A quick glance at the NHL standings and one might think they’re upside down—particularly in the western conference.

Sure it’s still early, but who doesn’t love a good plot twist?  Sports fans always fall in love with the teams that come out of nowhere—from Cinderella stories in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament to BCS busters.  Anyone outside of Pittsburgh wanted to see the Arizona Cardinals hold the Lombardi Trophy after last year’s Super Bowl.

Of the early teams making many do a double take at their record which are for real and which are merely hot at the wrong time?

The only team in their correct place in the eastern conference’s Northeast Division is the Toronto Maple Leafs, but with only 1 point in 7 games and still in search of their first victory even this level of futility was unimaginable.

Meanwhile, the Buffalo Sabres and Ottawa Senators have turned the tables on the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens in the early going.  But how are they doing it and will it last?

BUFFALO SABRES: 5-1-1 (11 points)

So far, the Sabres are getting contributions form all the right players and their balanced attack has been a nightmare for opposing teams.  Left-winger Thomas Vanek’s 4 goals and center Derek Roy’s 6 assists aren’t surprising but the early performance of center Tim Connolly (6 points), left wing Clarke MacArthur (4 goals) and right wing Jason Pominville (5 points) is.

Most important to their early success has been goalie Ryan Miller (5-0, 1.66 goals against average, .942 save percentage).  Miller has the talent to put the team on his shoulders but at some point his numbers will come back down to earth.  When they do, can the offense keep scoring like it has?  Any sustained success and playoff run will rely on Miller putting up career-best numbers.

Staying power? Vanek is the only elite scorer on this team and he already had an injury scare.  With Connolly’s injury history and too many question marks throughout the rest of the roster it feels like this team is hanging by a thread.  All it will take is for one long injury to bury the Sabres.  VERDICT: No Playoffs

OTTAWA SENATORS: 5-2-1 (11 points)

The off-season trade of left-winger Dany Heatley was supposed to doom the Senators, but so far it looks like a case of addition by subtraction.  With Daniel Alfredsson (11 points) and Jason Spezza (7 points), there is still plenty of offense.  Left-winter Milan Michalek (5 goals) is off to a nice start and center Mike Fisher seems to have rediscovered his playmaking ability. They’re off to a hot start with zero goals combined from Spezza and former 50-goal scorer Jonathan Cheechoo.

However, behind Anton Volchenkov, Ottawa remains incredibly thin on the blue line and many of their mistakes have been covered up by goalie Pascal Leclaire.  But a goalie can’t be expected to carry the load each and every night and Leclaire’s numbers took a big hit after allowing 6 goals in an overtime loss to the offensively challenged Nashville Predators Thursday night.

Staying power? New head coach Cory Clouston has done a fantastic job so far, especially with two of his top forwards still looking to light the lamp for the first time.  If Leclaire plays up to his ability they’ll hang around all season.  VERDICT: Like doing late holiday shopping, they’ll be in it until the end but come up without the gift of the playoffs.

Fans of the Phoenix Coyotes must think they’re suffering from heat stroke.  Tops on the list for relocation, the Yotes are ignoring the off-ice issues and doing plenty of winning early on.

PHOENIX COYOTES: 6-2-0 (12 points)

This is easily the biggest surprise in the league thus far, not even stats can explain it.  Nobody has more than 3 goals and two of their top three scorers are defensemen (Adrian Aucoin with 6 points and Ed Jovanovski with 5).

Much like Miller in Buffalo, goalie Ilya Bryzgalov (6-1, 1.26 gaa, .949 save percentage) would be a strong Vezina contender if the award were handed out in November.  Bryzgalov will be the netminder for this franchise—wherever home is—for many years to come, but he’ll obviously fall off somewhat from his amazing start.

Staying power? They’re still not scoring and lack the talent to help Bryzgalov when the puck stops looking like a tire off a semi truck.  VERDICT: Late October brings cold outside of Arizona and there’s no delusion here, the Yotes will still finish near the bottom of the west.

COLORADO AVALANCHE: 6-1-2 (14 points)

This isn’t your older brother’s Avalanche anymore, but the misconception is they stopped building after Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg and Sandis Ozolinsh left.  The reality is injuries stunted the growth of young star Paul Stastny while Marek Svatos, Wojtek Wolski and John-Michael Liles have been slow to develop.

Defenseman Kyle Quincey’s team-leading 8 points have been a huge boost and veteran right winger Milan Hejduk is still a top sniper.  The talent is in place to succeed, if each player can meet the high expectations they once had.

The goaltender was a main position of weakness the last few seasons and so far it has been solidified by free agent acquisition Craig Anderson (6-1, 2.06 gaa, .934 save percentage).  Once a high-level prospect, it took Anderson a long time before earning a starting job, but he’s finally performing at a high level and showing the ability to be a workhorse between the pipes.

Staying power? Health and growth are essential to any young team to find success.  If Stastny stays healthy and their young talent matures, they will be headed back in the right direction VERDICT: Many continue to love the Avs based on their run of success years ago—kind of like Jennifer Aniston.  And much like Aniston’s relationships, it’s hard to see this being successful in the long haul.

LOS ANGELES KINGS: 6-4-0 (12 points)

Unlike every other team on this list, the Kings aren’t shocking the hockey universe because of an incredibly hot goaltender.  They have plenty of talent at every other spot on the ice.

22-year-old center Anze Kopitar (8 goals, 8 assists in 10 games) is the hottest player in the league not named Ovechkin and if he is ready to join the league’s elite scorers this team is very dangerous.  Left-winger Ryan Smyth (14 points) has brought not only his terrific skill but also the leadership this young team so badly needed and has immediately paid dividends.

Their success has been without much from talented left-winger Alexander Frolov who continues to butt heads with head coach Terry Murray.  Reports out of L.A. say the two have already had ten closed-door meetings—one for every game—and trade rumors continue to swirl around Frolov.  A quick resolution will only help matters.

Most importantly, the Kings have an extremely young and talented defensive corps led by the 2^nd overall pick of the 2008 draft Drew Doughty.  Fresh off winning the Stanley Cup, Rob Scuderi joins talented blue-liners Matt Greene and Jack Johnson to form a couple of exceptionally strong pairings.

Staying power? If the Kings can solve their goaltending issues—Frolov could be used as trade bait for that solution—this team is a definite playoff contender.  VERDICT: I had them in my playoff picks before the season began and there’s no reason to back down now.  It’s been a good sports year in L.A.—Lakers are NBA Champions and the Dodgers won 95 games before losing the NLCS—and the Kings will make for a very fun winter in the city of Angels.

Pumpkins, red and yellow leaves, double digits on the calendar and temperatures fluctuating between shorts and sweaters.

More than anything, October is the month of change.  For hockey players, it’s the month of fresh beginnings, new energy, good health and the belief that it is once again possible to have your name etched onto the Stanley Cup.

Most importantly, it allows players to change their reputations or improve their performance.  In some cases, it could mean reaching the game’s elite or simply holding onto an NHL career.

In 2009-10, the following players will be under such an intense spotlight they might leave an extra puddle of sweat behind when they hop over the boards:

10) Dion Phaneuf—D—Calgary Flames

After setting career highs in assists, penalty minutes and plus/minus in the 2007-08 season the Edmonton native was ready to join the league’s elite crop of defensemen.  Things were going so well, the new “Neon Dion” was starting to appeal to the mainstream with his relationship to Hollywood diva Elisha Cuthbert.  

But the 2008-09 campaign saw a dip in Phaneuf’s numbers across the board—most importantly in plus/minus where he had by far his worst season (-11).  Phaneuf still brings a hard shot and is a lock for a monster hit that becomes a weekly youtube sensation, but the Flames need him to get back in the plus where he spent the first three seasons of his career.

Luckily for Phaneuf, fellow defenseman Robyn Regehr will make up for plenty of his mistakes and free agent acquisition Jay Bouwmeester should take over any pressure from running the point on the power play.

9) Daniel Briere—RW—Philadelphia Flyers

An injury plagued 08-09 campaign was maddening for Briere and Flyers fans.  In just 29 games, the speedy winger recorded 11 goals and 14 assists.

Entering the third year of his 8-year, $52 million contract this becomes a critical time for his career and the Flyers organization.  A healthy Briere could push the team into a great race with the Capitals, Bruins and Penguins for the eastern conference title.  However, another injury will only add frustration in a city that doesn’t react kindly to disappointment.

With 3 goals in his first 4 games, Briere is off to the start both he and the team need.

Andrei & Sergei Kostitsyn—forwards—Montreal Canadiens

The comparisons to the Sedin twins following the 07-08 season may have been wishful thinking in Montreal.  Andrei’s play was down a bit last season, while Sergei has never taken off.  As a matter of fact, Sergei is now down—at the AHL level—and would like a trade out of Montreal altogether, which may not be a bad idea.

The brothers link to local mafia created a soap opera for a franchise looking to once again become one of the league’s elite.  Not only do the brothers need to start producing consistently on the ice for the team to succeed, they better start creating positive news for their careers on and off the ice.

Pretty soon, it may just be in the Canadiens best interest to trade the duo, this is a situation of addition by subtraction if the Kostitsyn’s don’t start making life difficult on play-by-play announcers.

7) Shane Doan—RW—Phoenix Coyotes

Since the turn of the century there hasn’t been a more consistent player than the soon-to-be 33-year-old.  A solid two-way player seemingly getting better with age (averaging 75 points the last two seasons), his pressure is completely selfish.

Doan has been in the desert since the franchise relocated from Winnipeg in 1996 and with the franchise in financial turmoil the Cup must look like a giant mirage.  If Doan can continue to perform at a high level he could finally get a ticket out of town as contending teams will be lining up to add him by the trade deadline.  Any team that lands this all-star could become a top contender for the Cup.

Any relocation for Doan would be a rare win.

6) Erik Johnson—D—St. Louis Blues

The number one overall pick in the 2006 draft, Johnson struggled a bit as a rookie before a torn ACL and MCL wiped out his entire sophomore season.

It will be interesting to see how the youngster adjusts this year after the injury—it could very well be a second rookie-type season.  If Johnson picks up where he left off, the Blues could quickly compete with the Blackhawks and Red Wings in the division.

However, if he struggles, it could seriously hurt the progress of the franchise in a city starving for winning hockey once again.  Johnson is still viewed as a cornerstone piece, but it would be bad if a fluke injury suffered on the golf course put a two-year dent into his career.

5) Edmonton Oilers young forwards

A trio of talented young players must begin to perform up to potential for their careers and the team’s success.

First and foremost, right wing Ales Hemsky must get to the next level.  A playmaker with talent pouring off him, Hemsky disappointed last year and still hasn’t cracked either the 25-goal or 60-assist mark.  Hemsky can be extremely frustrating, as you never know which player will show up.  On certain nights he establishes himself as a force while others he just disappears.  If Hemsky can’t come close to 100 points (he only had 66 last year) the Oilers won’t be going anywhere.

Andrew Cogliano—another first round pick—also took a step backward last season and has yet to crack the 20-goal plateau.  But it’s center Sam Gagner–the most recent first rounder–with the most pressure to succeed.  Gagner also slid in his second season and coach Pat Quinn demoted him to the fourth line recently.

The move might have worked—Gagner already has 2 goals in the Oilers first 3 games.

4) Jason Spezza—center—Ottawa Senators

It’s hard to say a 26-year-old averaging 33 goals per season over the last three must do more, but that’s the overwhelming thought in Canada.

With Dany Heatley gone and the franchise in apparent free fall, Spezza now needs to take his game to another level.  Down 19 points last season from 07-08, Spezza needs to approach the 40-goal/100-point marks or people will be calling for his head at the end of the season when the Senators miss the playoffs for the second straight year after qualifying for 11 straight.

3) Roberto Luongo—G—Vancouver Canucks

Maybe the biggest shock on the list, how can the goalie many regard as the games best be under pressure to perform better?

A 12-year, $64 million contract extension signed over the summer is a big reason.  After spending big bucks to re-sign both of the Sedins, Vancouver now has very little payroll flexibility for the next five years.

Already scoring challenged, Luongo must be the player to lead the way to the Cup.  While his career playoff numbers are fine, Luongo had a disastrous run last season—especially in the second round against the Blackhawks.  His .914 save percentage and 2.52 goals against average won’t get Vancouver to the promise land anytime soon.  His struggles have continued early this season where he’s started 1-3 with a .865 save percentage and 3.52 goals against average.

Luongo has the ability and talent to be the next Martin Brodeur, now it’s time to show why he was worth all the cash.

2) Vincent Lecavalier—C—Tampa Bay Lightning

Just two years removed from a 52-goal and 108-point season, Lecavalier’s 08-09 (29 goals, 67 points) was his worst since 02-03 and there is no doubt he needs a return to MVP form for the Lightning to once again make the playoffs.

With talent up front like Steven Stamkos and Martin St. Louis, Tampa needs Lecavalier to find the scoring that put him among the elite centers in the league.

With the team’s defensive deficiencies, their success rests more on Lecavalier’s shoulders than maybe any other superstar in the NHL.

His new 11-year contract extension should ease much of the pressure he felt last season, but if the numbers don’t improve the Lightning might start to wonder if roughly 850 games played by season’s end are starting to show their wear and tear.

1) Cristobal Huet—G—Chicago Blackhawks

Everything is bright for a once dark and depressed franchise.  The young forwards—Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane– are talented and exciting.  The defense is solid– if not spectacular– and the addition of Marian Hossa could put the Hawks over the top.

But one large problem remains between the pipes. Goalie Cristobal Huet is a BIG question mark and could single-handedly determine whether the Hawks hoist the cup for the first time since 1961.

The Hawks gave Huet a huge contract before last season and he never took full control of the starting job.  With Nikolai Khabibulin departing as a free agent, Huet is firmly in the spotlight and needs to respond.

Some games he looks capable of challenging for the Vezina Trophy while other nights you wonder how he’s an NHL goaltender and hope he moves back to France soon.

If he plays close to his career averages (.917 save percentage, 2.45 goals against average) then it’s going to be a struggle all season.  Huet has to get these numbers down—his 2.53 goals against average last season won’t cut it.

If he seriously falters, look for 26-year-old Finland native Antti Niemi to step up.

Looking into the crystal ball and nothing good is in sight if these players don’t shine once again—or in some cases, like never before.

Crazy ideas on the other hand often turn out to be some of the best—if they don’t just get laughed at and ignored.

Well, it’s time for NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman to get downright nuts.  It’s time for Mr. Bettman to stop worrying about hockey in North America and start thinking globally.

Global is everywhere right now.  Any political conversation can’t help but include the phrase “global economy.”  Shipping companies advertise their global rates.  Heck, somehow the Harlem Globetrotters are still a form of entertainment.

Every one of America’s sports leagues is beginning to embrace the idea of going overseas. MLB has invented the world baseball classic while NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is contemplating a Super Bowl in London.  Nearly 19 percent of the NBA’s players are from a foreign country, and now professional teams in Europe have become a player in NBA free agency—Avtio Josh Childress and Linas Kleiza!

If anyone believes the NHL is just sending the Red Wings, Blues, Blackhawks and Panthers to Sweden and Finland in order to rack up those frequent flyer miles they’re sorely mistaken.  There’s an ulterior motive, and it can’t just be to promote the league in countries that enjoy the game more than the U.S. currently does.

Now, the NHL must embrace its roots in Europe on an unprecedented scale.  Just consider this Extreme Makeover: NHL Edition.

Step 1: Acceptance= Kind of like one of the steps in alcoholics anonymous, the NHL powers that be must finally accept the fact that the sport of hockey has completely fallen off the map in the U.S.—or at least in relation to the other three major leagues.

Sure, true hockey fans are probably the most passionate around but they’re few in numbers and completely non-existent in many cities that franchises currently call home.

Once the league can admit they’ve fallen from the mainstream and don’t appear to be getting up anytime soon, they can embrace this rather ludicrous idea.

Step 2: Contraction= This is the evil word nobody really wants to think about despite how realistic of a process it truly is.  It’s a lot like the pimple-faced kid in junior high that all the girls were nice to, but didn’t want to kiss.

The bottom line is that the NHL expanded too much when the global economy was good and placed teams in cities where they just didn’t belong.  Whose brilliant idea was it to move a team from Minnesota to Dallas only to then put a new franchise in Minnesota a few years later?

In order to not truly anger hockey fans, only 2 criteria should be considered: a) has the franchise had its name etched on Lord Stanley’s Cup?  And b) recent attendance.  With that being said, six organizations should be handed giant pink slips.

Start with the Phoenix Coyotes, a bankrupt franchise without a cup.  Forget trying to find them an owner or the idea of being league owned and operated.  The NHL needs to just pretend the disaster in the desert never happened.  Follow this by quickly dismissing the Atlanta Thrashers, who also can’t draw fans and have a grand total of zero playoff wins in nine seasons down south.

The Florida Panthers and their plastic rats are next to go, followed by the Columbus Blue Jackets and Nashville Predators—all teams without a cup and consistently in the lower third of the league in attendance.

Finally, the toughest choice of all comes from the Golden State—which hasn’t been so prosperous for the NHL.  The Anaheim Ducks get to stay because they won the 2007 Stanley Cup.  However, the Sharks and Kings have never won.  While the shark tank draws significantly better than the Kings, would the league want to lose a team from a major market?

It’s a difficult decision but the Sharks stay, the NHL can’t be picky with markets here.  If Los Angeles cared about hockey, this wouldn’t even be a debate.  The Kings had Wayne Gretzky–who will be better remembered for his days in Edmonton–and that’s it.

Step 3: Division= With 24 teams remaining, it’s time to decide which 12 will stay in North America and which will move or be sold to European cities in countries like Sweden, Finland, Germany, England, Russia, Norway and the Czech Republic.

There’s no doubt that the most storied franchises in the league stay put—that means the original-6 franchises in Boston, Chicago, Detroit, New York (Rangers), Montreal and Toronto remain.

The entire sport was created in Canada and their fans are still great and sellout nearly every game.  Therefore, the other four franchises up north remain as well–so Ottawa, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver won’t be packing their bags.

That leaves two remaining teams for the North American division and many fine candidates including the Pittsburgh Penguins, Philadelphia Flyers, New Jersey Devils and St. Louis Blues.

The power of Sidney Crosby and Mario Lemieux is equivalent to a Roman Empire that the NHL can’t afford to lose so they’re safe.

Now, some tough questions: Does Pennsylvania get two teams, what about the tri-state area?  Would the NHL be content with Chicago being its most southern reaching franchise if it stuffed the Blues’ trumpet?  Unfortunately for “the Lou,” no Stanley Cups is a big pitfall and you’re out.

Both the Flyers and Devils have a great history and fantastic fans, but the NHL paid close attention to the recent purchase of the New Jersey Nets by Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov and wants to play matchmaker, thus the Flyers stay put.

Therefore, the Devils, Blues, Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, Anaheim Ducks, San Jose Sharks, Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes are making the trip across the pond.

Step 4: Scheduling and playoffs= Don’t worry if you’re a fan of a team that will be sending postcards back, you’ll see them again in due time.

In order to make this work, the NHL must come up with a creative scheduling method so teams aren’t flying back and forth over the Atlantic Ocean.  To avoid flying costs and danger, six teams from each division will spend a couple of weeks at a time overseas to play the other teams remaining in their home cities and rotate through that division.  They will simply mix and match which teams are on which continent at the right time.  This should mean only two trips and minimal time spent in a far away place.

Teams will play their continental opponents four times each (44 games) while facing teams from the other continent a total of three times (36 games).  The cross-continent matches will be played one time in the European city, one time in the North American city and a third—alternate—time in the city from which that European team originated.

So, if the Avalanche becomes the Helsinki Hunters they would face each foe once at the Pepsi Center in Denver, CO.

With fewer teams, the playoffs would also be more difficult to qualify for.  Only six teams from each continent make their own playoffs with the top two seeds receiving first-round byes much like the NFL playoffs.  At the end, the European champion will face the North American Champion for the Stanley Cup.

Step 5: Marketing= As is the case with any idea, it will never succeed without brilliant minds to market it to the masses.

Hockey players remaining in their current cities would need to step to the forefront more than ever for advertising purposes.  Sidney Crosby, Patrick Kane (if he stops punching taxi cab drivers over 20 cents), Roberto Luongo and others must begin showing their faces and personalities on a more consistent basis.

Once free agency gets going and a contraction draft takes place, European athletes returning home will have no problems being marketed.  Should Alex Ovechkin or Evgeni Malkin head back to Russia they’ll be treated like czars.

The novelty factor at the beginning should be enough on its own to get hockey back into   mainstream culture and media outlets on this continent.  The North American rivalries will take on a new intense meaning while those same fans will be curious about how hockey is played elsewhere–do they really have cheerleaders?

Never before will a marketing machine in sports be so important as for this situation.

This could lead to disaster, but isn’t it about time the NHL takes a big risk?  At the very least, Bettman needs to float this idea out there and pull the greatest bluff in sports history.  If there really are millions of hockey fans that would be angry over this realignment, then they’ll find a way to support their teams and try convincing Bettman that the only water the players should travel over is frozen and domestic.

NHL bloggers will have a field day with Bettman—so what?  “Crazy” jokes will be at an all-time high and Bettman’s name attached to a four-letter profanity will be on twitter’s “trending topics” list for a few days.  But what does he have to lose?

In a worst-case scenario, the idea fails miserably and all the teams return to the U.S. and rebuild.  The league might need a year off restructure—been there, done that.

But if it works—oh, if it works–the NHL becomes the first truly global league, with intense fans in multiple countries and money rolling in from all corners of the world.

It’s time for the NHL to start thinking outside the box.

Or in this case, outside the borders.