Which team will emerge from the NHL Western Conference?

Detroit emerged as the western conference champion.

Now that the first round is over... I'd say the Sharks will emerge... most Stanley Cup champions have a very difficult first round series, and the Flames gave everything they had and were all the Sharks could handle. Now the Sharks are battle-tested, and will face the Dallas Star, a team that is decent, but possess no really worrying ability to put a dent on them... Wings and the Avalanche match-up will be a dog fight - I would not be surprised if Burnaby Joe finds a way to lead his team to upset the Wings.

It has been a decade since the NHL had a team repeat as Stanley Cup champion and most Las Vegas oddsmakers give the Ducks a good chance of ending that drought this season.

The Detroit Red Wings, who had the league's best record during the regular season, are the consensus favorites at 3-1, followed by the San Jose Sharks, who are listed at 9-2, according to Bodoglife.com.

Then comes the Ducks, who are grouped with the Montreal Canadiens and Pittsburgh Penguins on most sportsbooks with odds ranging from 6-1 to 10-1. Although the Ducks are not the overall favorite, they have a decent chance of matching Detroit's back-to-back championship teams of 1997 and 1998. At VegasInsider.com, they are listed at 6-1 to repeat.

SJ has a few strong offenders and Detroit achieves the highest score in the regular season. How do you compare the two teams??

Ducks and Sharks should last longer than other teams. Predators and Avalanche will be the first to fall.

Too early to predict. I think the early favourites have to the be Sharks, who are absolutely amazing on the road (best road record in the league) and are very solid at home. I never trust the Wings in the playoffs, and Nashville can actually give them trouble. Calgary has a terrible opponent and would probably fall in the first round, but if they can upset the Sharks, Iginla can carry his team like Trevor Linden did with the Canucks and make a deep run. The Ducks are the defending champs, and their defence is solid, their offence is prolific, they should be a threat.