Who is ready for the playoffs?

Prelude - It's time. It's time to worry. If you are a fan or know a fan of hockey, you've used Sports and the City to start conversations about how their hockey has been doing. Next up for your conversation: who is ready for the playoffs and who isn't. If you are talking to hockey fan in the West, Calgary is the only hope. If you are discussing hockey with someone in the East, it is Montreal.... or is it? See what your fan thinks.

Sport - Hockey

Event - The NHL season ends this week. Which teams are ready for the playoffs?


Point to say - "Do you think Montreal will be the team to beat in the East?"

Follow up point - "They have a lot of injuries recently. Will that effect how far they get?"

Get out of the conversation - "Planning any trips this summer?"


Backgrounder
This weekend, Montreal suffered three injuries to key players. Speculation is that this will effect their performance in the first round of playoffs. The injuries have happened to veteran players (e.g. Captain Saku Koivu - who injured his foot 2 games ago). Montreal is a young team, meaning they do not have a lot of veteran players. As stated by the Globe and Mail,

"given the youth on the team, this will be troublesome. The playoffs are a different story from the regular season; the checking is more intense and every mistake is magnified in importance."

Montreal has played well recently. They had a come-back win last week against Buffalo, but losing to Toronto on Saturday indicates they may not be mentally ready for the playoffs.

Analysis
This team was playing very well until recently. They shouldn't have a hard time moving past the first round, but beyond that will all depend on if all their injured players return.

If you are fan of Ottawa. Be worried.

Links
Globe and Mail article on Montreal's status.
See the NHL standings here.