Marian Hossa's last-second tip over Detroit Red Wings goalie Chris Osgood's glove hand in game six of the Stanley Cup Final last spring is an image that will forever be embedded in the minds of hockey fans everywhere. And undoubtedly in Hossa's as well. Had the puck gone in instead of trickling through the crease before the buzzer sounded, the Pittsburgh Penguins would have tied the game 3-3. Instead the Wings got to taste sweet victory from Lord Stanley's mug for the fourth time in the last 11 years, signaling perhaps the first modern day dynasty in the National Hockey League. If you can't beat them, join them, eh? By signing with the Wings in the offseason, Hossa's at least betting on as sure of a sure thing there is. Here are the top three teams in the league's Western Conference, as they will be seeded come the start of the playoffs next April.
Detroit Red Wings
Hossa leaving Pittsburgh for the greener pastures... okay, ummm.... greener parking lots (?) of Detroit is just one sign of how great of an organization it is. Chris Osgood may be a question mark in nets, but the rest of the team is rock solid, especially defensively so as not to allow the puck even get near his crease. They've got Nicklas Lidstrom on the blue-line as well as a superstar in the making in Niklas Kronwall, not to mention Brian Rafalski. Up front, they've got Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk, Thomas Holmstrom, Johan Franzen, and, oh, yeah, Hossa. Will the dynasty live on? Almost certainly.
Dallas Stars
Fans will soon realize that Fabian Brunnstrom is not the answer. Still, he won't have to be. The Swedish forward, who came over from playing in his homeland, is not even the tip of the iceberg up front. At this point of his career, Mike Ribeiro has turned the page so often on his playing days in Montreal, that he's not even writing a new chapter, but an entirely new book entitled "How to Make Bob Gainey Look Stupid". Of course, Gainey isn't, but the point stands. Ribeiro is joined by Brunnstrom, captain Brenden Morrow, Sean Avery, Brad Richards, and Mike Modano. Really this team is stacked offensively. In net, Marty Turco will be what he's always been, a reliable goalie to get the Stars to the postseason. The rest remains to be seen.
Edmonton Oilers
The Oilers are just a few seasons removed from an unforgettable trip to the Stanley Cup Final, and one less from a season they wish they could forget. Last year was somewhere in the middle, in that the Oilers missed the playoffs, but showed a whole lot of promise in the process. Sam Gagner, Andrew Cogliano, and Robert Nilsson joined the likes of established veterans Ales Hemsky (who's only 25) and Shawn Horcoff (only 30) in being able to put the puck in the net. Add Dustin Penner, Erik Cole, and a Gilbert Brule, who at 21 still has time to prove his skills before being called washed up, to the list and you have the makings for three solid lines... and a division championship.
