With NHL free agency getting started on July 1^st, we’re going to take a quick look around the league to see who is available and who the best option is.

We’re going to start our NHL off-season talk with the goaltenders who are set to become free agents on July 1^st. There is a pretty solid list of available candidates, and by solid I mean as solid as a plate of Jell-O that hasn’t had enough time to solidify yet.

First up, we’ll rank the top 10 available unrestricted free agents.

1. Martin Biron (Philadelphia) – Biron was one regular season win short of posting back to back 30 win seasons for the Flyers. In addition to that, he led the Flyers to the conference finals in 2007-08 before being ousted by the Penguins. This year the Flyers fell to the Penguins again, this time in the first round.

After spending much of his career in Buffalo and eventually losing his starting job to Ryan Miller, the Sabres shipped him off to Philly where he signed a 2 year, $3.5 million dollar contract. With the upcoming cap situation in Philly being extremely tight and the Flyers already signing Ray Emery to a one year deal, things aren’t looking so good for Biron in Philly.

He is sporadic at times and that can hurt a team but I still feel he is the best candidate for a team needing someone to start between the pipes. He is only 31 years old and his salary is not that much compared to some of the other goalies in the league. In my mind he would actually make for the perfect backup goaltender, but after starting a large amount of games in Philly for the past two seasons, I can’t see him embracing that backup role once again (and the salary that goes along with it).

2. Nikolai Khabibulin (Chicago) – One could argue that Khabibulin was a huge disappointment in Chicago after landing his monster deal of close to $7 million per season. I would completely agree with the person arguing that point. In his four seasons in Chicago he started 50, 60, 50 and 42 games. His win-loss record was much better this season, but so was the overall team. Sorry, but for someone pulling in that kind of money, he should be starting around 70 games and leading his team to the post-season each time.

Last off-season the Blackhawks signed another somewhat shaky goaltender in Cristobal Huet, so I see no possible way that they retain the services of Khabibulin. He will no doubt need to take a pay cut if he wants another job in the NHL, but he should be able to contribute to another team. He hasn’t been nearly as good in Chicago as he was while winning the Cup in Tampa Bay, but someone will give him another shot. If not, the KHL still awaits.

3. Scott Clemmensen (New Jersey) – Most people will probably recognize Clemmensen as the guy who saved the Devils season while Martin Brodeur was out with a long term injury. Upon returning, Clemmensen was shipped back down to the AHL to finish up the season. This was more about clearing waivers than any form of respect, but I have a feeling that it didn’t sit too well with Clemmensen. He now hits the open market and has proven he can play effectively at the NHL level. While subbing for Brodeur (and Kevin Weekes), Clemmensen posted a 25-13-1 record and two shutouts. His GAA and save percentage were statistically in the top ten among league leaders. I have to assume that a team in need of goaltending will want to give him a shot seeing that he is only 31 years old, but there is always that off chance that he’ll return to New Jersey to be Brodeur’s full-time backup. There is always that chance that he was a product of the New Jersey system.

4. Ty Conklin (Detroit) – I’m actually quite fond of Conklin as a backup. Although he didn’t play very much for Buffalo in his short stint with the Sabres, he played well enough to impress me. Last season he helped carry Pittsburgh to the post-season while starter Marc-Andre Fleury was injured. This season he headed to Detroit to split time with Chris Osgood. Conklin has bounced around several teams so there must be something I’m missing, but I think he is a very suitable backup goalie. I also think he is perfect for Detroit. In 40 games for Detroit this season, Conklin went 25-11-2 with 6 shutouts. Osgood is heading into the final year of his contract and Conklin is more than capable of filling in from time to time. If I were Detroit I would look at locking him up with another one year deal and then seriously addressing the goaltending situation the following summer.

5. Manny Fernandez (Boston) – Fernandez hits the market and looks to be finished in Boston. While splitting time with Tim Thomas, there is no doubt that Thomas is the man in Boston. Fernandez started 28 games this past season with Boston posting a 16-8-3 record in the process. He definitely doesn’t deserve a contract over $4 million (what he was making in Boston) but he should be able to hook up with someone and split time between the pipes.

6. Dwayne Roloson (Edmonton) – Roloson hits the market at the ripe age of 39, which isn’t exactly a great bargaining chip when looking for a new job. It seems like a very long time ago that he led the 8^th seeded Oilers to the Stanley Cup before getting injured in Game One and watching his team fall in seven to the Hurricanes. At this point in his career he is much better suited for the backup role. He started 63 games this year for Edmonton, posting a 28-24-9 record along the way. He might possibly stick in Edmonton, although that seems somewhat unlikely.

7. Antero Niittymaki (Philadelphia) – Along with Martin Biron, Niittymaki hits the free agent market and there appears to be no room for him in Philly. His contract was considerably less than Biron (1.375 million) so the Flyers might have plans for him to split time with Ray Emery (everyone in Philly shudders). Niittymaki is only 28 years old and went 15-8-6 in 32 regular season starts last season. While those numbers aren’t necessarily great, they could be worse (see Emery, Ray). He might have to take a brief pay cut to the tune of one million per season, but it wouldn’t be a terrible investment. Now Ray Emery…well that’s another story. (Had enough yet Philly?)

8. Craig Anderson (Florida) – Last season Anderson split time with Tomas Vokoun going 15-7-5 in 31 starts. Anderson never fully got into a groove as the Panthers goaltending situation depended on whether or not the team won or loss the previous game. When he got an extended amount of playing time, he proved he was capable of winning games for the Panthers. He may not want to split time this way with Vokoun again, so look for him to test the free agent market and see what else is available.

9. Manny Legace (St Louis) – Legace posted a 13-9-2 record in 29 starts for the Blues last season. While these numbers aren’t great, either is the unrestricted class of 2009. Legace may end up staying in St Louis to serve a similar role, but one has to assume he’ll receive a significant pay cut, unless someone thinks he is worth $2.5 million per season. Seeing that someone like Ty Conklin makes much less per season, there is no way this is happening.

10. Brian Boucher (San Jose) – Boucher went 12-6-3 in 22 games with the Sharks last season. He was in a pretty good spot backing up Evgeni Nabakov for the first round chokers last season. One could argue that Boucher benefited from playing for the best team in the regular season, which is a fair argument, but I can’t ignore the stats when doing these rankings. Boucher only made $650,000 last season so I could see him getting a slight raise for a similar role. His days as a number one goalie for long gone.

The list for restricted agents is much smaller. And by smaller I mean most of the players are still playing in the AHL so I don’t know nearly enough about them to do rankings. So to keep this simple, here are the top three goaltenders that are eligible for restricted free agency.

1. Kari Lehtonen (Atlanta) – If I’m Kari Lehtonen, I’m begging my way out of Atlanta. I don’t see this franchise ever being successful in the NHL and in my opinion; they should be shipped up to Canada or eliminated completely from the league. Lehtonen played in 46 games for the terrible Thrashers earning a 19-22-3 record with three shutouts. I’ve seen him play enough games to know that he is much better than the record indicates. Like I said, Atlanta is terrible. Lehtonen is only 25 years old so I could easily see him latching on with another team and serving the role of franchise goaltender.

2. Brian Elliott (Ottawa) – Brian Elliot got the pleasure of playing for the Senators once their season was effectively over. Regardless of that fact, he quickly turned them into a much better team as Ottawa was actually one of the better teams towards the end of the season. In 31 games played, Elliot went 16-8-3 with one shutout. One would assume with him being only 24 years old, that Ottawa would lock him up and not allow anybody else to entertain offers for him. Based on what I saw last season, I’m not looking forward to seeing Buffalo face him multiple times a season.

3. Peter Budaj (Colorado) – Budaj almost single handedly killed my entire fantasy team this past season. Luckily I dumped him and squeaked into the playoffs. Nevertheless, with so few restricted free agents with NHL experience, Budaj is near the top of the list. Who knows, with him only being 26 years old maybe he’ll get much better as time goes on. He’ll need to if he wants to improve on his 20-29-5 record that he posted last season. Then again, playing for the Avalanche these days isn’t exactly the perfect scenario for a young goaltender.

On Wednesday night, the most difficult quest for a Championship will begin. With no further introduction needed, here are my picks for the first round of the NHL Playoffs.

WESTERN CONFERENCE

San Jose Sharks (1) vs Anaheim Ducks (8)

The Sharks are coming off an impressive regular season which netted them the President’s Trophy after finishing with a 53-18-11 record, including 32-5-4 at home. However, we’ve seen this show before. For the past several seasons the Sharks have had a very solid season, only to fall far short of the Stanley Cup once the playoffs start.

The Ducks finished off a wildly inconsistent season where they squeezed into the playoffs finishing two points above ninth place Minnesota. The Ducks finished the season going 7-2-1 in their last 10 games and finished with a better road record than home for the regular season.

I still don’t see those factors being enough to allow Anaheim to pull off the first round upset. San Jose has the better overall team, more consistent goaltending and they have been on a mission all season to be the best team in the league.

My Prediction: San Jose in 6 games

Detroit Red Wings (2) vs Columbus Blue Jackets (7)

I’ve said this before, but Detroit is a franchise that I’m quite envious of. Despite having a salary cap after the lockout, Detroit has maintained their dominance and continued to win consistently. After winning the Stanley Cup last season, Detroit only went out and picked up Marian Hossa who chipped in 40 goals and 31 assists. I think if Detroit has one glaring weakness, its goaltending; however Chris Osgood seems to have a second gear that kicks in once the playoffs start. It will be interesting to see if he struggles since Dave Babcock has shown he is willing to make the switch between the pipes, much like he did last year.

Columbus has been a good story this season and they’ve earned their first playoff berth in franchise history. Rookie goaltender Steve Mason has been absolutely amazing going 33-20-7 with a solid 10 shutouts. There should be an all out conspiracy theory started if he doesn’t win both the Calder trophy and the Vezina this summer.

The Jackets will provide a good fight for Detroit, but ultimately I don’t see them winning this series. A lot of playoff match-ups come down to experience and Detroit has an overwhelming advantage in that category. I was going to predict this series ending in very few games, but Detroit has shown some slow starts in the first round before kicking it up so I’m taking that trend into consideration.

My Prediction: Detroit in 6 games

Vancouver Canucks (3) vs St Louis Blues (6)

As stated several times in my NHL rankings, the Canucks heated up in the second half and were easily one of the best teams in the league. They finished the season winning three in a row to net them a division title and home ice in the first round finishing just two points ahead of Calgary.

The Blues were on the verge of missing the playoffs one week ago, but instead of fading away, they turned it up a notch and took control of their own destiny. They finished 8-1-1 in their last 10 including a 1-0 shutout on the final day of the season which would’ve been the difference between facing the Canucks and facing the Sharks in the first round.

Both teams have been hot down the stretch and this should be an excellent match-up. I think when considering a series like this, there has to be one factor that stands out above all when making a prediction. In this series, it has to be goaltending. This is no knock on the Blues goaltending situation, but Roberto Luongo is one of the few goalies that falls into that “elite” category, and he will be the difference this spring for Vancouver.

My Prediction: Vancouver in 5 games

Chicago Blackhawks (4) vs Calgary Flames (5)

The Blackhawks finished off an impressive regular season which saw them eclipse the 100 point plateau for the first time since I stopped purchasing cassette tapes and listening to them in my walkman. Chicago finds themselves in the interesting situation of technically finishing with the third most points in the conference, but receiving the fourth seed due to division winners. This is a situation that Buffalo found themselves in back in 2005-06 when they fell 20 minutes short of going to the Stanley Cup Finals.

Calgary really flamed out during the stretch (pun intended). They finished the regular season with a solid home record of 27-10-4 but they went 19-20-2 on the road, which will be their downfall in the first round. I really expected more during the season from Calgary, but they let me down much like “Yes Man” did after viewing it this weekend. I have very little confidence in them making a run. I realize that if Miika Kiprusoff can get hot it will be the difference, but right now I just can’t pick Calgary until they prove it to me.

I think if Calgary had somehow won the division and this was a match-up between Chicago and Vancouver, I’d be picking the Canucks in a short series. There is something about Chicago that I don’t quite trust. However, they aren’t playing Vancouver and therefore will win their series in the first round.

My Prediction: Chicago in 7 games

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Boston Bruins (1) vs Montreal Canadiens (8)

It’s funny how one season can change so much, but change so little. At this time last year, we were faced with picking between the top seeded Canadiens and the upstart Bruins, who just squeaked into the playoffs. The series ended up going a full seven games before Montreal pulled it out, only to choke it away in the second round.

This season it has been Boston who has pretty much reigned supreme in the Eastern Conference. If these two teams were a concert series, Montreal would’ve been that summer tour that was supposed to be the best, but instead ended up being some Skid Row tribute band that toured the clubs in North Dakota, while Boston was Ozzfest from the early 2000’s (before Sharon Osbourne ruined another good thing).

Most of the games between these two teams were close this season, so despite the large difference in team play throughout the regular season, I think the series could end up being close. Boston should prevail and it would be an epic disaster if they were upset in the first round, however I don’t see it happening.

My Prediction: Boston in 7 games

Washington Capitals (2) vs New York Rangers (7)

I have no idea what to make of this series. Washington has definitely earned the second seed in the East, but they don’t strike me as that elite team like San Jose, Detroit or even Boston. There is just something about the Caps that tells me they will fall flat on their face in the playoffs.

I think it has to be their lack of solid goaltending. Comparing Jose Theodore and Henrik Lundqvist is like comparing Winger to AC/DC. Having an elite goalie like Lundqvist definitely puts the Rangers in good shape for the first round upset. Combine that with playoff hero Chris Drury, goalie assassin Scott Gomez and the biggest pest in the league Sean Avery, and you can definitely make a case for the Rangers.

Despite their lack of solid goaltending, the Capitals finished the season with a goal differential of +27 goals compared to -8 for the Rangers. That is my main reason in picking Washington. Alexander Ovechkin is one of the few players in the league that most teams must fear heading into a playoff series and I’m sure he wants to prove himself in the post-season since that is the one category that Sidney Crosby has over him.

My Prediction: Washington in 6 games

New Jersey Devils (3) vs Carolina Hurricanes (6)

This has to be the most uninteresting, most boring series for the entire league. Not only do I have zero interest in either team, but I think its going to put most of America to sleep before the second period even starts.

The Hurricanes finished the season on a tear before getting shellacked by Buffalo on Thursday night and then finished it off with a loss to…the Devils!! Ok, maybe I shouldn’t be so excited by that, but something has to spice this series up.

My Prediction: New Jersey in 4 games

Pittsburgh Penguins (4) vs Philadelphia Flyers (5)

This is one of the most intriguing match-ups in my opinion. These two teams are very evenly matched and this has the potential of being a very high scoring series. Both teams finished the season with exactly the same amount of points and goals scored, but the Penguins had one more win in the standings which gives them the extra home game (if needed).

Before I started writing this, I was leaning towards the angle of saying how inconsistent the Flyers goaltending situation is with Martin Biron between the pipes. Then I looked at the goal differential of Pittsburgh (25) and Philadelphia (26) and my decision only became that much harder.

Pittsburgh pretty much owned Philadelphia this regular season when it came to head to head games, so my pick is pretty obvious in this close series.

My Prediction: Philadelphia in 7 games

Here we go. This is the final week in the NHL regular season and by this time next week; both myself and Scott will be making our playoff picks. This is just a reminder that for anybody else that wants to participate, e-mail those picks in once the seeding is completed.

I love this time of the season, although I’d love it more if my team was going to make the playoffs. Then again, they still can, but we’ll know more after tonight. I doubt anybody has any kind of interest in this particular race, but I’m thinking that if Buffalo can beat Detroit tonight (unlikely) and Toronto on Wednesday (very likely), they will be tied with both Florida and the Rangers if both of those teams lost on Tuesday (likely). Therefore, they would all be tied with two games remaining for each. Buffalo faces Carolina on Thursday, so it isn’t looking very good for them, but anything can happen. The Sabres do have tie-breakers over both Florida and New York, so if all three are tied by Thursday, Buffalo would simply have to win out to gain a spot in the playoffs.

On a lighter note, I wanted to do something a little different since this is the final set of rankings for the season. In honor of the latest Guitar Hero game to be released and their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction, I wanted to do these rankings with a little flavor of the Metallica, my all-time favorite band.

Master of Puppets Division

- This is the division that is by far the most elite division. You know when you’re facing any of these three teams; you’re going to be getting their best effort for a whole 60 minutes. You would have to go a long ways to find a weak spot on any of these rosters.

1. San Jose Sharks (1) – The Sharks remain in the driver’s seat for the top spot overall, but it is a very slim margin. They have a three point lead on Boston with three games remaining on their schedule, while Boston has four games. In the final week, San Jose faces Colorado, Phoenix and Los Angeles. In other words, they should win out and claim the President’s Trophy.

2. Boston Bruins (2) – Boston seems to have found themselves again after a little slide a few weeks ago. They have won six in a row and are 8-1-1 in their last 10 games. They face Ottawa, Montreal, Buffalo and the NY Islanders this week. The game against the Canadiens could potentially be a playoff preview if Montreal slips to the eighth spot, although I highly doubt that.

3. Detroit Red Wings (3) – The Red Wings ended a three game losing streak last night against Minnesota and now face Buffalo tonight in a game that could very well determine the Sabres season. The Wings have their division locked up so this week will just be their final tune-up before the playoffs start. They have Buffalo, Nashville, and two games against Chicago to wrap up the regular season.

Kill ‘Em All Division

- This division is close to being the top division, but each team is lacking just a little bit compared to those above. Overall each team hits you with power and you fear what they can do on the ice.

4. Carolina Hurricanes (6) – Carolina literally went from a team that most had missing the playoffs, to a team that might have home ice for the first round. They are 8-1-1 in their last 10 games have three more remaining this week against the NY Islanders, Buffalo and New Jersey. Unless something dramatic takes place this week, it looks like it could be Carolina and Philly in the first round, with home ice being decided this week. They are currently tied in points but Philly has a game in hand.

5. Washington Capitals (9) – If there is one downfall to Washington, it’s their goaltending. It’s been shaky at times and will need to be much better heading into the playoffs. With that being said, the Caps can sure put points on the board when they want to. The Caps face Atlanta, Tampa Bay and Florida to wind down the regular season.

Ride The Lightning Division

- This division is very close to the Kill ‘Em all division, but it’s not quite there. They have the pieces in place for most of the roster, but when push comes to shove, would lose out to those teams listed above.

6. New Jersey Devils (5) – The Devils are a curious bunch. I had them at number one for several weeks before they started to go on an extended losing streak. After watching them this past weekend, I’m not sure where to put them. Sure, Martin Brodeur can do enough to win them some games, but overall, I wasn’t very impressed. They have won their last two games and face Toronto, Ottawa and Carolina to end the season. They should win two of those three games, but if they win all three that will be some good momentum heading into the playoffs.

7. Pittsburgh Penguins (7) – Ohhhhh Pittsburgh. On those rare occasions when I want the Pens to win, they still find a way to screw me over. With the Sabres trailing both the Rangers and Panthers in the standings, I figured the Panthers would lose yesterday against Pittsburgh and keep the gap at two points. I guess that is what I get for counting on a team that wears black and canary yellow. The Pens can pretty much coast through this week with games against the Lightning, Islanders and Canadiens.

8. Chicago Blackhawks (13) – Chicago is turning this around just at the right time. They have won their last three games and have four more before the regular season is over. They have already clinched a spot in the playoffs, so now it is just a matter of where they finish. All four games have playoff implications, well maybe not the last two, with games against Nashville, Columbus and two against Detroit.

9. Vancouver Canucks (4) – Vancouver is slipping and sliding one week after I had them in the top five. They only have one point in their last three games and only have three more remaining. They are currently tied with Calgary for the division lead, with one less game remaining, so each game is going to be extremely important. Starting things off will be a game against those Flames, then Los Angeles and finally Colorado. If they lose to Calgary I’d put my money on the Flames winning the division.

…And Justice For All Division

- There is just something about this division that is missing. Maybe where this album lacked a good strong bass sound, the Flyers miss out on that elite goaltending and the Flames miss out on consistent play from the entire roster. They have the potential to make a run, but the odds aren’t in their favor.

10. Philadelphia Flyers (8) – The Flyers still control their own destiny for fourth place in the Eastern Conference, but with the way Carolina is playing they might have to win out. Speaking from the standpoint of a Buffalo fan, I sure do hope they win out. They face the Panthers, Rangers, Islanders and Rangers again to end the season.

11. Calgary Flames (10) – As mentioned above, the Flames are tied with the Canucks for the division lead, with the Flames having an extra game in hand. They face the Kings tonight and then the Canucks tomorrow night. If they win both of those games, that would pretty much seal the deal for them. Afterwards they have a home and home with the Oilers to end the regular season.

Metallica (Black Album) Division

- This division represents the teams that look good at first glance, but have some major glaring holes to fill. They haven’t been nearly as consistent all season as they’ve shown lately, and that recipe usually results in an early exit from the playoffs.

12. Columbus Blue Jackets (11) – The Blue Jackets haven’t been playing their best hockey in the past week, but still remain in control for a playoff spot. Of course, anything can happen, and if Columbus slips up down the stretch they will be on the outside looking in. They face Chicago, St Louis and Minnesota this week.

13. Montreal Canadiens (NR) – Montreal came along at just the right time and it appears as if they will definitely make the playoffs now. The Canadiens could still get a higher seed, but they currently sit in the seventh spot. They have Ottawa, NY Rangers, Boston and Pittsburgh coming up. It will be a good test to see how playoff ready this team is, with me rooting heavily for them against the Rangers.

Death Magnetic Division

- This division represents the teams that seem to be gaining that killer instinct, but it just isn’t quite there. It’s like they have tasted that success before falling off, and seem to have righted the ship at just the right time.

14. Anaheim Ducks (NR) – The Ducks are anything but a sure thing with only two games remaining. With everyone else out West having at least three games, there will be a lot of scoreboard watching going on this week. They are facing two non playoff teams, so that much will work out for them with games against Dallas and Phoenix.

Can you feel the excitement? We’re a mere two weeks away from the end of the NHL regular season. Things are starting to heat up and for some teams; the playoffs have pretty much started already.

The Sharks took another step towards the President’s Trophy taking a four point lead over Detroit in the West with an equal amount of games remaining, and a five point lead over Boston with the B’s having one game in hand.

Florida and Buffalo are turning the heat up in the Eastern conference as well. Florida has won two games in a row and Buffalo was won three games in a row, benefiting from the return of Ryan Miller. The Rangers shut out New Jersey last night to regain a four point lead over Florida and seven point lead over Buffalo. Right now it looks like it will be Montreal, Florida and Buffalo fighting it out for the final playoff spot.

Out West, the Blues have taken over the 8th spot winning their last five games and seven of their last ten. Vancouver is holding down the fifth spot in the West and after that, all bets are off. I have a personal interest in seeing the Blues make the playoffs since two of their players won a championship for the Erie Otters of the OHL in 2002.

Just a little note since we're only two weeks away, both myself and Scott will be making playoff predictions round by round. We've done this before in the past and it has been a huge success each time (except for the fact that Scott always wins). I'm mentioning this now because we'd love to invite any and all readers to participate as well and we'll post the results on the site. The details will be ironed out as time goes on, but if anybody is interested, a simple e-mail letting us know is all we need right now.

1. San Jose Sharks (2) – Like I previously stated; the Sharks are hot right now and in the driver’s seat for the best record in the league. They picked up three of a possible six points last week and have some crucial games this week. San Jose has two games against Edmonton coming up this week that will help shape out the West. They defeated Calgary last night and are clearly in control of the West.

2. Boston Bruins (4) – I’ve been down on Boston lately and for good reason. However, they came to play last week and have temporarily shut me up. They had a light week but made use of it picking up all four points to stay on top in the East. They have a relatively easy week coming up with games against Tampa Bay and Ottawa, before facing the Rangers on Saturday.

3. Detroit Red Wings (1) – The Red Wings struggled a bit last week going 1-2-0 to drop two spots in the rankings. Normally I wouldn’t put much stock into the race for the President’s Trophy, but home ice might be pivotal if San Jose and Detroit face off for a trip to the Finals.

4. Vancouver Canucks (5) – We’ve seen it in the NFL playoffs and we might see it this season in the NHL. It’s not necessarily the team that has played well all season, but the team that catches fire right before the playoffs that ends up winning it all. The Canucks went 3-1-0 last week and continue their hot play heading down the stretch. They have four more games before the next set of rankings come out so there is a good chance they will be even higher if they keep things up.

5. New Jersey Devils (3) – The Devils have only gotten one point in their last five games and have dropped to the 3rd spot in the Eastern Conference. I’m not ready to completely drop them yet because I have plenty of confidence that they will turn it around before the season ends. If they don’t, they are looking at an early April exit from the playoffs.

6. Carolina Hurricanes (12) – The Hurricanes have been a team possessed recently. They have won six games in a row and have surged up the conference standings. If this keeps up, they could still catch Washington for the division, although that seems unlikely. Regardless of that, Carolina was a team on the edge of the playoffs to a team that will most definitely be in them now.

7. Pittsburgh Penguins (6) – The Penguins picked up all four possible points last week, including a win against the Rangers, to continue their hot play. I know what you’re all saying, they are playing well and they still drop in the rankings? Well, yes, but only because of how well Carolina has been playing lately. The Penguins play them this Saturday so that will help settle this little debate. They then play Florida the following night which should be a very interesting game.

8. Philadelphia Flyers (7) – The Flyers went 1-2-0 last week with their only win coming against the lowly Islanders. With two games against Toronto and one against Ottawa this week, this is their chance to get back on track before they lost home ice in the first round to Carolina.

9. Washington Capitals (8) – I feel somewhat bad putting the number two team in the East this low in the rankings, but I honestly feel this is where they should be. If they were to lace up the skates against any of the teams listed above them, I’d say those teams beat them 8 out of 10 times. They have three winnable games this week so this is their chance to go on a little winning streak before the season winds down.

10. Calgary Flames (9) – Getting shutout twice last week really isn’t a good way to play during the stretch run. They have a tough week coming up with games against Dallas and Minnesota, after dropping one to San Jose last night.

11. Columbus Blue Jackets (11) – If the Blue Jackets want to make the playoffs, the two games this week against Nashville are going to be huge games. Columbus makes that very small list of expansion teams that I don’t want to see removed from the league, so more power to them if they end up in the playoffs this year.

12. New York Rangers (10) – I think it’s safe to say with only two weeks remaining, along with the Sabres making a run to qualify for the playoffs, the next best thing would be the Rangers missing out on the playoffs. The Rangers are on the cusp of missing out right now but got a big win against New Jersey last night. Still, with games against Carolina and Boston this week, they definitely not a sure thing just yet.

13. Chicago Blackhawks (14) – The ‘Hawks got two big wins against the Sharks and Devils last week, before running into the brick wall known as the Vancouver Canucks. They have four more games this week with three of them going against St Louis, Nashville and Columbus. Those games will be pivotal towards the race in the West.

14. Nashville Predators (13) – Remember that list I spoke of when mentioning Columbus? Yeah, the Predators are on that list. Regardless, they have been pretty good this year and if they keep on winning, they can punch their ticket to another first round playoff exit. They did pick up seven of a possible eight points last week so they are doing their part in at least getting that far.

15. St Louis Blues (NR) – I already mentioned what I thought of the Blues before the rankings, so there isn’t a whole lot to say right now. At the risk of sounding like a typical Erie journalist, I’ll refrain from talking about former Erie Otters from this point going forward. The Blues have games against Chicago, Detroit and Dallas this week. They will be pushing their winning streak almost to double digits if they continue their winning ways.

Another week is in the books in the NHL season and I’ve officially hit “Buffalo Bills mode” on the season. To explain better for the people who don’t understand, that is the point in the season where I start trying to figure out some crazy mathematical scenario where my team can still make the playoffs because they are all but eliminated from the post-season.

I thought the Sabres season would be in grave danger when Scott Gomez “accidentally” injured Ryan Miller a month ago, but I still held out hope that Patrick Lalime could get the job done. After this past weekend, I have no doubt that if Miller isn’t back on the ice for Wednesday night’s game, or worst case scenario, Friday night against Toronto, the Sabres will be mathematically eliminated. Simply put, Lalime just isn’t good enough to play in goal for the long haul. If he plays the second half of a back to back stretch and that works out to about 15 games a season, that is fine, but not for an extended period of time.

I’ve been a pretty big defender of Lindy Ruff over the years, but even I have to question his judgment this past weekend. I have no doubt in my mind that the Sabres would’ve beaten Philadelphia this past Friday if Lalime even slightly resembled an NHL goalie. Considering the way Mikael Tellqvist played against Ottawa the previous game, I thought for sure he would start Saturday night against New York. But no, Lalime was back at it and the Sabres lost out on two more points.

The Sabres do have something working to their advantage though. Normally when a team would struggle as bad as Buffalo, they would already be cooked; however that isn’t quite the case. Montreal and Florida have been doing their part in losing almost every night which is keeping open that glimmer of hope. Montreal, Florida and Buffalo all have 10 games remaining in the season. Buffalo trails Florida by four points and Montreal by five for the eighth and final playoff spot. Montreal has Atlanta, Tampa Bay and Buffalo this week. Florida has Carolina, Buffalo, Philadelphia and Dallas. If, and this is a big one, Montreal and Florida continue their slide and lost those games while Buffalo wins, there you go. Considering the fact that Buffalo plays them both this week with a game against Toronto in the middle, their season is on the line this week. They must win all three or they are finished.

Anyways, that is my rant for the week and now we can get back to the NHL in general. The Bruins got a big win against New Jersey to clinch the Northeast Division; however it’s not enough to jump any spots in my rankings. The middle of the pack stayed somewhat the same while one team dropped off and one team makes their return after a brief hiatus. And with that, here are my rankings for the final full week in March.

1. Detroit Red Wings (2) – Detroit has won their last four games in a row but their grip on the number one seed has loosened a bit thanks to San Jose. This should be a pretty tight race down the stretch which will be pretty important if these two teams face each other in the Western Conference Finals.

2. San Jose Sharks (3) – The Sharks have come back around recently and control their own destiny. Both they and Detroit have an equal number of games remaining, so they are in the driver’s seat. They also have a game in hand on Boston so they look to be on course for the President’s Trophy as well.

3. New Jersey Devils (1) – The Devils split their games last week going 2-2, although one game was against Carolina and featured Kevin Weekes in net. Martin Brodeur finally passed Patrick Roy for the all time wins mark so now we can officially have the debate about whether or not he is the greatest goaltender in NHL history. Do I smell another debate with Scott?

4. Boston Bruins (4) – Boston got a big win against New Jersey yesterday, but that is their first regulation win since March 14th against the lowly Islanders. I had to fight myself in putting Boston at the four spot with two teams playing so well below them, so this is most likely their last week in this spot unless something dramatic happens this week.

5. Vancouver Canucks (5) – Vancouver got blown out at Phoenix (how does that happen?) but won their other two games last week for a 2-1 record since the last rankings. Looking at the big picture they are still 7-2-1 in their last 10 which is mighty impressive.

6. Pittsburgh Penguins (6) – Similar to Vancouver, Pittsburgh lost this weekend but finished the week with a 2-1 record to continue their impressive play. Just thinking if Pittsburgh made the Cup Finals against this year, wouldn’t it be funny to see Hossa win it for Detroit just to rub a little more salt in the wound?

7. Philadelphia Flyers (9) – Philadelphia also went 2-1 last week with their only loss coming to the mighty Red Wings. After the game last Friday, I’m fully convinced that they will need much better play from Martin Biron if they want to make another playoff run. Sometimes he is on his game, but most of the time he is just average. Hopefully in the case of my fantasy team, he plays even better this week.

8. Washington Capitals (7) – Instead of just discussing how Washington did in the previous week, I’d like to give my two cents on the A.O. goal celebration that came against Tampa Bay. Honestly, what is the big deal? We’re okay with players scoring the goal, jumping against the glass, and doing all kinds of other things to show up the other team, but we have a problem with what Ovechkin did? Really? It was all in fun. If more players consistently put up 50 goal seasons like him, maybe they would want to join in on the fun. And the nerve of Rick Tochett, who said “I think he’s a terrific player. He went down a notch in my books after that.” Oh I’m sorry Mr. Tochett, maybe if Ovechkin was involved in conspiracy and a nationwide gambling ring he would’ve gone up in your books. What…a…joke.

9. Calgary Flames (8) – The Flames split their games last week going 1-1 and have struggled somewhat recently. As a whole they are 4-6-0 in their last 10 and haven’t looked very impressive. I’m pretty confident they will turn it around sooner rather than later, but I have been wrong about these things more than once.

10. New York Rangers (12) – The Rangers went 2-1 last week and look to be in fairly good shape for the playoffs. I wouldn’t say they are a sure thing, even though their fans seem to think so. Sean Avery has fully come back into his own form with plenty of after the whistle cheap shots which made him famous in New York. It’s funny that he gets away with all those things on the ice and gets the hefty suspension for talking to the media. You got to love the consistency of the NHL sometimes.

11. Columbus Blue Jackets (13) – Columbus went 2-0 last week to continue their impressive play. As of right now, they are sitting in sixth place in the Western Conference and are only five points out of the fourth spot.

12. Carolina Hurricanes (NR) – Carolina has taken off recently going from a team on the cusp of missing the playoffs, to a team that is pushing Montreal right out. They went 3-0 last week and pushed themselves right up the conference standings. It still probably isn’t enough to catch Washington for the division, but stranger things have happened.

13. Nashville Predators (14) – Nashville lost both games last week but still gained a point in each game. They play Anaheim tomorrow night and that will be extremely important to their playoff chances. They also have San Jose, Los Angeles and Detroit this week so this could be a make or break week for the Preds.

14. Chicago Blackhawks (11) – The ‘Hawks are slipping as each week passes. They did get four out of a possible six points last week, but it still might not be enough. Columbus is nipping at their heels and they will have to play their best hockey this week to hold on. They have San Jose, New Jersey and Vancouver this week. That wouldn’t exactly fill me with confidence if I were a Chicago fan.

15. Edmonton Oilers (NR) – Edmonton is coming on strong at just the right time. They went 3-1 last week including an 8-1 shellacking of Colorado. They also have four more games this week so we’ll have a much better idea at their playoff chances come next Monday.