Were The Penguins Actually The Hottest Team in The NHL?

It's cliche to say that the Pittsburgh Penguins are the hottest team in the league heading into the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But what are we really saying when we say that, and is it even true?

I think it's unfair to judge any team by how they've played since clinching a playoff spot, so I focused on how every playoff team fared in the 15 games leading up to the day they clinched, and their records in the crucial months of February-March. They'll appear by Conference not necessarily by their current seed, but in the order they clinched a playoff berth(except Pittsburgh, which I saved for the end). Are the Penguins truly the hottest team? Let's get to the results.

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

L.A. KINGS - clinched March 19 15 game record: 11-2-2-1 February: 7-5-1 March: 9-5-1

Obviously the Kings were clutch in their charge to clinch. Notable though is that while they were well above .500 in Feb-March, that was largely on the strength of a 10-2-1 home record.

DALLAS - clinched March 22 15 game record: 7-7-1 February: 7-5-2 March: 9-3-2

- While overall in the last couple months the Stars look pretty good, the division race was a lot closer than it had to be, and they only held on with a .500 record to clinch because the chasers went cold as well, as you'll see.

ANAHEIM - clinched March 24 15 game record: 9-4-2 February: 12-2 March: 9-4-2

- yes, the Ducks had a great 15 game stretch to clinch, but interestingly a 5 game win streak went cold. In the 10 games prior to clinching, they only went 4-4-2. Only Jan-Feb really turned them around.

ST. LOUIS - clinched March 27 15 game record: 10-5 February: 8-4-1 March: 10-2

- the Blues went 18-6-1 down the stretch to secure a playoff spot, and were actually 8-2 in the 10 game charge to clinch day.

CHICAGO - clinched March 27 15 game record: 6-8-1 February: 6-4-1 March: 5-7-1

- all that hype all season about Kane and the Hawks, and all that trashing Crosby and the Pens. Look who limped to the finish.

SAN JOSE - clinched March 27 15 game record: 9-6 February: 7-7 March: 9-7

- 5-5 in the 10 games up to clinch day, and 16-14 Feb-March doesn't scream "here we come!"

NASHVILLE - clinched April 1 15 game record: 8-5-2 February: 7-5 March: 8-5-2

- in a stretch up to March 22 they went on a 12-2-5 run to guarantee a seed, yet cooled to 5-5 in the clinching 10 games.

MINNESOTA - clinched April 5 15 game record: 7-8 February: 5-9 March: 10-5

- I use the term "clinch" loosely. The only reason the Wild are in the playoffs is because Colorado ended the year 1-6.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

WASHINGTON - clinched March 15 15 game record: 10-5 February: 10-4 March: 9-4

- as a formality for the Caps, they still maintained a good consistency. Still, they went 6-4 in the 10 games up to clinch day. These are definitely human numbers.

FLORIDA - clinched April 3 15 game record: 8-7 February: 6-7 March: 8-7

- for a time the Panthers were THE surprise team, but .500 over Feb-March is a long stretch of average at a bad time.

NY RANGERS - clinched April 4 15 game record: 6-6-3 February: 10-3-1 March: 6-5-3

- take February from their whole season and Boston would be in.

NY ISLANDERS - clinched April 5 15 game record: 7-9 February: 8-5 March: 9-7

These stats look less than threatening, but it must be noted the Isles clinched with a 5-1 streak, and went 9-2-1 at home in the 12 home games prior to April 2.

TAMPA BAY - clinched April 5 15 game record: 6-9 February: 10-4 March: 7-7

- again, kind of hideous stats, but there was a 9 game win streak at the end of February carried over to March. Still, 6-9 to clinch?

PHILADELPHIA - clinched April 9 15 game record: 7-4-4 February: 8-4-4 March: 8-3-3

- after winning 6 out of the first 20 games of the year, the Flyers went 26-12-7. That's pretty amazing. Points in 11 out of the last 15 games to sneak in.

DETROIT - clinched April 9 15 game record: 8-7 February: 7-7 March: 6-8

- The Wings did what they had to do, but not much more. They have been involved in a whopping 46 one-goal games this year though. I'd say their playoff ready.

PITTSBURGH - clinched April 2 15 game record: 12-3 February: 8-5 March: 12-4

- the 15 game record speaks for itself, yet it gets even better as in the 10 games up to clinch day the Pens took no prisoners at 9-1. No other team clinched so convincingly, not even LA (8-2).

One interesting fact is that 7 out of 8 Western Conference teams clinched playoff spots in March, and just 1 in April(Minnesota). In the East, it was the exact opposite, with only the Capitals clinching before the final 7 days.

The numbers here don't lie: Pittsburgh is by far the hottest team in the East heading into the dance, and only LA and Anaheim can even pretend to argue in the West. Yet officially, the Pens are still statistical winners.

We fans do know what we're talking about after all.