-Some more NHL thoughts as I watch the end of a one-goal game between two of the West’s best Minnesota and Anaheim:

-The Sabres are just relentless. Not long after I posted my last entry, the improved Thomas Vanek cashed in his fourth on a power play and not long after a Jaroslav Spacek point blast which deflected off the Canes’ Tim Gleason to give Buffalo a 5-3 lead. Believe it or not, even after a determined Vanek (how improved is this guy) drew two penalties for a 5-on-3 with 2:00 left, somehow the Canes’ Mike Commodore was able to tally shorthanded to cut it to one. And even more amazingly, the Canes’ Justin Williams and Erik Cole came close to tying it before the buzzer sounded to end the contest and improve Buffalo to a perfect 7-0-0 on the season and 2-0 against the defending champs. The Sabres were just a little better. But make no mistake about it, the Canes were one of the few teams who could go end-to-end with this lightning fast Buffalo team. Right now, they look awfully tough. Afinogenov is red hot. He also has a hot girl friend in Russian star Elena Dementieva. So it’s all good for Max. Captain Daniel Briere and Chris Drury continue to lead the team up front and fly up and down the ice wreaking havoc. Vanek looks about as improved as the Devils’ Zach Parise in year two. Derek Roy and Jason Pominville look even better. And that’s without Ales Kotalik getting out to a quick start. What’s more? Henrik Tallinder is Buffalo’s best defenseman and is now starting to contribute offensively. With Spacek fitting in, Brian Campbell proving last year was no fluke and Dmitri Kalinin off to a good start after a relatively quiet ‘05-06, this team is clicking on all cylinders. With Finn tandem Teppo Numminen and Toni Lydman rounding out the blueline, there are absolutely no weaknesses right now. Not with Miller continuing to make crucial stops in net. And there’s always reliable backup Martin Biron if the super soph needs a night off.

-The Hawks had a big chance to improve to a surprising 5-2 but blew a two-goal lead and a one-goal lead in a wild third which saw Dallas rally twice to pull out a 5-4 comeback victory in Big D. Leading 3-1, they allowed the Stars to quickly tie it when Mike Modano and Jere Lehtinen tallied less than a minute apart. But only 1:05 later, Martin Lapointe converted a breakaway to put the Hawks back up with 4:29 left. So, no problem, right? Wrong. Mike Ribeiro tied it with 1:14 to go and Philippe Boucher connected with 40 seconds remaining to give the Stars a wild win. Maybe that’s what Chicago gets for having Brian Boucher as a backup. The ex-Flyer is more washed up than Jeremy Roenick.

-In another unpredictable finish, the Canucks rallied to beat the Blues in St. Louis 3-2. Now it’s no secret the Blues aren’t that good. And just to prove a point, Ryan Johnson’s boarding penalty of Mattias Ohlund allowed Vancouver to tie it. Taking advantage of a 6-on-3 due to pulling the goalie, Markus Naslund knotted it with 26 seconds left. So it went to OT. How did the Blues lose you ask? By losing the final draw before a shootout and watching Sami Salo’s last second point shot beat the buzzer. Well, the good news is that lost point could be the difference between winning the draft lottery next summer!

-Update: There’s only one undefeated team left now that the Ducks held on for a 2-1 win over the Wild. Scott Niedermayer and Sean O’Donnell tallied for Anaheim while Pierre-Marc Bouchard got the only Minnesota goal. Regarding Niedermayer, he’s the most exciting defenseman in the game. The former Devil and three-time Cup winner seems to have gotten even better in Anaheim if that’s possible. He’s maybe the most fluid skater in the game. Always jumping into the rush, he’s also very quick at recovering and rock solid in his end. When he left such an established franchise as New Jersey for Anaheim to be closer to family and play with his younger brother Rob, many criticized the move. But watching how he helped get them to last year’s Western Conference Finals before falling to Edmonton and seeing how well he’s played this season with new teammate Chris Pronger joining the blueline makes me a believer. His talents are on full display with a young and upcoming Ducks team that boasts some of the best talent in the league. If everything comes together, they could be hoisting the Cup next June. So far, so good.