Eastern Conference
1 Washington- The powerhouse offense will get them lots of wins, but lack of toughness and goaltending will keep them from raising the cup
2 Boston- added Horton and Seguin to help league-worst offense, if young blue line can stay healthy and play to potential, the Boston may very well see their first cup in 39 years.
3 Philadelphia- Will build off strong playoff run with a solid team led by young guys in Carter, Richards, and Giroux, as well as veterans Briere, O'Donnell, Pronger, and Timmonen
4 New Jersey- With the improvements at blue line with signings of Volchenkov and Tallinder, as well as the first full year with Kovalchuk and Brodeur in net, New Jersey might have what it takes to win their first cup since 2003
5 Pittsburgh- They have the best player in hockey in Sidney Crosby, a healthy Malkin with a blue line led by Brooks Orpik, Kris Letang and Paul Martin, followed by Fleury between the pipes, Pittsburgh looks to be a frontrunner for the cup
6 Buffalo- very good offensively, with Ryan Miller between the pipes. If they can build a defense around 2010 Calder Trophy winner Tyler Myers, this team will be scary.
7 Ottawa- This is another very strong offensive team, led by young guns Jason Spezza and Milan Michalek, as well as Alfredsson, Fisher, and Kovalev. The addition of Gonchar should help their blue line, but questions still linger regarding goaltending.
8 Tampa Bay- This could be the surprise team in the East with Stamkos, St. Louis being two of the best playmakers in hockey, as well as Lecavlier when he wants to be. They also brought in veterans Brett Clark and Pavel Kubina to help their blue line.
Outside looking in
Montreal- A team that has seemed to have taken a step back with no true goal scoring threat outside of Piekanic (70 pts.) and Cammallleri (50 pts.), and a lack of depth at the blue line behind Markov and Spacek. Between the pipes, Carey Price will have to rebound from a tough 09-10 season if Montreal expects to contend.
NY Rangers- A team with several holes in their lineup, led by Gaborik (86 pts.), Prospal (58 pts.), and Dubinsky (44 pts.), suffers from lack of depth, epsecially on the blue line, but do have one of the best goalies in hockey in Lundqvist.
Carolina- A team that struggled most of last year before coming on strong late, and are led by Eric Staal, Eric Cole, and Cam Ward, the same players that led them to a stanley cup just 4 1/2 years ago
Eastern Conference Finals- Pittsburgh over Boston
Western Conference
1 Vancouver- Looks to be the best of the west with a strong offense led by the Sedin twins, Alex Burrows, and Ryan Kesler, as well as one of the best defenseman in hockey in Christian Ehrhoff.
2 San Jose- Another offensive powerhouse, this team has been a regular season dynasty since the lockout, with at least 99 pts. every year since the lockout has yet to do much in the postseason. Niemi and Nittymaki replacing Nabokov could help
3 Chicago- The defending champs will need another Niemi-like run by Turco in the spring if they want to repeat
4 Detroit- After a rough 09-10 season, Detroit need to build off a strong second half and carry it through 82 games. A full season with Jimmy Howard in net should help.
5 LA Kings- The youth movement of Brown, Kopitar, Doughty, and Quick reminds me much of a young Chicago Blackhawks team a couple years ago that was led by Toews, Kane, Seabrook, and Keith. This Blackhawks team eventually won the Stanley Cup, but LA needs a better blue line if they want to get to the promised land
6 Colorado- A sleeper team in 09-10, they will look to build off that season and make some noise in the postseason.
7 Phoenix- The best team that nobody watches, shocked the hockey world last year with a 50-win season. They may not replicate that this year, but look for them to still be successful behind Bryzgalov, one of the game's best goalies.
8 Calgary- Iginla is still a very good player, Kiprusoff is still a very good goalie, and there are pieces around them which will allow them to contend.
Outside Looking in
St. Louis- This team made the bick pickup getting Jarislov Halak, and if they get in watch out because they could possibly be what Philadelphia was last year.
Nashville- An all around well balanced team offensively and defensively, that can sneak in and make some noise.
Anaheim- A healthy Ryan Getzlaf along with Bobby Ryan and Corey Perry will make for a lethal first line, maybe the best line in hockey, but the retirement of Neidermayer and the trading of Giguere could cause uncertainty at the blue line and between the pipes
Western Conference Finals- Vancouver over San Jose
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