The Western Conference has been the more competitive of the two conferences in term of depth over the last few seasons and this season should be no different. The core of this depth has come from the Central division. Last season, three of the five teams made the playoffs, while one more was on the bubble and there’s no doubt that there’s at four teams that could be challenging for the playoffs this season.

So let’s get started.

Chicago Blackhawks – There is no doubt that the Blackhawks are going to be a much, much different team than the one that won the Stanley Cup last season.

Gone are role players like Andrew Ladd and Dustin Byfuglien who have been replaced by Fernando Pisani and a handful of players who have been developing in Rockford. This is both troubling for Blackhawks fans and intriguing as well. Jack Skille, Jake Dowell and Bryan Bickell will finally get their chance in the big leagues, as will Viktor Stalberg.

The good news for their forward corps, however, is that returning are their core players like Toews, Hossa, Kane and Sharp. With those players to guide their incoming youngsters, the Hawks should still be in good hands next season.

On defense, the team has added big defenseman John Scott who will add some toughness in the absence of Ben Eager. While the contract of Niklas Hjalmarsson may be questionable, there’s no doubt that their top-four are as good as any in the league and the potential addition of Nick Leddy to the group is encouraging indeed.

Their biggest question lies between the pipes. With the decision to walk away from Antti Niemi and sign Marty Turco, the ‘Hawks have also made a statement that they are confident that it was not the young Finn who led them to the promised land.

While Turco’s record in big games is more than questionable, there is no doubt that he has both the drive to succeed, as well as the talent to be a successful goaltender in Chicago.

Columbus Blue Jackets – The Blue Jackets find themselves in a precarious position.

They are just one season removed from their first playoff appearance in team history, yet there is an air of uncertainty surrounding this team that is undeniable. In fact, questions are abounding when it comes to the Jackets.

Is Steve Mason a true franchise goaltender? Can Nikita Filatov find himself in the NHL? Can Rick Nash truly be dominant player without a top center?

If the answer to two of the three of those questions is yes, then you could very well see the Stanley Cup Playoffs return to Ohio.

The problem is, however, is that there is no certainty that the answer to any of these three questions is yes.

Mason started to find his game again at the end of the season, while Filatov may find himself much more suited to the style of Scott Arneil than of Ken Hitchcock, but the fact remains that Nash does not have that one player on his line that can complement him and help him become the dominant player that we saw in the Olympics.

The addition of Ethan Moreau makes the team tougher to play against, to be sure, but it does nothing to help their top-six forwards.

Unfortunately for Jackets fans, it would appear that this team is again going to be on the outside looking in unless things turn around very, very quickly. There are significant needs that the team has that were not addressed in either the draft or free agency, most notably help on defense. These needs must be addressed before the team can take any significant steps forward so, they may be looking at another lottery pick.

Detroit Red Wings – So, how do the Detroit Red Wings follow up an admittedly disappointing season?

Well, how about signing a future hall-of-famer, a gritty defenseman and getting back one of their top young players from the KHL?

Their forward corps now have Jiri Hudler back in the fold as well as newcomer Mike Modano, who will serve as a depth center and also get some powerplay time, most likely. But on top of that, they will have a healthy and rested forward unit that is one of the most potent in the NHL.

Johan Franzen and Tomas Holmstrom will be back healthy and the return of Hudler will likely spell a resurgence for the team’s two superstars in Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg and that can only mean bad things for the rest of the league.

On defense, Ruslan Salei joins an already solid defensive unit and will provide them with some added grit. He, along with Brad Stuart and Niklas Kronwall will ensure that opposing forwards keep their heads up.

Led, once again, by Nicklas Lidstrom, the Wings blueline will be one of the toughest to play against in the league and Salei’s hardnosed style will only add to that and their defense should only solidify Jimmy Howard’s place in net with the squad.

Howard had a breakout season with the Wings last year and the Calder Trophy nominee unseated Chris Osgood in the starting role. He held the Wings together through the injuries last season and was the sole reason that the team was able to not only make the playoffs but claw their way as far up as they did. Howard will have a lot to prove in order to avoid the dreaded sophomore slump but he is in the best situation possible to be able to do so.

When you look at the Wings, they are a team that is poised and ready to be a competitive team in the Stanley Cup race once again and could easily find themselves as the frontrunner to represent the Western Conference in the Stanley Cup finals again.

Nashville Predators – To be perfectly honest, Nashville is like the bad cold of the Central Division. When it comes down to it, there’s no reason they should be there but you simply can’t get rid of them.

The Preds are about $13 million under the salary cap heading into this season with 15 forwards under contract, but just five defensemen and one goaltender. As always, however, it should be expected that those positions will be filled from within.

Chet Pickard will likely get a good, long look as the team’s back up goaltender while it could be expected that Ryan Ellis or Cody Franson will get a look as the team’s sixth and seventh defensemen.

But overall, this is a Predators team that is looking like they could match up very well with the rest of the division.

Matthew Lombardi joins an underrated forward unit and Colin Wilson will find himself in an increased role as well, after the departure of Jason Arnott. The top six, while not flashy, are both reliable and clutch and their young players of Wilson and Patric Hornqvist are continuing to improve. Throw in the addition of Sergei Kostitsyn, who will have a renewed lease on life after a change of scenery, hoping to follow in the footsteps of fellow former-Montreal Canadiens underachiever, Guillaume Latendresse and some solid role players like Joel Ward and Jerred Smithson round out the group.

On defense, they still have their solid top-two of Shea Weber and Ryan Suter. These two will anchor a defensive unit that could use some work, but is very promising.

With veteran Francis Boullion, youngsters Ryan Parent (who is looking for a new lease on life in Nashville as well) and Kevin Klein will round out a defensive unit that will look much different by the time the season starts.

In net, they have Pekka Rinne, who will look to improve on a pedestrian season last year. Without Dan Ellis looking over his shoulders, however, the starting job is Rinne’s to lose and the team’s hope is that the certainty of his job will elevate his play.

The Predators are likely going to be a bubble team this year, as they have been the past few seasons, but that shouldn’t be a problem for a team that is used to that tag being saddled on them.

St. Louis Blues – Last season was admittedly disappointing for the Blues, who had come in with high hopes of contending, or at least winning a playoff series.

The young Blues team faltered early on and, after the firing of Andy Murray and hiring of Davis Payne, began to find the fire that had made them a force to be reckoned with in the West.

This season will be one of change for the Blues, though it shouldn’t make them any less deadly. Paul Kariya and Keith Tkachuk are both gone, leading to a youth movement for the team. This will lead to increased ice time for players like David Perron, David Backes, T.J. Oshie and Patrik Berglund, all of whom will look to improve on their performances from last season.

The fate of the Blues likely lies in how these four perform. With the subtractions of Tkachuk and Kariya, their forward unit is significantly younger and has lost two of their more prominent leaders. That means that these four, as well as players like Brad Boyes and Andy McDonald will have to step up and fill the void both in leadership and in point production if this team is to be successful.

On the back end, the team has their potent young duo of Erik Johnson and Alex Pietrangelo (who will likely finally crack the lineup for good this season). These two will be the cornerstones of a defensive unit that is as offensively talented as it is gritty, making for a potent combination.

Behind this defensive unit is the hero of the Montreal Canadiens, Jaroslav Halak. Halak proved in the playoffs that he is capable of bearing the load of a franchise and is really the first solid goaltender that the team has had in a few years. Behind him will be perennial solid back up, Ty Conklin, who will fill in admirably when needed and the duo will provide one of the more solid goaltending tandems in the West.

There is no doubt that the Blues are a bubble team, but there’s no doubt that Davis Payne has this team playing the way that he wants them to and heading in the right direction.

Predictions

1) Detroit Red Wings
2) Chicago Blackhawks
3) Nashville Predators
4) St. Louis Blues
5) Columbus Blue Jackets

It breaks down like this. The Red Wings and Blackhawks will most likely be back in the playoffs this season. As with the last couple seasons, one of the last spots in the West could be determined by who finishes third or fourth in the division, lending hope to Predators and Blues fans. Finally, Columbus will find themselves looking at the lottery once again; however, their future continues to look up under Scott Howson.

Up Next: The Northwest Division

There’s no doubt that the Wild this season have been about as consistent as a schizophrenic on speed and have left many of their loyal fanbase in desperate need of some sort of emotional therapy. 

Bearing that in mind, consider this blog right here your own personal “truth zone.”  I promise that I won’t try to sugarcoat things for you and I promise that I’ll try to remain optimistic about the Wild’s chances this season. 

Realistically, there’s a lot to be optimistic about. 

Martin Havlat has finally caught fire and is playing like the player we thought we were getting at the season’s onset.  Mikko Koivu is on pace for yet another career season.  Guillaume Latendresse is playing like a man possessed for the Wild, having scored 13 goals and 19 points in just 27 games with the team. 

Have I mentioned that we’ve gotten Brent Burns back, and he’s actually playing Brent Burns hockey?  Or that Robbie Earl is scoring a goal in about every third game and truly looking like he belongs?  Or that this could quite possibly be the most closely knit Wild team that I’ve seen in quite some time? 

There is, indeed, light on the horizon for the boys in Iron Range Red. 

The problem is that we’re not on the horizon yet.  We’re in the here and now. 

It would be easy to go into some long rant about how this game is a must win, how it would do wonders for the team’s confidence, how a solid game from Backstrom would be great for his confidence. 

All of the above holds true. 

But we’ll just put it this way. 

We’re sitting in 12^th place in the Western Conference, just five points from the final playoff spot.  Just five points behind the very team that we play tonight. 

A regulation win tonight puts us three points behind them (for those who, like myself, are mathematically challenged). 

Right now, Hockey Reference has the Wild listed as having a 14% chance of making the playoffs.  Hardly a foregone conclusion, but also there is hope. 

The problem, for the Wild, lies behind the fact that they are having to play catch up. 

The teams that they’re chasing? 

Well, the Sharks have won five straight, the Avs six, the Kings three – you get the point. 

The good news is that the teams that they are most likely to catch are either struggling or in a flat-out free fall. 

The team tonight gets lumped in with the former. 

While everyone in Detroit is remaining optimistic that this is a team that could do damage in the playoffs, if healthy (and let’s be honest, they really could), the fact is that they are currently decimated by injuries – something that the Wild need to take advantage of tonight. 

Lineup(s) 

To be honest, I’m not quite sure how the lines will roll out for the Wild past the top two, but here’s my best guess, otherwise known what I would do were I the one making the lineups: 

Brunette-Koivu-Miettinen
Latendresse-Brodziak-Havlat
Nolan-Belanger-Earl
Sheppard-Ebbett-Clutterbuck 

Now, I know what you’re asking.  Clutterbuck on the fourth line?  You’re demoting Cal for Robbie Earl?  WTF mate!? 

Am I crazy?  There’s a good chance.  But here’s my thoughts.  Robbie Earl has five goals this season.  Hardly Ovechkin-esque numbers, right?  But his shooting percentage?  41.7%.  He has five goals on 12 shots.  To me, that deserves a shot at playing with the big boys. 

Meanwhile, Clutterbuck has not been playing his best over the last few games.  By no means do I think he deserves a demotion to the eight minutes a game that Earl has been averaging, but I do think that Earl deserves a promotion to more than eight minutes per-game, to see what he can do. 

On defense, it’s likely going to be more of the same: 

Zidlicky-Zanon
Johnsson-Schultz
Burns-Hnidy 

Look for Burns’s icetime to start increasing, however.  He’s going to start getting more and more icetime as his level of conditioning continues to improve and the Wild need him to do just that, especially in a game like tonight’s against an extremely tough opponent. 

In net, we’ll get Backstrom despite him getting his “maintenance” day yesterday.  Don’t kid yourselves.  He’s struggling, but he’s still our number one and he needs to play his way out of this slump, no matter how painful it is to watch. 

What to Watch For 

Seriously.  Robbie Earl. 

Why?  The Wild is 10-3-2 with him in the lineup and 9-0-1 in his last ten. 

Whatever it is that Robbie brings to this team when he’s suited up, it’s infectious.  The team has, on a whole, played better with him in the lineup.  His speed and grit help this team a great deal and he’s just the type of sparkplug that the Wild need in their lineup. 

Also, keep an eye on Guillaume Latendresse. 

After his hot streak got him named the third star of the week a couple weeks ago, he has been silent in his last three games. 

The good news with G-Lat is twofold.  

First, he usually comes out of his shell quite nicely after a scoreless streak.  (Six game scoreless streak, followed by four goals in four games.  Four game scoreless streak, followed by seven goals and 12 points in seven games.)  

Second, even when he’s not scoring he can be an energizer and a difference maker.  How?  He’s averaging 2.5 shots per game since joining the Wild and 3.5 in his last ten games, and he has turned into a forechecking and checking machine since joining the Wild. 

Finally, Niklas Backstrom. 

Namely, which Nik will we get?  Will we get the one who stoned Columbus for 59:30?  Or will we get the one that saw a bad bounce break his shutout and get flustered into giving up one more. 

My guess is that he will come out like a man possessed as he did against Columbus.  He knows that the hasn’t been playing his best and he knows that the team needs him desperately.  Backs will be ready tonight. 

But will the Wild? 

Key(s) to the Game 

The Wild need to come out strong early. 

They simply cannot afford to fall into another hole against a good team. 

Jimmy Howard is proving that he is the man in net for Detroit and the Wild need to get to him early, as much for their confidence as his. 

The Wild tend to score in bunches, so if they can get an early goal, there’s a good chance that their jump will continue and they might be able to extend their lead. 

But they cannot afford to fall behind.  If they fall behind to Detroit, especially by more than one goal, they will be in deep, deep trouble. 

The Wild also NEED to limit the Wings’ scoring chances. 

Detroit likes to shoot.  Scratch that.  They LOVE to shoot. 

The Wild have got to protect Backstrom and get in shooting lanes.  If they can prevent the Wings from getting a dearth of solid scoring opportunities, they will be able to stay in the game.  But another shooting gallery, like happened in the teams’ last meeting?  

It could be a long game. 

Finally, the Wild need to, need to, need to stop the Wings’ top line.  Let Dan Cleary beat you.  Let Drew Miller beat you.  Let Ville Leino beat you.  But, for the love of God, do NOT let Bertuzzi or Datsyuk or Zetterberg beat you.  The three of them account for 28% of Detroit’s points and 30% of Detroit’s goal production. 

This isn’t saying that the three players I mentioned, or any of the Wings’ other players can’t beat you.  But shutting down the Berzettersyuk line gives you a much better chance. 

The puck drops tonight at 7pm and it is televised on FSN!  For those following me on Twitter, I’ll hopefully be posting updates on there as we go (though they will definitely not rival those of Mike Russo).  You can follow me on Twitter at @WildNation!