The National Hockey League's long regular season is over and the 16 remaining teams will now face off in the long NHL Playoffs to see who will hoist hockey's most revered prize, the Stanley Cup. 

The Eastern Conference will see one of hockey's oldest rivalries as the top-seeded Montreal Canadiens take on the 8th-seeded Boston Bruins tomorrow.  The Canadiens employed a mix of balanced scoring and solid goaltending to reach the top of their conference.  The Bruins limped into the playoffs despite injuries to key players. 

In the Western Conference, the top-seeded Detroit Red Wings will throw Henrik Zetterberg's 43 goals, Pavel Datsyuk's 97 points, and stingy goalie Chris Osgood at the 8th-seeded Nashville Predators.  The Red Wings have been a force to be reckoned in the West and the Predators are 3-5 against them this season.

Other matchups in the East include the 7th-seeded Ottawa Senators versus All-Star Sidney Crosby and the 2nd-seeded Pittsburgh Penguins.  Washington wiz-kid Alexander Ovechkin, who put up Wayne Gretsky-like numbers with 65 goals and 112 points this season, leads the 3rd-seeded Capitals against the 6th-seeded Philadelphia Flyers.  And, perennial All-Star goalie Martin Brodeur and the 4th-seeded New Jersey Devils take on the 5th-seeded New York Rangers in a battle for supremacy in the New York City metropolitan area.

Other Western Conference pairings include the 2nd-seeded San Jose Sharks, led by center Joe Thornton and goalie Evgeny Nabokov, versus the 7th-seeded Calgary Flames and 50-goal scorer Jarome Iginla.  The 3rd-seeded Minnesota Wild will try to hold off the #6 seed Colorado Avalanche.  And, the defending champion and 4th-seeded Anaheim Ducks, with former Blues defenseman Chris Pronger and goalie extraordinaire Jean-Sebastien Giguere in tow, take on the 5th-seeded Dallas Stars.