Western Conference Playoff Spots

If you look at the spread in the West ... ONLY 8 points separate 13th and 5th. Top that off with the teams in 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th are all tied with 72 points (this is including the San Jose Sharks)!!! Am I worried - absolutely. It would be a crying shame for the Sharks to miss the playoffs this year. I am looking at hotels in the Nashville area in the event they meet up with the Predators soon.

All said - these last 20 or so games are going to be intense, gritty and down right brutal when it comes to Western division and conference rivals scratching for these last few points. What is also making this an amazing season is with only 2 more days left before the trade deadline hits - we are still waiting patiently for those flood gates to crash open so we can witness the shuffle of players by coaches and GM's in the hopes of securing one of the births come April!

There are a TON of rumors flying around the league and not much action, which tells me that come Monday and Tuesday ... the NHL corporate offices will be in utter pandemonium trying to facilitate trade calls between teams, players, agents and the NHLPA. The next 72 hours are not going to provide much sleep if you are an NHL executive in NY.