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The Phoenix Coyotes were once in the fifth spot in the Western Conference. Since the All-Star break, however, Phoenix has entered into a free-fall.

The Coyotes have played nine games since the break. They've won exactly once. While there are many factors that could be looked at as reasons behind the slump (Gary Bettman blames the media), the first place to look is the most inconsistent player on the team.

Rangers 5, Capitals 4: Thanks to his two-goal effort on Wednesday night, Mike Green has now scored in seven straight games which ties an NHL record for consecutive games with a goal by a defenseman. During the current streak Green has tallied nine goals and seven assists. He's simply on a different planet right now.

As for the game itself, despite Green's efforts, the Capitals dropped a 5-4 shootout decision to the Rangers. Ryan Callahan scored his 13th goal of the season in regulation for New York, and then added the game-winner in the fourth-round of the shootout.

There are certainly at least two really good teams in the NHL's Western Conference. Defending Stanley Cup champion Detroit and fast-starting San Jose appear in the clear to duke it out for the right to play for the Stanley Cup later this year.

Of course, we know that anything can happen in a best-of-seven series. In addition, we still have half a season left to play. What we don't know is which team in this conference is set up to challenge either the Red Wings or Sharks. They've beaten - at least once - pretty much everyone who has stood in their way, including each other.

While the top of the conference appears to virtually locked in place at this point, there are still serious battles to be fought, especially for the last four positions in the West. Currently, eight teams are separated by just six points. St. Louis, the last-place team in the West, is just nine points out of eighth.

Thursday night was Tim Gleason bobblehead night in Carolina, and after a quick search of eBay, I've found that you too can own this rare collectible for the low, low price of $29.99 (starting bid)! Exciting. And incredibly bizarre. Anyway, after the Maple Leafs jumped out to a 4-0 lead, the Hurricanes roared back to tie the game, thanks in large part to three goals in the first eight minutes of the third period.

Unfortunately, at the 13:44 mark of the period, Gleason, the man of the night, was sent to the box for high-sticking Nik Antropov which ultimately led to Tomas Kaberle scoring the game-winner, helping Toronto to a 6-4 win. Jason Blake netted a hat trick -- and picked up two assists -- for the Leafs, while Ian White and Niklas Hagman also added goals, as Toronto snapped a four-game losing streak.

Nikita Filatov, the No. 5 overall pick in this year's Entry Draft, entered play on Saturday night for Columbus with one goal in his first five NHL games. During the Blue Jackets 4-2 win over Minnesota, the 18-year-old rookie notched his first career hat trick -- and recorded an assist -- helping lead Columbus to its second straight win and sixth in its past eight games.

Steve Mason continued his strong play in net for the Blue Jackets, turning aside 21 of 23 shots to pick up his 15th win of the season. It's a big win for Columbus, as it entered the game trailing the Wild by one point in the Western Conference standings.

Mason is still leading the league in goals against average and save percentage, and he is still not an all-star. Crazy.

When you take a look at the standings in the NHL's Western Conference, it's easy to see things are looking up for the Phoenix Coyotes. After years of futility, the team is now starting to develop plenty of young talent around a solid core of veteran players like Shane Doan, Oli Jokinen, Ilya Bryzgalov and Ed Jovanovski. Put it all together, and the Coyotes are in the thick of the Western Conference playoff race a little less than halfway through the regular season.

Unfortunately for the Coyotes and head coach Wayne Gretzky, the most important number for the Coyotes these days isn't the point total in the standings, it's the numbers on the balance sheet. Earlier this month, David Shoalts of the Globe and Mail detailed the tale of woe that is Phoenix's balance sheet, with the team losing $30 million per year over the last two seasons. The line from that story that was most chilling, came from one former NHL governor who declined to be identified:

"I don't know how they can sustain the losses," one former governor said."The team loses so much money you can't sell it. If I were offered the team for a dollar, I'd say no because you can't fix it."

It is estimated by the former governor that the Coyotes have lost more than $200-million since 2001 - at least $70 million beyond the purchase price.

With the financial position of Coyotes owner Jerry Moyes on the brink of collapse thanks to the ill health of his trucking company, Swift Transportation, logic dictates that those losses can't be sustained for much longer. And if ESPN.com's Scott Burnside's latest report is correct, the NHL is already making preparations for what looks like an inevitable financial collapse.

Bizarre game in Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon, as the Capitals fired 48 shots at Flyers goaltender Antero Niittymaki -- including 25 in the first period -- only to get their lunches handed to them on the scoreboard in the form of a 7-1 dismantling at the hands of Philadelphia.

The Capitals went into the third period with a 39-13 edge in the shots department, yet trailed on the scoreboard 3-0. Perhaps their spirit was crushed, or something, because they allowed the Flyers to strike four more times in the final frame.

Scott Hartnell recorded a hat trick for Philadelphia in the win, which was its sixth victory in the past seven games. Jeff Carter added two goals, giving him 24 on the season, while Simon Gagne and Joffrey Lupul also joined in the goal-scoring fun, tormenting the Washington goaltending duo of Brent Johnson and Jose Theodore.

Brooks Laich scored the only goal for Washington, as Niittymaki made 47 saves for the Flyers.

The game of the night -- or so we thought -- was that monster matchup in Detroit, between the defending Stanley Cup champions, and the team that, thus far, has been the best team in the NHL this season. On paper, it looked like it was going to be an epic tilt. Possible Western Conference Finals preview, Mike Babcock vs. Todd Mclellan, teacher vs. student, etc. etc. etc. Of course, it was the second time they faced off this year, but, hey, it still looked like it was going to be awesome.

This, of course, is why the games aren't played on paper, as the Red Wings disposed of San Jose quite easily in a 6-0 romp at Joe Louis Arena. It's the Sharks' second straight loss, and the first game they've dropped in regulation in over a month.

Entering Thursday's game against the Islanders, Pittsburgh found itself with a three-game losing streak. Consider the streak over, as the Penguins systematically dismantled New York with a 9-2 thumping at Mellon Arena. The Penguins received hat tricks from both Petr Sykora and Pascal Dupuis (each player's first ever hat trick) as they never let up, while fans chanted "we want 10" during the final minute of regulation.

The Penguins scored four goals in both the first and second periods, before Dupuis completed his hat trick late in the third period. Defensemen Mark Streit and Andy Sutton scored the only goals for New York, as Penguins goalie John Curry picked up his second NHL win (both against the Islanders) making 24 saves.

The biggest problem for the Islanders was the fact they couldn't stay out of the penalty box, picking up 34 penalty minutes throughout the game, including three separate occasions where they handed Pittsburgh five-on-three advantages.

Pittsburgh had eight different players finish with multiple points, including Evgeni Malkin (goal, assist) and Sidney Crosby (three assists) who continue to distance themselves from the rest of the pack in the NHL scoring race. Amazingly, Jeff Taffe, recently called up from the minors, found a way to finish the game as a -1.

Should you feel sorry for the Islanders after a loss like this? Of course not. This is the big leagues, and as long as they're going to keep playing hard and physical (as they did), you should expect the other team to keep clicking on all cylinders in an effort to score as many goals as possible. You never know when the other team could mount an unexpected, late-game comeback.

Not one of Ilya Bryzgalov's best performances for Phoenix, as the Chicago Blackhawks lit him up seven times on 28 shots, as the Coyotes lost a laugher, 7-1. Chicago received a pair of goals from Ben Eager, while also getting tallies from Dave Bolland, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Sharp, Dustin Byfuglien, and Andrew ladd in the win.

Ladd also picked up three assists in the win, earning himself No. 1 start honors with his four point effort. The four points, by the way, were a career-best for the 22-year old forward.

With the Coyotes trailing 7-0 in the second period, Envir Lisin at least got them on the board with his fifth goal of the season, which was the shot they could sneak behind Chicago goalie Cristobal Huet, who stopped 20 shots in the win.