Atlantic Division is the best in the NHL this season - CBS Sportsline

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2003/hockey/nhl/11/16/glance/index.html

http://i.cnn.net/si/2003/hockey/nhl/11/16/glance/p1_brodeur_all.jpg
Martin Brodeur won his first Vezina Trophy last season, but he's been ever better so far this year.
Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

By Jon A. Dolezar, SI.com

The title gets passed around like a hot potato.

OK, it's probably a safe bet that the Southeast, Central and Pacific Divisions aren't in the running, but which among the other three deserves the title of the best division?

The Northeast Division has five teams with 17 points or more, the Northwest put four teams in the playoffs last spring, but the Atlantic takes the crown after the first 5 1/2 weeks of the 2003-04 regular season.

The dueling duo at the top of the Atlantic heap are both among the top teams in the NHL. And while Philadelphia holds a two-point edge on New Jersey, the red-hot Devils are looking even more impressive than their Stanley Cup champion version of a year ago.

Only the Penguins are truly a bad team among the Atlantic quintet, and even they are entertaining. Youngsters Marc-Andre Fleury, Rico Fata and Konstantin Koltsov make Pittsburgh fun to watch, even when it is giving up nearly 35 shots per game.
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But the Devils are the champs until someone knocks them off next spring. And right now that's looking like an increasingly unlikely proposition, considering the team's nine-game unbeaten streak, during which it has allowed just 11 goals.

Martin Brodeur is looking like he may eventually break many of Patrick Roy's records, and he could even challenge Terry Sawchuk's mark of 103 career shutouts. Brodeur's 1.77 goals-against average is the best of his 11-year career, and his .920 save percentage is second only to the incredible .927 he posted in 1996-97.

The ironman netminder has sat only once this season, and backup Corey Schwab allowed the Leafs only one goal in that game. Brodeur is on pace to play in a career-high 76 games, though head coach Pat Burns surely will give him some rest down the stretch and in back-to-back situations. With three under his belt already, Brodeur is also on pace for 15 shutouts this season, which would tie Alex Connell, Hal Winkler and Tony Esposito for second behind George Hainsworth's single-season record of 22, set in 1928-29.

Scott Niedermayer is challenging Nicklas Lidstrom for the title of the best all-around defenseman in the NHL, and Nieds has been one of the five best players in the league this season. Devils studio analyst Stan Fischler called him the best player in the NHL after Saturday's game, and while that may be a bit of hyperbole, it is clear that Niedermayer has stepped up his game to another level in his 12th full season.

Niedermayer has been Norris Trophy-good so far, and he could even garner some Hart Trophy support if he continues to lead the Devils from the back end so spectacularly. His smooth skating, effortless passing and underrated physical play make him one of the most complete packages in the NHL, along with Lidstrom and Rob Blake among defensemen, and Peter Forsberg, Joe Thornton, Jarome Iginla, Bill Guerin and Marian Hossa among forwards.

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"In my career, it's always seemed like I played for teams that were in a transition. I was always the guy they were using just to get through to the next guy. This has been a fantastic opportunity for me to play for a team committed to winning." -- Flyers goalie Jeff Hackett after blanking the Thrashers 4-0 on Saturday.

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he speaks the truth... There is nothing antagonistic in his comments.
The fact of the matter is Hackett is a good goalie when he is on, and the fact that he never really had a defence in front of him his whole career makes the media hang him out to dry. Look for a GAA of under 2.00 this year and he'll shut his critics up. I think he will have a good playoff year as well, if of course he gets the nod.

he speaks the truth... There is nothing antagonistic in his comments.
The fact of the matter is Hackett is a good goalie when he is on, and the fact that he never really had a defence in front of him his whole career makes the media hang him out to dry. Look for a GAA of under 2.00 this year and he'll shut his critics up. I think he will have a good playoff year as well, if of course he gets the nod.

I agree he's speaking the truth. The Bruins waited all year to address their weakness in defense at the trade deadline while Montreal has similarly been chastised for not doing more to improve their club outside of repeatedly trading captains away and firing coaches through the last ten years or so. I don't view it as antagonistic either.