their fans may want more than just a first round appearance. Plus, the team itself may want it just as more. This team is white-hot and at this rate, may make a run for the conference in the regular season, and the playoffs. Their my team to watch in the next few months before the postseason. Fun bunch they've got down in Smashville.
6. St. Louis Blues - If you or anybody else expected the St. Louis Blues to look great this season, and at one point, lead the Western Conference (even if it was for a day), I question your sanity. Especially after they fired their head coach earlier on in the season. Ken Hitchcock has done a marvelous job with this team and it is not only consisted of relatively unknowns to the casuals (T.J. Oshie, David Backes) but great veteran leadership (Jason Arnott, Jamie Langenbrunner) as well as a solid tandem in net (former Montreal Canadien and dream-crusher Jaroslav Halak and Brian Elliot). The Blues aren't flashy, they don't have starpower, but they get it done on the ice and they'll be a tough out for whomever they face.
7. Los Angeles Kings Is there any team that's as disappointing as the Los Angeles Kings this season? ... *crickets* ... that's what I thought. Coming off two consecutive playoff appearances, the addition of Mike Richards looked to put the Kings up in the upper echelon of teams and poised to be Stanley Cup contenders. But this team came out flat, and have been flat for the entire season. No team in the entire National Hockey League has scored as little goals as the L.A. Kings have (111). Not one team. Not even the piss poor Blue Jackets (if you haven't gotten the message that Columbus sucks by now, I'm sorry that your comprehension is as God awful as them) have scored as little as they have. Jonathan Quick may steal them a game or two in the postseason, but this team looks farther off than most suspected them to be.
8. Colorado Avalanche - Not too long ago the Minnesota Wild were one of the best stories in hockey given their location and how awesome hockey is in Minnesota. Now they've fallen off the proverbial cliff and are in a steady freefall that in my opinion is going to continue on. It seems that since Patrick Kane did them in with this shootout goal, they've gone downhill and are steadily headed to crash into an abyss. With that said, I think the Colorado Avalanche will be the team that takes their spot. Colorado's +/- differential is a dreadful -14, but I see things coming around for them and, frankly, by process of elimination, they'll hold down the 8 spot that could quite frankly go to any of the teams slotted from 7-12.
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