GDT Nov. 27, Habs vs Sabres, 7 PM

[Lovett's Magnatones]

I don't think people understand how the NHL playoff system works now. 25 games into the season we sit with the top Wildcard spot only four points behind leader Boston and one point behind Detroit in third. Toronto is tied with us for the Wildcard spots. After that? Carolina is five points behind us. A five point gap from the wildcard to missing the playoffs is big and it's only going to get bigger. Toronto is also trending down hard in a big way. 11 goals allowed in two games. Ouch. They are hoping and begging the game against the Habs is their turnaround because otherwise they are already crashing, and the Leafs always crash in the regular season.

Detroit is free falling as well, but they are the king of the loser point. I guess the question we should ask is, "how can the East be this bad?"

[Machine of Loving Grace]

Pretty much, the East has a lot of "top stars" while the West has a lot more "secondary stars". There's a lot less top stars than there are secondary stars. St. Louis compensates for not having an Ovechkin/Backstrom by having a Backes/Steen/Stewart/Oshie/Tarasenko. The defence in the West is also a lot stronger. Far more firewagon hockey in the East so the teams that do have strong defence (Boston and Montreal have allowed nine less goals than anyone else in the East. Washington, likely to make the playoffs in the Metropolit division, have allowed more than 20 goals more than Montreal and Boston) have a tendency to win more games. The top five goalies in the East right now are probably Rask, Price, Bishop, Mason and Miller. Threeof those teams are in a playoff spot while Mason looks to be saving the bacon of Philadelphia right now. Miller everyone knows isn't the reason Buffalo is terrible. Montreal, Boston and Tampa being where they are has more to do with defensive play than offensive play.

Defencemen alone, the West mops up the East. Boston and Montreal are the only teams I'd say have "Western Conference" strong defence. The East runs on top offensive production. That's why they got hammered by the West in the early games.

That all said, I still deny the notion that the west is "better". Every league you watch in North America, the west is better (or in baseball, the National League is better). Much of this is due to people overrating the lesser publicized teams and league. To make it to the Stanley Cup finals you have to be built to be Top 16 and then built to survive four best of seven series'. We haven't seen a team get swept since 1998. The last time a team only won a single game in the finals it was Ottawa. Four out of seven for the Cup, it ain't geography that gives you an advantage. It's hunger.