Just two years removed from their Stanley Cup parade the Avalanche are just a piece<\/p>\n\n\n\n
or two away from being considered an overall favorite. They haven\u2019t dropped below<\/p>\n\n\n\n
+900 through most books dating back to last July. The squad has gotten used to life<\/p>\n\n\n\n
without Gabriel Landeskog and instead have relied on reclamation projects such as<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jonathan Drouin who has put up over 10 goals and more than 40 points on the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nate the Great<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n While they will be looking for a depth forward or two, including a second-line center to<\/p>\n\n\n\n take the pressure off of the top line, Nathan MacKinnon has been an absolute horse. He<\/p>\n\n\n\n currently holds the most points on the season and is a favorite for MVP. He\u2019s on a<\/p>\n\n\n\n 16-game point-streak that has seen him produce 32 points in that span. He\u2019s set career<\/p>\n\n\n\n highs for assists and points and is just a single goal away from setting a new high in<\/p>\n\n\n\n goals. He also has a 32-game home point streak that started in the home opener which<\/p>\n\n\n\n ties him for third longest with Guy Lafleur and just behind Wayne Gretzky\u2019s 40-game<\/p>\n\n\n\n streak in 88-89 and his 33-game streak in 85-86. Not a bad company to be in. To add<\/p>\n\n\n\n some more perspective on MacKinnon\u2019s dominance, he is 24 points up on his linemate<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mikko Rantanen who has an impressive 37 goals on the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Apres-Crew<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n On the backend, Cale Makar is doing Cale Makar things. He\u2019s second among blueliners<\/p>\n\n\n\n with 17 goals and 75 points, despite playing 5 fewer games than league leader Quinn<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hughes. Then there is Alexandar Georgiev who has been leaned on heavily this<\/p>\n\n\n\n season, earning 35 wins thus far. General Manager Chris MacFarland was active at the<\/p>\n\n\n\n deadline making a few trades, including shipping off Ryan Johansen to Philadelphia for<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sean Walker and bringing in Casey Mittelstadt from Buffalo for Bowen Byram.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mittelstadt has been an excellent addition and has slotted in perfectly as the second-line<\/p>\n\n\n\n center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Crease Concerns No More<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n While there usually is an air of instability in the crease for Carolina, the return of<\/p>\n\n\n\n Frederik Andersen has brought a whole wave of confidence to the Hurricanes lineup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They\u2019ve seemingly cemented their last line of defense with the tandem of Pyotr<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kochetkov and Andersen. Since Andersen\u2019s return, the Hurricanes have lost just a<\/p>\n\n\n\n single game with both he and Kochetkov alternating starts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Storm Surge<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The difference upfront for the Hurricanes is that they don\u2019t have one particular player<\/p>\n\n\n\n that they\u2019ve counted on to carry the load. They have 10 different players who have hit<\/p>\n\n\n\n double-digits in goals and only one player with more than 55 points. When it comes to<\/p>\n\n\n\n special teams, they have the third-best power play in the league and the second-best<\/p>\n\n\n\n penalty kill in the league.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Frog Splash<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Hurricanes were in a position where they had the assets to go after a big fish at the<\/p>\n\n\n\n deadline and that\u2019s exactly what they did. They went out and made a splash, trading for<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jake Guentzel who is proving to be an excellent fit in Carolina\u2019s top-six.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After last year\u2019s historic regular season, many thought the Bruins would take a step<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n back, especially after losing both of their top centers in Patrice Bergeron and David<\/p>\n\n\n\n Krejci to retirement. Instead, they just keep on keeping on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Beantown Beatdown<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Winger David Pastrnak leads the team with 44 goals and 99 points which is good<\/p>\n\n\n\n enough for fourth-best in the NHL. The issue is that Pastrnak is relied upon a bit too<\/p>\n\n\n\n much. He\u2019s 38 points up on the next highest scorer on the team in Brad Marchand who<\/p>\n\n\n\n is on his way to a 30-goal season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 1-2 Punch in the Crease<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In net, they easily have the best tandem with Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They\u2019ve split the crease with 22 and 19 wins respectively this year and don\u2019t seem to be<\/p>\n\n\n\n slowing down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Center of Attention<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Bruins failed to address their need for center depth at the deadline, something that<\/p>\n\n\n\n may haunt them in the playoffs. Nevertheless, they have the most points in the league<\/p>\n\n\n\n up to this point and are a threat to hoist hockey\u2019s holy grail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Canucks took a top trade target off the board at the end of January when they<\/p>\n\n\n\n acquired Elias Lindholm from Calgary for Andrei Kuzmenko and a mix of picks and<\/p>\n\n\n\n prospects. It was rumored that both the Avs and Bruins were in on him but the Canucks<\/p>\n\n\n\n made the Flames an offer they couldn\u2019t refuse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Canucks by Committee<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Vancouver sits in the top spot in the Western Conference and are tied for 2nd with 94<\/p>\n\n\n\n points on the season. They have three players inside the top twenty when it comes to<\/p>\n\n\n\n points in the NHL and have a 36-goal scorer in Brock Boeser. JT Miller leads the squad<\/p>\n\n\n\n with 89 points, good for a top ten position in the league. The lotto line is backed by<\/p>\n\n\n\n consistent depth in the lineup as Vancouver boasts 10 players who have put up at least<\/p>\n\n\n\n 10 goals on the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oh Captain, My Captain<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n On the blue line, Vancouver\u2019s Captain Quinn Hughes has the most points among<\/p>\n\n\n\n defensemen with 79, setting a new Canucks franchise record for points by a<\/p>\n\n\n\n defenseman in a season. Hughes has a real chance to be the first Canucks<\/p>\n\n\n\n defenseman to win the Norris Trophy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Down Goes Demko<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In net, Thatcher Demko has just one less win than Georgiev at 34 despite starting 4<\/p>\n\n\n\n fewer games. Unfortunately, Vancouver will have to get used to life without Demko for<\/p>\n\n\n\n the time being as he went down on March 9th against Winnipeg with a lower-body<\/p>\n\n\n\n injury. It\u2019s believed that he\u2019ll be out for up to a month so the Canucks will look to Casey<\/p>\n\n\n\n DeSmith to be their number 1 in the meantime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite having gone all-in on Lindholm, the Canucks are still a piece or two away from<\/p>\n\n\n\n being considered a true contender in the postseason. That\u2019s what made this deadline<\/p>\n\n\n\n so\u2026.confusing. Vancouver elected to stand pat after already making a big swing with<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lindholm. With the former Calgary Flame not producing up to his standard, there were<\/p>\n\n\n\n rumors of flipping him in a three-team deal for Guentzel. Obviously that didn\u2019t happen<\/p>\n\n\n\n but you would have thought that GM Patrik Allvin would have done something. Then<\/p>\n\n\n\n again, this franchise has a history of giving up future assets for deals that don\u2019t pan out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Well, here\u2019s to hoping for Canucks fans that the deal that they did make is enough to<\/p>\n\n\n\n hopefully bring the franchise their first Stanley Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\nCarolina Hurricanes +750<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Boston Bruins +1200<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Vancouver Canucks +1400<\/h2>\n\n\n\n