NHL midseason status report: The road ahead for Western Conference playoff hopefuls

The feeling of dread and doom that many fallen Western Conference contenders must feel at the NHL All-Star break doesn’t really line up with reality!

So that’s good news! Smile, Kings and Stars fans!

The truth is that an unusually weak Western Conference is leaving the race for the Wild Card berths as wide open as ever, even if the names involved are unusual. While the Eastern Conference race tightened up a bit before the break, four teams are within three points of Calgary for the last Stanley Cup Playoffs berth.

And here’s how each of the hunters can begin their final push, and how the two non-contenders will approach the final few months of misery.

Los Angeles Kings (24-21-4, 52 pts)

Status: Ninth in the Western Conference. Fifth in the Pacific. One point back in the Wild Card race.

Outlook: Daryl Sutter and his players should be lauded for ending up this deep in the race despite early setbacks. Peter Budaj came out of nowhere to provide above-average net-minding in Jonathan Quick’s injury absence. Jeff Carter is (almost) single-handedly carrying the team’s offense. They’re skimming by right now.

Second-half goal: Get Anze Kopitar going, Jonathan Quick healthy and an extra scorer at the deadline. Kopitar’s 11 points in January were more than his totals in the last two months combined, which is an excellent sign and should take the load off Carter if it continues. Quick isn’t expected back for another month or two, but they’ll need him if they’re still in the hunt. They’re getting better at the right time.

Trade deadline plans: Add a scoring forward for the stretch run. Whether that’s a vet like Thomas Vanek or a longer-term player like Ryan Spooner, there are options out there who could aid the Kings.

Vancouver Canucks (23-21-6, 52 pts)

Status: Tenth in the Western Conference. Sixth in the Pacific. 1-8-1 in their last 10 games. One point back in the Wild Card race.

Outlook: Against all odds (or, at least, widespread doubts outside the franchise), the Canucks find themselves in the heart of the playoff race thanks to a weak conference. Since Christmas, Vancouver has gone 9-3-3 and picked up 21 points while the other hunters scuffled. Why? Defense and goaltending: the Canucks are averaging 2.0 goals against per game in that stretch to go with a 80 percent penalty kill rate.

Second-half goal: Keep it up without a big move. Because they can’t (and shouldn’t) make one. Vancouver shouldn’t mistake this mini-run for a sign that they’re still contenders; they have a lot of work to do and are benefiting from a weaker playoff race than in previous years. The renaissance of the Sedins and Ryan Miller combined with the emergence of Bo Horvat can help carry them, but if their immediate competitors round into form I doubt they can hang on.

Trade deadline plans: [whispers into Jim Benning’s ear]

t r a d e t h e S e d i n s w h i l e t h e i r v a l u e i s s t i l l k i n d o f h i g h

Dallas Stars (20-20-10, 50 pts)

Status: Eleventh in the Western Conference. Fifth in the Central. Three points back in the Wild Card race.

Outlook: A mix of injured, improving, plummeting and “who the hell knows, man.” Their G/60 has risen from 2.52 by December to 2.68. But their power play hasn’t improved, and neither has their league-worst penalty kill.

Second-half goal: Fix. The. Penalty. Kill. Dallas goaltending is actually pretty good at even-strength: only five NHL teams have given up less than the Stars’ 80 goals against at 5-on-5. But the Stars simply roll over when short-handed, especially on the road (68 percent). The path to the playoffs is right there, and fixing that one area of their play could make all the difference. Especially as they get healthy and impact players like Mattias Janmark return.

Trade deadline plans: Trade expiring contracts. If Dallas keeps falling, expect Jiri Hudler, Lauri Korpikoski, Patrick Sharp, and Johnny Oduya to hit the market to clear up space and make room for a youth movement.

Winnipeg Jets (23-25-4, 50 pts)

Status: Twelfth in the Western Conference. Sixth in the Central. Three points back in the Wild Card race.

Outlook: A weak Western Conference means the Winnipeg Jets have a real shot at sneaking into the playoffs if they make some improvements.

Second-half goal: Make some saves. Connor Hellebuyck (.900 save percentage and 3.17 GAA) and Michael Hutchinson’s (.893 save percentage and 3.21 GAA) play regressed heavily over the last two months. In desperation, the Jets have brought back exiled goalie Ondrej Pavelec. Whether he can stop the leaking has Jets fans fighting amongst themselves, with good reason.

Trade deadline plans: Sell carefully. Jarome Iginla is all but gone already, but word is Sakic is demanding a high price for parting with either Matt Duchene or Gabriel Landeskog. As he should; those are impact players with long-term contracts. That makes it difficult, but not impossible, to trade both before the offseason.

These are the Western Conference teams already well aware that the playoffs are out of reach this season, even with three months left to go. In fact, they’re probably the only two teams across the NHL that far out of it right now.

Arizona Coyotes (16-26-6, 38 pts)

Status: Thirteenth in the Western Conference. Seventh in the Pacific. Fifteen points back in the Wild Card race.

Outlook: The rebuild continues in Arizona, even though many expected the Coyotes to make a playoff run this year.

Second-half goal: Play the kids. Lawson Crouse, Jakob Chychrun, and Brendan Perlini have already made big impacts this season out of Arizona’s league-best prospect pool. They’ll let guys like Christian Dvorak and (possibly) Dylan Strome play, as well, as they continue their youthful transition.

Trade deadline plans: Offload veterans if a deal makes sense. Shane Doan says he’s open to a trade if it works for his family and if it’s to a contender. Radim Vrbata could be another fit, but he seems to like playing in Arizona and they like him.

Colorado Avalanche (13-31-2, 28 pts)

Status: Fourteenth in the Western Conference. Seventh in the Central. They’ve gone 1-8-1 in their last 10 games. Twenty-five points back in the Wild Card race.

Outlook: The season is lost, finally proving that the problems in Denver were farther-reaching than just ex-coach Patrick Roy. Whether general manager Joe Sakic survives until the summer is a good question, but in the meantime coach Jared Bednar will try to find some sort of consistency and momentum in the second half.

Second-half goal: System assessment. Goalie Semyon Varlamov is shut down for the year, so the Avs will get to see whether Spencer Martin or Calvin Pickard are ready for NHL action yet. Expect prospects like A.J. Greer, J.T. Compher, and Duncan Siemens to get long looks in the coming months, especially once older players are traded.

Trade deadline plans: Sell carefully. Jarome Iginla is all but gone already, but word is Sakic is demanding a high price for parting with either Matt Duchene or Gabriel Landeskog. As he should — those are impact players with long-term contracts. That makes it difficult, but not impossible, to trade both before the offseason.