Stanley Cup Playoffs 2012: Power Ranking the Current Form of Every Playoff Team

And then there were eight.

Survivor: NHL slashed their contestant pool in half, and is moving on to Round 2.

Some teams emerged from the first series with nothing but a couple scuff marks (yeah, St. Louis, feeling all high and mighty after drowning the once-mighty Sharks).

Others looked battered and bruised from a Darwinian survival of the fittest matchup. (I’m looking at you Philly…taking a whole period off. Shame on you!)

There have been a couple of surprises so far.

Los Angeles and Phoenix came out of a laughably incompetent division and toppled mighty opponents. Vancouver is upset-prone, of course (I hope none of their fans are reading this. Go home. You lost!), but we expected more from the President’s Trophy winners.

Chicago rejuvenated their franchise and looked poised to redeem themselves after losing to—you guessed it—Vancouver in the first round last season, but the Coyotes did a number on them.

Ironically, the Blackhawks play in arguably the strongest division in hockey.

Don’t worry, Atlantic Division fans, I haven’t forgotten about you, either.

You feel your division is the baddest out there, and reasonably so.

The Rangers and Flyers may be vying to represent the East in the Stanley Cup Playoffs and God help me if they do.

There will be more bedlam than during the Mayan Apocalypse or a street riot in Vancouver (just checking to see if there’s any Canucks fans still reading this).

Then again, let's not get ahead of ourselves.

Washington and New Jersey, two worthy opponents, can help save the world from obliteration.

8. New Jersey Devils

Coming into their first-round series against the Florida Panthers on a hot streak, the Devils were supposed to roll over their opponent.

After all, Florida had not been to the playoffs since the 1999-00 season (when, ironically, they were eliminated in the first round by the Devils), and seemed to coast to the finish line in a garbage division.

It came down to two overtimes in a Game 7 match for the Devils to singe the Cats.

Yes, the Philly game went into overtime.

And yes, it was an away game.

But come on, the Flyers basically took the first period off, and still won the game.

Devils fans have to be a little perturbed. 

7. Washington Capitals

There’s that whole Alex Ovechkin ice time thing hanging over this team’s head…

And then, just by watching them, this does not seem like the Washington Capitals of old (and by old, I mean a couple years ago).

The Caps used to skate circles around their opponents.

Now, they sit back and play D like everyone else.

I know that something had to change, but this is ugly.

Washington toppled the defending champion Boston Bruins in the first round, and that cannot be taken away from them, but this looks like a team out of their element.

With all the talent they have—Semin, Backstrom, Ovechkin, Green—this team should have some more flash and flair.

6. Nashville Predators

Yes, they did just beat the mighty Detroit Red Wings.

And yes, this is the franchise’s second straight trip to the second round.

But this team cannot rest on their laurels.

Giving up nine goals to the Coyotes, a defensive-minded team, is definitely concerning.

The Preds need to turn things around on home ice and even up the series. Getting to the second round is always an accomplishment, but it won’t feel the same as last year…

The expectation in Nashville is that this team will take this series.

5. Philadelphia Flyers

To an outsider, it looked as though the Flyers were exhausted from their vitriol-fueled win over their crosstown rival Pittsburgh Penguins, and took a little catnap in the first period in order to rejuvenate.

Fortunately, the team wasn’t too groggy, and ended up finishing off the Devils in overtime of Game 1.

Philly can’t take periods off.

As long as they play a full 60 minutes from here on out, the Flyers should take the series and could potentially matchup with the hated Rangers in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Won’t that be fun?

4. St. Louis Blues

The Blues exerted their force on the San Jose Sharks in Round 1, but have to be stinging a little bit after relinquishing an early lead at home to the Kings in Game 1.

If St. Louis is going to do the SoCal squad what they did to their NorCal brethren, they need to trust their defensive system that earned them the second-most points in the West and got them to this point.

Winning Game 2 in Missouri will be vital for this club.

3. New York Rangers

The Rangers passed a tough test by closing out the Ottawa Senators in Game 7, and knew they had it coming in Round 2.

The story has always been that the Blueshirts would test the mighty Capitals in Round 1, but could never take down the perennially high-seeded Caps.

This time, the script is flipped.

New York is looking to earn their first Stanley Cup Championship since 1994. Washington is hoping that their window hasn’t closed, much like it may have for their always-there-but-never-win-it-all brethren in the West… the San Jose Sharks.

Don’t expect this series to be a blowout, but Rangers fans should feel some confidence that their team can pass a test against a team that has eliminated them from the postseason in the past.

2. Los Angeles Kings

The Kings are feeling it right now.

They’re just coming off a series win against the Vancouver Canucks—last year’s Western Conference champion that just so happened to win the President’s Trophy.

Granted, Vancouver played in arguably the league’s weakest division and is a little bit upset prone, but that doesn’t bother the Kings, which hasn’t made it past the first round since the 2000-01 season.

The Baby Blues didn’t slow them down in Game 1. L.A. hung three on them, including a shorty.

St. Louis isn’t expected to go do easily, but picking up a road win to start the series never hurts.

1. Phoenix Coyotes

The Coyotes are hotter than the Sonoran Desert right now.

They’ve rolled over the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round and dropped nine on the Predators, typically a defensively sound club.

Dave Tippett has his squad firing on all cylinders.

Playing in Nashville, home of Cell Block 303, is going to be difficult. Taking a game in Tennessee all but guarantees that the Desert Dogs are going to take this series.