NHL 2016-2017 - The playoffs

The National Hockey League (NHL) is well underway and approaching the playoffs stage which will begin in April. The best 16 teams combined from both the Western, and Eastern - the conference will be matched up and play in best of 7 series all the way through until the winner of the most prestigious trophy in the world of hockey -  The Stanley cup is decided in the final series.

The Western conference is divided into two divisions - the Central and the Pacific division. Eastern conference is also divided into two divisions - the Metropolitan and the Atlantic. The top three teams from all four divisions after the regular season will qualify for the playoff stage making it 12 teams altogether. The remaining four spots will be filled with two teams from each conference, referred to as "Wild Cards". They are the two teams from each conference who have managed to get most points apart from the three best teams in all four divisions.

Sidney Crosby has scored 30 goals and 30 assists for Penguins this season  © Getty Images 

Consisting of 4 rounds, the playoffs start out by dividing the 8 teams from both Eastern and Western - conference into two groups of four teams. The winners of the first round series face each other in the second round, and winning the second round takes you to the Conference final. The winners from both conference finals will meet in the Stanley cup final series in June.

So far, this season the biggest surprise has been the bad form of Detroit Red Wings. Holding the current playoffs streak record, playing in the playoffs for 25 consecutive years, the Red Wings are struggling this season, and it will be nothing short of a miracle if they make into the playoffs even as the last Wild Card entry. Columbus Blue Jackets on the other hand, has been very good all season long and are unexpectedly holding on to a playoffs spot as they are currently third place in the Metropolitan division. Another notable news is that Canadian teams will most likely play in the playoffs again, unlike last season when none of the seven teams from Canada made it to the playoffs for the first time in 46 years. This season looks much brighter for the Canadian teams, as the top three teams in the Atlantic division are all from Canada. Canadian hockey fans are eager to see the Stanley cup brought back to Canada again, after a wait of 23 long years since the Montreal Canadiens last time won the cup.

Stanley cup finalists from last season, Pittsburgh Penguins riding on the impressive show by Sidney Crosby (30 goals and 30 assists in 47 matches) and San Jose Sharks with Brent Burns in the top 3 score list,  have played very convincingly this season, and it seems highly possible for both teams to reach the finals again this year. Other teams challenging them for the Stanley cup this season would most likely be the Washington Capitals with their Russian superstar Alex Ovechkin on fire again and lead the table for Metropolition division of Eastern Conference. Chicago Blackhawks who have played a decent season with their solid squad full of talent and experience, and are always one of the favorites to win the cup. Minnesota Wild has improved so much from last season, and with their new head coach Bruce Boudreau they are definitely in the race for the cup.

All in all, it is a very open ended competition this season it will be interesting to see who makes it to the next stage of the competition when the playoffs begin in April.