With just about a month left in the NHL regular season, some of the division races are clearing up while some are becoming even murkier and more exciting. In fact, the Eastern Conference division races each have clear favorites, while the Western Conference races are much, much tighter.
Who will win each division and gain a top seed in this year's playoffs? Here are some predictions.
Atlantic Division: Boston Bruins
The Bruins have the Atlantic just about wrapped up, holding a very comfortable twelve-point lead on the second place Montreal Canadiens with eighteen games remaining.
The defending Eastern Conference champions have their sights focused on taking home the big hardware this season and will enter the playoffs as one of the top favorites to win the Stanley Cup barring an extreme meltdown.
The trade deadline additions of Corey Potter and Andrej Meszaros on defense only made this team stronger and more frightening to face down the stretch.
Metropolitan Division: Pittsburgh Penguins
If Boston's twelve-point lead is comfortable, then what is Pittsburgh's sixteen-point lead? As of March 10, the Penguins lead the second place New York Rangers by just that, and appear to have the Metropolitan all but wrapped up, just as we expected at the beginning of the year.
The main focus for Pittsburgh at this point is winning rivalry games (like the home-and-home series with the Philadelphia Flyers coming up this weekend), avoiding injuries and holding off Boston for the best record in the Eastern Conference.
Central Division: St. Louis Blues
The Blues are locked in a tight race for the Central, leading the Chicago Blackhawks by four points (with a game in hand) and the Colorado Avalanche by seven.
St. Louis has been playing outstanding hockey all season and currently holds the best record in the NHL with 94 points.
The Blues became even better at the trade deadline when they acquired Ryan Miller and Steve Ott from the Buffalo Sabres. Miller appeared to be in somewhat of a decline while playing with a weak Sabres team, but so far it seems as if he has been rejuvenated by playing behind one of the best defenses in hockey in St. Louis.
While the defending Stanley Cup Champion Blackhawks will put up one heck of a fight, the Blues will be able to hold them off. Four solid lines, great defense and a hot Ryan Miller will keep them in the driver's seat in the division and propel the Blues to a President's Trophy.
Pacific Division: San Jose Sharks
Yes, a bit of a shocker here as the Anaheim Ducks have held the Pacific DIvision lead for nearly the entire season, including a current four-point lead with a game in hand.
The truth is, however, that the Ducks have been sputtering a little bit lately while the Sharks have done quite the opposite. Although Anaheim seemed invincible at home, it fell into a bit of a funk and looked vulnerable at Honda Center for the first time this season. San Jose, on the other hand, has been completely dominant at home consistently, and has more games remaining at home than on the road while the case is vice-versa for Anaheim.
This race will come down to the wire, but the Sharks will eventually prevail because they are getting hot at the right time. The Ducks have been hot the entire season, but have let off the gas pedal just enough lately to leave the door open for San Jose to catch them.