Ranking the Offensive Units of the Western Conference

The Colorado Avalanche are in the last spot, primarily because they saw three impact players leave the team this offseason, and they were all forwards.

Joe Sakic retired, Ryan Smyth is now a King, and Ian Laperriere is in Philadelphia.

Smyth and Sakic were the two best forwards on the team, and Laperriere can spark his team with the style he plays.

With these three gone, Hejduk, Hensick, Stastny, Svatos, and Wolski will need to stay healthy, which is a problem with Avalanche players. The leading scorer for Colorado last year was Milan Hejduk, who collected 59 points.

If the Avs want to be back in the playoffs, they will need much more support up front.

It's safe to say that the Coyotes offense revolves around one guy—Shane Doan. The captain has led the Coyotes in points for the past five seasons, and will most likely make it six.

Phoenix earns the number 14 spot because they are a team filled with young talent that hasn't blossomed yet. Guys like Mueller, Turris, Tikihonov, Boedker, and Prucha all need to continue to develop before the Coyotes will be in the playoffs.

The decision to trade Enver Lisin is beyond me. Once he starts to play more games, I think Phoenix will regret giving him away.

Looking at what Nashville has up front doesn't impress me. They don't have a single guy that sticks out on their roster to me other than Shea Weber, who is a defenseman, of course.

They are a big team with decent speed, but never seem to find the back of the net as often as they should. Guys like Martin Erat and David Legwand should be posting 60+ points a season, but Legwand struggles to stay in the lineup due to injuries.

Arnott and Dumont produce, but that's it. Hopefully the return of Steve Sullivan, who had 32 points in 41 games, will benefit the Preds.

The Wild went from third in the west with 98 points after the 2007-2008 season, to ninth with 89 points.

Minnesota missed the playoffs for the first time since 2006-2007, but not by much. Losing Gaborik and picking up Havlat was no big deal considering they are the same type of players. They're both fast, have great releases, and are often injured.

The Wild have a speedy offense with Bouchard, Havlat, and Koivu, but their older guys are starting to get worn down. Belanger and Nolan are seeing their point totals gradually decrease, but still have the potential for a 40 point season.

One thing Minnesota has up front is enforcers. Craig Weller, who once took out three Columbus Blue Jackets in 10 seconds, is a tough customer. 6'8" Derek Boogaard is well-known for his fighting abilities. Clutterbuck is a solid player, but his defense is better than his offense.

The Los Angeles Kings are slowly forming back into a playoff caliber team, but aren't there quite yet.

L.A.has a lot of young talent that has started to erupt like Dustin Brown, Anze Kopitar, and Alex Frolov.

On the other hand, the Kings still have players learning the game and developing like Wayne Simmonds, Teddy Purcell, and Oscar Moller. The acquisition of Ryan Smyth from Colorado is huge for the Kings because they needed another sniper up front.

Stoll and Handzus are players that are just there to me, but can make some noise when they want to. If Justin Williams returns to his Carolina days, the Kings might just find themselves battling for a spot in the playoffs.

Luckily for Columbus, they locked Rick Nash up for years to come. I say luckily, because without Nash in that lineup, I don't know where the team would be.

The Blue Jackets have a steady amount of good forwards like Fredrik Modin, Raffi Torres, R.J. Umberger, and Antoine Vermette.

The secret weapons behind the Blue Jackets offense, which is why I put them in the 10 spot, are Derick Brassard, Jakub Voracek, and Nikita Filatov. These three are all under 22 years old, and have a great amount of potential.

Pahlsson was a decent pick up for Columbus because they needed a center that can win face-offs and play defense.

This past season, Dallas saw a few players break out and have career years. Steve Ott collected 46 points (19-27-46), James Neal scored 24 goals, and the most impressive was Loui Eriksson, who led Dallas in goals with 36, and totaled 63 points.

Ribero is starting to become consistent, as well. If Brad Richards and Brenden Morrow can stay healthy, they will combine for 60+ goals and 140+ points.

Unfortunately for the Stars, they are caught in the middle of a stage where their young guys are heating up and their old guys are already slowed down. Mark Parrish, Mike Modano, and Jere Lehtinen's numbers are all decreasing.

With a healthy lineup and everyone performing as they're expected, Dallas could be back in the playoffs very soon.

When I see the forwards the Oilers pack on their roster, the first word that comes to my head is speed. Edmonton possibly has the fastest set of forwards in the NHL between Sam Gagner, Ales Hemsky, Dustin Penner, Patrick O'Sullivan, Shawn Horcoff, and of course, reigning fastest skater champion, Andrew Cogliano.

Although the Oilers have so much talent distributed among their lineup, some players don't contribute like they should be: Ethan Moreau and Fernando Pisani.

Also, Sam Gagner and Andrew Cogliano haven't quite established themselves as the players we thought they would be yet. It's only a matter of time before they break out, though.

The loss of Erik Cole hurts, because he is a play-maker that Edmonton could use.

Vancouver has always been a team that battles for a top playoff spot, but their goaltending and defense play a major role.

Henrik and Daniel Sedin are elite forwards who get 75+ points per season. The problem is after the twins, Vancouver's offense drops significantly.

Demitra is getting old, and has seen his point totals go down three years in a row now. Ryan Kesler and Alex Burrows are young and talented, but are probably at their peak right now getting between 50-65 points per season.

The addition of Mikael Samuelsson will surely help Vancouver put more pucks in the net, but now they need someone a little tougher up front to protect the twins. Burrows, who pulls hair in fights as he did against Duncan Keith, doesn't cut it.

The Flames suffered a huge loss in Cammalleri this offseason. I have said it since he was in Los Angeles—he's going to get better every year, and so far he has done just that.

On the other hand, Calgary is still led by captain Jarome Iginla who, in my opinion, is currently the best all-around player in the NHL. Year after year, Iginla scores 35-50 goals and gets 75-100 points.

Behind Iginla, Calgary has a few young players that have an excellent work ethic and can score goals. David Moss, Rene Bourque, and Dustin Boyd come to mind. We must not forget about Craig Conroy, who is 36 and still posting respectable numbers.

Nor can we forget about Olli Jokinen, another highly skilled forward, and Daymond Langkow, a quiet, yet talented top six forward.

This is no fluke, people—the St. Louis Blues are an extremely underrated team with an explosive offense.

Paul Kariya may be on the back road of his career, but he is still a point-per-game player.

Keith Tkachuk is 36 years old, but managed to score 25 goals.

David Backes, 24, and David Perron, 20, are two players who deserve a lot more credit than they have recieved. Perron is a quick, young player who will get better every year. Backes has a great sense for the net along with grit. Backes can score and is one of the toughest in the NHL.

Brad Boyes may be the Blues' best player with his tremendous release, and has netted 76 goals in the past two seasons.

The list of talent doesn't end there, either. Andy McDonald has had some injuries in his past, but still gets above a point per game.

Two more rising stars are currently wearing St. Louis Blues jerseys and I am talking about T.J. Oshie, 21, and Patrik Berglund, 20. Together, these two can be very dangerous, even at a young age. They combined for a 35-51-86 line in 2008-2009.

I can't forget to mention B.J. Crombeen, who brings a physical presence to the lineup. The Blues may have been swept in the playoffs last year, but I am certain they will find their way back into the postseason.

San Jose has the potential to be in the number one spot, but Jonathan Cheechoo lost his game and is still yet to find it.

Also, Mike Grier probably won't be returning to San Jose next year. Grier is the kind of player San Jose needs—he's a grinder, who isn't afraid to get physical in the corners, and he can chip in on some goals.

Other than that, the Sharks have a lot of skill at different levels. Joe Thornton and Partick Marleau need no explanation.

Devin Setoguchi, 21, is another one of the NHL's rising stars. At a young age,he was able to keep up on a line with Patrick Marleau at times, and Joe Thornton at other times.

San Jose also has Joe Pavelski, a quality two-way forward, Milan Michalek, a big power forward, and Ryane Clowe, solid top 6 forward. San Jose is a gifted team and will surely be in the playoffs for the next couple years.

The Red Wings have done nothing this offseason besides lose players. Jiri Hudler, Marian Hossa, Tomas Kopecky, and Makael Samuelsson, who combined for 30% of the teams overall goals, are all gone.

Even with the loses, Detroit still has one of the best offensive corps in the NHL. Players like Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg, and Johan Franzen still remain in Detroit.

Dan Cleary steps his game up when he needs to.

Maltby and Draper are past their prime, but they still hit and fight in the corners like they're 25.

Tomas Holmstrom is another name not to miss. The big Swede plants himself in front of the net, and is virtually impossible to move.

Young players like Justin Abdelkader and Darren Helmare getting their chances as well, especially next season.

The Red Wings have one or two players for every role, which is why they are so successful.

To others, Anaheim might not seem like they should be in this spot, but I feel they deserve it.

Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf have made a name for themselves as two of the best and most talented players in the NHL. Getzlaf and Perry both have speed that enables them to wheel around defensemen and create room in all three zones.

The hands of Getzlaf and the finishing ability of Perry make them one of the most feared one-two punches in the league. Oh yeah, did I mention they are both only 23 years old?

Teemu Selanne and recently-acquired Saku Koivu could find themselves on a line together which can be very productive. Coming into his final season, Selanne will surely push himself beyond his limits, and my guess is he will have 85+ points. With Koivu alongside him, it can surely be accomplished.

Calder finalist Bobby Ryan seems comfortable in the NHL now, and should respond to his rookie season with an even better sophomore year.

With Scott Niedermeyer back in Anaheim, his brother Rob will most likely return, but it is up to Anaheim.

Erik Christensen, Drew Miller, and Ryan Carter are the developing players of the squad.

Anaheim also brought former Duck, Joffrey Lupul, back to the team. Lupul has been on what I think is the best offensive skilled team in the entire NHL, the Philadelphia Flyers, and will most definitely make an immediate impact in Anaheim.

Pesky George Parros ensures no one messes with his teammates.

Andrew Ebbett is yet another developing player on the Anaheim offense, and will provide play-making for the goal scorers on the power play.

Anaheim really has everything they need to compete, but I think another bruiser up front will help out.

Landing in the No. 1 spot is none other than the youthful, skilled, and knowledgable Chicago Blackhawks.

The Blackhawks are led by two kids, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane. Both players broke into the NHL and made an immediate impact and show no signs of slowing down.

Patrick Sharp has made a name for himself as the "Sharp Shooter" in Chicago. His ability to score goals is great for the Blackhawks.

Calder trophy finalist Kris Versteeg will be back in Chicago. His speed and agility is among the best in the Chicago lineup.

If I could give an unsung hero award away, it would go to Andrew Ladd, Dave Bolland, or Dustin Byfuglien. Ladd and Bolland came into Chicago trying to prove themselves and they have done exactly that. Byfuglien is able to play forward and defense and his shot from anywhere is lethal.

The fourth line of Brouwer, Burish, and Eager is able to put away goals as well as ignite the United Center. Getting the Chicago fans into the game is basically like having a power play, for those of you that have never been to Chicago.

With the addition of John Madden, Tomas Kopecky, and Marian Hossa, there is nothing missing up front for the youthful Chicago Blackhawks. Every piece of the puzzle is there and fits perfectly, which is why I have Chicago ranked No. 1.