NHL’s Western Conference remains power conference
By Jordan Pink
The NHL’s Western Conference remains the better side
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The NHL’s Western Conference has become a shark tank. A collection of powerful teams makes for exciting games and means that every two points up for grabs in inter-conference games is crucial. NHL.com’s
list seven western conference teams in the top ten teams.
First in the power rankings are the 2010 and 2012 Stanley Cup champions, the Chicago Blackhawks. The Hawks lost in last year’s conference final against the eventual cup champions the L.A. Kings. However, the Hawks have made some changes that solidify their number one ranking heading into the season. The Hawks acquired veteran centerman Brad Richards who will join Patrick Kane and rising star Brandon Saad on the second line. The Hawks will look to make another cup run this year with their bolstered offense.
Second are the L.A. Kings, who won the cup last year, and in 2011, have not made significant changes but will surely remain a contender due to their quality of players and a coaching style that evidently works for the team.
The St. Louis Blues are ranked third in the NHL, and are coming off a successful regular season and yet another disappointing playoff campaign, in which they blew a 2-0 series lead to the Blackhawks. The Blues have added Paul Stastny to the equation but have lost Vladimir Sobotka. It will be interesting to see how this swap will impact their success.
Anaheim is the fourth ranked NHL team. The Ducks made a blockbuster move this offseason, acquiring Ryan Kesler from the Vancouver Canucks. In Kesler, the Ducks now have a dynamic second line centre, who will surely cause problems for many teams.
The San Jose Sharks round up the top five, which features all Western Conference teams. The Sharks are hoping that their youngsters can be the difference between contender and champion. They will turn to youngsters like Thomas Hertl and Logan Couture to take some weight off of veterans Patrick Marleau, Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski when it comes to scoring.
The other two western teams in the top 10 are the Dallas Stars and the Minnesota Wild, both of whom looked very promising late last season.
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