from Pierre LeBrun of ESPN,

Unless the Florida Panthers get on a run here soon, it just feels like we've got our eight teams already locked in for the East, barring obviously the matter of seeding in each division. But can Florida, four points back of the Boston Bruins for the final wild-card, really make that run?

The Panthers lost 2-1 at Minnesota on Thursday night in a hard-fought game but again, it's a game they needed. In the West, what a different story. The San Jose Sharks(64 points), Vancouver Canucks (63 points) and Calgary Flames (63 points) are hardly assured of playoff spots as Minnesota (61 points), L.A. (60 points) and the Dallas Stars (58 points) keep charging.

Now, what's interesting here is that because of the divisional setup, there are two playoff spots in the weaker Pacific Division guaranteed to go to some combination of the Sharks, Canucks, Flames and Kings. It's that second wild-card spot behind the Winnipeg Jets (66 points) that's going to be a fight, and really the only option for the Wild or Stars to get in because the Central's top three spots are locked in by Nashville, St. Louis and Chicago.

Buckle up, the race is heating up in the West.

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