I can already smell sweaty hockey players and the brisk freshness of ice rinks.  Smells like those are the sweetest only when the NHL playoffs are approaching.  On April 21 the pucks will drop as 16 teams face-off in hopes of winning the elusive Stanley Cup.

Plenty of playoff positions are still on the line as the end of the season approaches.

In the east, four teams have clinched playoff spots, led by the Ottawa Senators.  With six games left, the Senators have to prove that they can win some big games on the road while holding off the Buffalo Sabres for the division crown and the Carolina Hurricanes for home ice advantage.  Saturday's loss at home to the Sabres should help Buffalo in the confidence department, but only delay the Senators' acceptance of the Northeast Division crown.  The Senators have a four-game week coming up that is rather light, and the division should be there's by next weekends matchup at Toronto. 

While I don’t think Ottawa has it in them to win the Cup, they will definitely give the rest of the Eastern Conference a run for their money and keep things interesting in the "Chase for the Cup." 

The Montreal Canadians, New Jersey Devils, and Tampa Bay Lightning jockey for positions six through eight, the top four in the east seem to be the elite.  The New York Rangers, however, have just the right blend of balls to the wall hockey needed to lead them to victory out of the three-seed.  Jaromir Jagr is playing some of the best hockey of his career this season.  His championship experience and leadership give the Rangers a strong advantage over the rest of the conference.

In the west, the San Jose Sharks are hitting stride at the right time.  After trailing the Vancouver Canucks by two points for the eight seed last week, San Jose has won four straight and now find themselves in a seventh place tie with the Edmonton Oilers.  While the Sharks don't have the stuff of a Stanley Cup champ, they could find a pair of Cinderella's skates during the postseason.

The two favorites heading into the playoffs in the West have to be the Calgary Flames and the Detroit Red Wings.  Both teams have the potential to beat any team in the East, but before they can claim the cup, they must go through each other.  Calgary winger Jarome Iginla's play is critical to the Flames' success, but even his shoulders don't look big enough to carry the weight the Red Wings will bring from Hockeytown, USA.

In a Rangers - Red Wings Stanley Cup, the Red Wings seem to have the advantage.  As if the top talent they send on the ice isn't enough, history has their back also.  Look for Chelios, Yzerman, and the madmen from Motor City to take the Cup back to Detroit. 

The NHL playoffs are the most grueling, exciting playoff competition in professional sports.  Playoff games, especially those that head into sudden death overtimes, become more intense each minute as players’ legs scream for them to stop, the home crowd becomes delirious, and television viewers promise themselves they’ll head off to bed at the very next stoppage in play.

The quest for Lord Stanley’s Cup is about to begin.  Game On. 

Katie Schrader is a contributing writer to Atomic Sports Media.com. She can be reached at katie.schrader@atomicsportsmedia.com.