The powers that be in the NHL don’t always get it right. But every year, their troubles are washed away by the most exciting postseason in pro sports.

It’s pretty hard to screw up the race for the Stanley Cup. It’s even harder to predict a winner these days. Take a look at the futures market – there are three co-favorites at 4-1 to win it all, with another four teams priced below 10-1 and yet another foursome of compelling dark horses at 15-1 or shorter. This is a Cup field rich in possibility for value-minded handicappers.

But let’s get chalky for a second. Which two teams will reach the Stanley Cup finals? With five games left to go in the regular season, the only team with a little bit of breathing room is the Buffalo Sabres. They were on top of the Eastern Conference by seven points at the time of publication and almost certain to clinch the top seed. That gives Buffalo home-ice advantage at least all the way to the finals. That makes the Sabres the favorite at 9-5 to win the East. But do they have the goaltending to carry them there? Ryan Miller is 15th in the league save percentage at .910. He doesn’t need to stop them all; Buffalo leads the NHL with 3.63 goals per game. Let’s see what happens when the games get closer. Personally, I like the well-rounded Ottawa Senators to finally reach the Promised Land.

The West? Nashville. The acquisition of Peter Forsberg turned the Predators into an instant and legitimate Cup contender. It won’t be easy; the Preds are in first place in the conference right now, but could easily slip all the way to seventh in the hypercompetitive West. However, Nashville has two goalies (Tomas Vokoun and Chris Mason) in the Top 5 in save percentage, and once Martin Erat gets healthy, he joins Forsberg and Paul Kariya on the top line. Add three first-round picks on defense, fold in depth at every position, toss well, and you have the recipe for a Stanley Cup.

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