Don't blow it: if the Hurricanes don't win the `Southleast' division, they very well could miss the playoffs. Have they got what it takes to play in the postseason?

Sporting News, The, March 11, 2002 by Bob Sutton

The Hurricanes hope the rest will blow into place.

RELATED ARTICLE: A different playoff race.

Back in the storied days of the Original 21, the top 16 teams in the overall standings qualified for the playoffs. So which teams would be in the NHL playoffs if that still were the case? The Hurricanes would be one of them, but they would be--by far--the lowest-ranked team from among the top six seeds from today's NHL. (Standings are through last Saturday's games).

Team                        Points

 * 1. Detroit Red Wings       96
 * 2. Philadelphia Flyers     79
 * 3. Boston Bruins           76
 * 4. Colorado Avalanche      76
   5. Chicago Blackhawks      75
 * 6. San Jose Sharks         74
   7. Toronto Maple Leafs     74
   8. Ottawa Senators         74
   9. St. Louis Blues         73
  10. New York Islanders      70
  11. Los Angeles Kings       69
* 12. Carolina Hurricanes     68
  13. Dallas Stars            67
  14. Vancouver Canucks       67
  15. New Jersey Devils       66
  16. Phoenix Coyotes         65

* Division winners currently get the Nos. 1-3
conference seeds in the playoffs.

--Paul Grant

Bob Sutton covers the Hurricanes for THE SPORTING NEWS and the Burlington (N.C.) Times.