The race for the Wild Cards in the West is gearing up to be an absolute massacre. You have 5 teams in there (I don't count NSH out yet and I think the Stars will make a push). The second question there is, whether LA can hold the 3rd spot in the Pacific of not.
A team I just don't get are the Coyotes. One day they look like world-beaters, the next day like a lottery team.
And yeah, I share the dislike for the Leafs, but it's not as much the team they ice, but the hype they generate and their huge fanbase on here. I mean they have a lot of very knowledgeable people over there, but just as many who have no clue about any other team who will spread their cluelessness all over these boards.