Even though though NHL games have already begun, I feel that is my civic duty to complete my preview for the upcoming season and offer my suggestions for the wide-open Eastern Conference. We will begin in the local division of choice, the Northeast, home to your very awful Boston Bruins. The season started out well with a gripping loss to the Minnesota Wild. The who? They lost to an adjective. This newest expansion team has just continued its undefeated streak against the Bruins, one of the original six teams in the league. Hey, at least it speaks for parody. As mentioned two columns ago, I can only see the Bruins squeaking into the eight spot in the east because, in the NHL, just about everyone makes the playoffs.

My personal pick to take first in the division is Toronto. The Maple Leafs are coming off a strong regular season last year. The team has a great bunch of veterans with possible Hall of Famer Ed Belfour between the pipes. Look for him to rebound after two so-so seasons in Dallas. Also, the team has been able to keep the same nucleus together for several seasons now. The always-dependable Mats Sundin continues to will this team to win. Another 100-point season may be out of the realm of possibilities, but don't be surprised to see at least 90 points.

The Senators are the only true challenge to the Leafs this season. They, too, return almost an entire squad that made a nice playoff run a year ago. The team hopes to develop its two young guns, Marian Hossa and Marvin Havlat, into bona fide all-stars this year. Their development will go a long way in determining where the Senators end up this season. Daniel Alfredson remains one of the best scorers in the league. If the team had been able to keep Yashin, no one would contend their threat for Lord Stanley's Cup. Instead, this team finishes second in the division, fifth in the conference.

The Canadiens and Sabres round out the Northeast. Both teams are coming off underachieving years and neither team made a giant splash in the free agency pool to shore up weaknesses. Therfore, I see both teams returning to the middle of the pack and fighting it out with the Bruins for a glimpse of playoff hope.

The Atlantic division will hopefully be more competitive and wide open this season. Any of the five teams involved could make a run to win the regular season championship and play through late May. Personally, I like the New York Rangers to be the best of this bunch with the addition of resident tough-guy Darius Kasparitis to the lineup. The management also made a brilliant move in hiring Bryan Trottier to coach this well-tested group of veterans. Trottier has an excellent staff behind him with former coaches Jim Schoenfeld and Terry O'Reilly taking care of the assistant duties. The team has also added a serious scoring threat in Bobby Holik from the rival Devils. This year's Rangers squad has all the makings of a serious Cup contender and Eric Lindros might just be the league's Hart winner. (Editor's note: That's what columnists say every year.)

New Jersey may be home to trash heaps and mafia, but it is also the home of the league's premier goalie, Martin Brodeur. With him still roaming the nets, the Devils can never be discounted for doing damage in the playoffs. Unfortunately, they lost a key scorer in Holik and Jeff Friesen does not properly replace him. Without Brodeur, I believe this team is just average. With him, they are the fourth seed in the East with at least one round of home-ice advantage. Always a daunting prospect for any opponent in the Continental Airlines Arena.

The Flyers will be the biggest named team to drop off from last year's torrid play. Though recently they have choked in the playoffs (in a similar spirit to the Red Sox in August), they have faired reasonably well in the regular season. The tradition will come to an end as Philadelphia will place no better than the six spot. The team failed to make any serious changes on the ice, though new coach Ken Hitchcock is a veteran . The team is just missing that one essential scorer to put them over the top. Also, don't forget that goalie Roman Cechmanek could start for no more than 10 other teams in the league. Sorry, Philly, try again next year.

The Penguins and Islanders could both be surprise teams, but don't bet on it. Both are shallow in talent and short on defense. The Pens are relying on too much youth (Shane Endicott and Kris Beech) and Super Mario is just wasting his time playing another year. New York's other team is also going to be young this year. They have great scorers in Alexi Yashin (great last name) and Michael Peca, but little else. Opponents should get their shots in now because in just two years time, this division should be turned back on its head.

The Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes are the lone teams of interest in the Southeast division. Previously, the only thing that linked the South to hockey were mullets. It is a tribute to the NHL that hockey even exists in Miami and Nashville. The Capitals should make it back into the playoffs after a year of adjusting to Jaromir Jagr and his skills on the ice. Reigning AHL coach of the year, Bruce "Butch" Cassidy, should be able to get his young guys gel and make a solid run at the Cup. The addition of Robert Lang from Pittsburg will make or break this team. I count on it as a make.

The Hurricanes will relish being the reigning playoff conference champs, but that only wins you a small banner and a nice bonus. The new season should serve as a return to normalcy. The Canes will miss Martin Gelinas after he defected to Calgary in the off-season because they were without any new stars this year. As a result, Carolina hopes that prospects Brad DeFauw and Jeff Heerema will develop into solid contributors. I think that both are another year away. No matter, they will make the playoffs and the rest is just playoff hockey.

Florida, Tampa Bay and Atlanta might as play in the minors this season. All three are too young and inexperienced at just about every position to threaten anyone. Names to look for include the Lighting's Sheldon Keefe and Patrick Stefan as breakout stars, but all their work will just be for Sportscenter. No playoff hopes should exist south of North Carolina - not in hockey anyway.

When the dust settles, the Rangers should walk away with an opportunity to play the Kings for the Stanley Cup. The television networks must be drooling. Unfortunately for my sports editor, I think the Rangers efforts fall just short. But there's are always the Yankees. Right?