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I've been watching hockey for almost 20 years and I have never seen such a plethora of good teams heading to playoffs. At the time this article was written the west has one spot left open, either Calgary or Colorado. The east has three spots remaining with five teams vying for them. Carolina was just eliminated last night, Carolina the defending Stanley Cup champions. Yes the point system is a little wacky, eleven teams have over 100 points with a possible twelve.

So that leaves us with some very interesting teams. Certainly the darlings of the playoffs have to be the Penguins. Leading scorer/NHL messiah, two defensemen in the top ten scoring for defensemen, the leading rookie and another super rookie, possible coach of the year, and Super Mario saving the team yet again. These guys had 58 points last season. They currently stand at 101 points. So I'm rooting for these guys, that and I'm a hard-core Penguins fan.

But to be fair lets look at the best of the rest. My top 5 likely contenders for the cup:

1) New Jersey Devils - Brodeur is well Brodeur. NJD still managed to rack up the wins without Madden, Elias, or Gionta.

2) Vancouver Canucks - Roberto Luongo might have a chance at MVP if it weren't for Sid the Kid saving hockey. Plus the Sedin twins are finally living up to their potential.

3) Buffalo - Of course the teams team is in the running. The only problem they might have is surviving a seven game series (Penguins went 2-2 against them this season).

4) Anaheim - It should be illegal to have both Pronger and Niedermayer on the same team. Add a rejuvenated Selanne and watch out.

5) New York Rangers - My other dark horse besides Pittsburgh. These guys haven't technically clinched a spot but they caught fire at just the right time. Besides half the team is comprised of ex-Penguins players...

So there you have it. This years playoffs look to be amazing and I cannot wait to watch my team.

Learn more about this author, Erik M. Dell.
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