Race for Stanley wide-open

By the time you read this, the Stanley Cup playoffs will be well-underway. There might even be one or two teams already eliminated.

However, don't ask me to predict who they might be. This year's cup chase is the most wide-open in years.

I'm a traditionalist in many ways but, in terms of the NHL, I like that there are easily five or six teams that could easily go all the way - and, with a little luck, maybe even more than that.

It's a change - a breath of fresh air, even - from some seasons in the past, when the cup winner could almost have been mailed the trophy.

There was a run of years back 10 years or more when the Stanley Cup final was decided in four straight games for probably three years in a row. I, for one, would far sooner see a little more excitement; this year, we just might get it.

I hear Montreal and Toronto fans wailing and beating their breasts the Leafs and Habs are both on the outside looking in for the first time in 37 years but, the truth is, next year, they could easily both be back, and without making any major changes.

They have company on the sidelines in the defending champion Carolina Hurricanes, which can't defend its title because the team didn't make the playoffs either.

Parity has hit the National Hockey League, and - like the new NHL rules - it isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Yes, it can be argued it's not as exciting for us as Canadians to watch teams like Anaheim, Atlanta and Nashville play; but they all have solid teams and exciting players and, based on the seasons they had, deserve to be still playing.

After all, if you play an entire 80-game schedule and go down to the final game still not having clinched a playoff spot, one might argue there are likely better playoff candidates. For those teams who didn't make it - in particular Montreal, Toronto and Carolina - they can start right away preparing for next year, when they'll likely have as good a shot as anyone.

I don't normally like to make predictions, but I'll go out on a limb and say, of the 16 teams left in the running when I wrote this, I like the winner of the Pittsburgh-Ottawa opening round series to win the Eastern Conference.

It won’t be easy. Buffalo and New Jersey were the top seeds going in, but the Sabres, despite a great regular season, haven't really proven themselves, and the Devils didn't really help their cause by firing their head coach in the final week of the regular season.

I'm not necessarily looking for Buffalo to get bounced out in the opening round - though in this NHL, anything can happen - and they could easily end up winning, but I like others' chances better.

The Senators arguably have a stronger team than Pittsburgh, but I like the team the Penguins have put together, and not just because of the youngest-ever winner of the Art Ross Trophy, Nova Scotia's own Sidney Crosby.

It's a shame in a way either the Senators or Penguins will be gone after the first round. Otherwise, I'd like both their chances of getting deep into the playoffs.

If I had to pick a “dark horse” from the East, it would probably be Tampa Bay. After all, the Lightning are just two seasons removed from winning it all, and certainly have the experience - providing they got by the “yawn-a-minute” Devils in the opening round.

As a person without cable, it's not possible to see teams like Nashville and Atlanta play that often, so it's harder to predict how they might do. Same goes for some of the teams out west, who I see even less.

Detroit was the top Western Conference seed entering the playoffs but, as much as I've always liked the Wings, they don't scare me like they once did. Again, I don't see them losing in the opening round, but I don't see them around at the end, either.

Many people feel the West race is particularly wide-open; I have to agree. I like the year Anaheim had, but I also like the way Vancouver ended the regular season. In terms of a “dark horse,” I wouldn't count out San Jose.

I'm stopping short of making any actual predictions - only that this has the potential to be the closest and most competitive Stanley Cup playoff in some time.

While some of the traditionally familiar faces may not be there, I am predicting those who are will give us a good - and maybe even a better - show.