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On the back end, things might be a little more interesting. Assuming they maintain some kind of integrity on the defense, they're still relying on Ray Emery as a 60-game starter (forget about Dominik Hasek, kids). At this point, he has the chops to do that for a mid-level team, but not a serious contender.

When the smoke clears, the beast of the East will be the Buffalo Sabres.

What's not to like about this team? Start with Ryan Miller, a netminder bordering on world class, and his very capable backup, Martin Biron. Two dependable stoppers is no longer a luxury in the NHL -- it's a necessity, and the Sabres have it addressed as well as anyone.

The backline is young (for the most part), mobile and blessed when it comes to the game's new core skills: transition and position. The offense is spread out over three lines of fast, disciplined forwards, all of whom are in career ascent.

And while the success of special teams can fluctuate from year to year, the strong hand of coach Lindy Ruff and a relatively static lineup should keep their power play and penalty kill ranked among the top five. Add to the mix the invaluable experience they gained this year, and you've got the best, most determined team in the East.

The Western Conference has produced its share of unlikely finalists the past few seasons, including the eighth-ranked Oilers in 2006. Prior to that it was sixth-seed Calgary and seventh-seed Anaheim.

The Ducks won't be Mighty next season, but they're likely to find themselves back in the Finals.

Sure, the Red Wings will be in the hunt, if only because playing in the Central will remain as taxing as living in New Hampshire. But with a goaltending situation in flux, and with too many of the same passengers who waved as Edmonton skated by this season, they're unlikely to get past the conference finals.

The Sharks should be in the mix as well. Up front they'll have as much talent as anyone, including reigning Richard Trophy winner Jonathan Cheechoo, and the most devastating one-two center combo in the league with Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau. The blueline lacks a horse, but it's smart, speedy and good with the puck. Watch for the development of young Matt Carle to play a pivotal role in the success of the defensive corps as the season progresses.

Ultimately, the Sharks will be felled by the same demons that haunted them this year: character and the unwillingness to pay the price.

The Predators? They're one year closer. You can sense they're building something special in Nashville, but they're not there yet. They'll have to re-address the team toughness issue, especially with several of the depth skaters who made them so hard to play against this season headed to free agency.

So it comes down to the Ducks, who'll prove that their appearance in the Western Conference finals was no fluke.

First-year coach Randy Carlyle demonstrated himself to be an intuitive leader. Outside of Todd Fedoruk, the forward corps has speed, plenty of pop and a surprising amount of grit. The defense is led by the sublimely gifted Scott Niedermayer and Francois Beauchemin, the player who best epitomized the theory of under-promise and over-deliver in 2005-06. There's also nastiness in Ruslan Salei and Vitali Vishnevski, and great promise in Ladislav Smid.

They have an enviable wealth of talent in net, with playoff-tested stoppers J-S Giguere and Ilya Bryzgalov. In fact, the presence of David McKee, the kid who erased the NCAA record books and wrote in his own name in ink, could allow the Ducks to move one of the veteran netminders to address the weakness of the second blueline unit or add a dependable top-six forward.

That's why I like the Ducks to emerge from the West to take on the Sabres for the Cup. That matchup might not beat out the Scripps-Howard Spelling Bee on a Monday night in June, but man, talk about breakneck, never-say-die hockey.

My guess? It'll probably come down to a seventh game for the fourth consecutive season, where a closely fought contest will be decided late when referee Bill McCreary calls back-to-back diving penalties that lead to the winning goal being scored on a five-on-three ... in overtime.

Your 2006-07 Stanley Cup champs? The Buffalo Sabres. Remember, you read it here first.

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