How do you define success?

By Scott Antoszewski

The NHL playoffs start in about a week. Last night the Colorado Avalanche completed the Western Conference bracket by dousing the Calgary Flames. There is only one spot left in the East and it appears that the New York Rangers just aren’t interested enough to get it done.

The beginning of the playoffs had me thinking about what the different playoff teams would consider a successful season. The Avalanche have a rookie head coach and are in year one of the rebuilding process, so the fact that they led their division several times this year and have made the playoffs is huge success for them. The Phoenix Coyotes are in the same type of situation. They were picked to miss the playoffs altogether, so the fact that they darn near won their division was a success in and of itself.

The other side of the coin has team like the San Jose Sharks and Washington Capitals. Success for the Caps and Sharks is measured much differently. The Sharks recent playoff failures have their whole fan base in a wait and see mode as the playoffs start. The popular thinking is that anything short of a Conference Final or Stanley Cup final may mark the end of the GM, the coach and many of the players. The Caps on the other hand are working against an ever shrinking window. There will be serious salary cap issues for Washington to deal with in the not too distant future. Nicklas Backstrom is a restricted free agent after this year, Alexander Semin has one year left on his deal, and players like Schultz, Morrison, Poti, and Fehr will be due big raises, not to mention the questions in goal. The time to win is now for the Caps. Anything short of a Conference or Stanley Cup final would leave fans of Ovechkin’s army very disappointed as well. Presidents Trophy teams do not have a stellar track record of converting that into playoff success. I doubt people will be jumping off the Caps bandwagon, but an early playoff exit will make for a long summer in our Nation’s Capital.

It will be interesting to see how these teams handle the success they’ve had or the huge expectations of their fan bases in the coming weeks. Buckle up folks, the playoffs should be a wild ride.