Davidson says 'right now Colorado looks great'.

"The West is better, let's face facts. Dallas, Colorado and Detroit could beat any team in the East," says ABC NHL commentator John Davidson. The hope for the teams in the East is that the West goes seven games in a conference final and bang each other and bang each other and bang each other. Then it may even things up."

Davidson, in an recent online chat with NHL.com, ABCSports.com and ESPN.com users, said that Colorado is looking especially solid, the Devils could win the East and the Flyers are showing just how much they are missing not having Eric Lindros in the lineup.

In case you missed Davidson's April 29 chat, the following is an edited transcript.

Mike Serafino: Do you think the Flyers are going to be able to come back on the Penguins and beat them? And if so, do you think this would turn into a seven game series?

John Davidson: Mike, to me, Game 2 is always the most important game of a series. If Pittsburgh wins they are up two games going home. If Philadelphia wins, they're equal going into Pittsburgh. I really think today may answer your question.

Kyle Voss: Hello John, I was wondering what happened to the Bruins. They had so much promise in 98/99, and fell so hard in 99/00. Any insight?

John Davidson: Kyle, the Bruins biggest No. 1 problem was, simply put, injuries. Their best players seemed to be injured for the majority of the season. The other problem was they broke their team up because they wouldn't allow their players to sign any decent contracts. The lack of contracts signed during the offseason hurt the chemistry of that team. Hopefully, next season they will be healthy.

Jeff Allen Rocklin Ca: Will the new Islander owners spend any money on the team? Do you know anything about them?

John Davidson: Jeff, the Islanders new owner is very, very wealthy. I don't think he will get careless with his spending but certainly it will be there to sign their better players and maybe make trades for more experienced players which usually costs more. Immediately they signed Mariusz Czerkawski who was their leading scorer last year so that is a strong signal of what is to come. Besides that, the new owner read a book called "Hockey for Dummies" to learn about the game. I was one of they guys who wrote that thing so I'm real happy for him.

Ulf Bodin, Ludvika, Sweden: When are you experts going to take the Toronto Maple Leafs for serious? I´ve been following you guys all season and all you´ve been talking about is either the Flyers or the Devils.

John Davidson: Toronto right now is hurt by injuries. Any more injuries and it will affect the depth of their organization. They did not deserve to win Game 1. It was because of four goalposts that the Devils hit along with fine goaltending from Curtis Joseph. The Maple Leafs are a very very good team but I don't think they are going to beat New Jersey. But I could be wrong.

Brian Tepper: I was wondering how you think the Sharks will be able to handle the next game after just being demolished by the Stars in Game 1.

John Davidson: Brian, my thought on this series is San Jose is rather bruised up. Especially Owen Nolan who is playing hurt. I don't know if they, because of the injury problems number one, would be able to compete in a long series with Dallas. I hope they come back after being demolished in Game 1 and make a series of it. The other thing is Steve Shields is a good goaltender but he is not as good as Ed Belfour. That is the big difference in that series.

Dominic from Wellington Florida: Dear J.D., I was one of your biggest fans back in the day you took the Rangers to the Finals. You were a great goalie and are now a great announcer. Is there anything you can't do? My question: Do you remember the time you attempted to clear the puck from the front of your net and hit the opposing onrushing forward in the head with the puck? Of course the puck went into your net. Who was that forward??

John Davidson: I think you are talking about the 1979 playoffs with the Rangers playing the Islanders. I skated out of the net as the puck was loose and it looked like Nystrom had a breakaway. I skated out of the net to get the puck. We collided, the puck went up in the air, I went down on the ice sliding into center ice and Nystrom skated towards the net. The puck went way up into the air, came down inside the Rangers zone where I wasn't and he was able to score into an empty net and that was an overtime game winner. We did come back to win the series and that is what was important.

david espinoza: What are the chances for the Avs to go all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals? And what will it take to win?

John Davidson: David, the Avs have gotten better and better and better. The main reason is the Bourque trade the Avalanche made. That signalled to the team that they were going to try and win the Cup. Yes, they have a chance. Whoever wins this series will have a difficult time with Dallas if they beat San Jose. If Dallas wins a short series and Colorado and Detroit goes to a long series, Dallas will have the advantage.

Castrese Nolli: Hi, I'm an italian fan of the NHL. I'd like to know the reasons of the debacle of St. Louis against San Jose. P.S. Could you send me Pavel Bure's shirt, because in Italy it is impossible to find it.

John Davidson: Castrese, there is no chance I can send you Pavel's shirt. If I had one, I'd keep it myself. The St. Louis loss to San Jose was because St. Louis did not have Pavol Demitra in the lineup who was out with a concussion. He was their leading scorer. St. Louis used Chris Pronger and Al MacInnis so much on the defense and asked them to do their scoring and be their defensemen and their hitters. It was too much to ask. San Jose showed a great deal of heart, punished the Blues and Owen Nolan was the best player in the series, that's why they won.

Brian: John, do you have any thoughts about why Philadelphia is having so much trouble scoring even strength in the playoffs? (against both BUF and now PIT) Now that they're having trouble scoring on the power play, do you think it's time for them to start getting very concerned?

John Davidson: Brian, in the first round the Flyers had to go against Dominik Hasek. He is hard to beat at even strength but they got the job done on the power play. Now against Pittsburgh you are seeing in the first game not much and in the second game not much, to this point. To me it is starting to show that they need Eric Lindros in the lineup. He can make plays. Keith Primeau is a fine centerman but he is not a playmaker and they need to make plays for their wingers to score.

Geoff Traub Salt lake: Is there something wrong with Gino Odjick? If not then why isn't he playing? You would think that his physical style of play would be very effective against this Pittsburgh team.

John Davidson: I was in Philadelphia last week and watched him practice and he is fine. He just can't fit into their lineup. Pittsburgh is not a fighting team so Gino is not needed. Besides that, they already have Craig Beruby on their team so they do have enough toughness.

ROB SCOTT BAYONNE N.J.: Hey John, who do you think has been the most impressive goaltender in the playoffs and why?

John Davidson: Rob, I think so far it's Ron Tugnutt. We expect Martin Brodeur, Curtis Joseph, Chris Osgood, Ed Belfour, Patrick Roy, all those guys to play well and they have. But Tugnutt has surprised many people.

Dean Rhoadarmer Denver, CO: Do you think that Ray Bourque and Dave Andreychuk will bring the heart and fire (and the desire for the cup) back to the Avs that has been missing in the playoffs the last couple of years?

John Davidson: If you look at what has happened since the trade deadline, they already had brought back the heart and fire that they need to win the Cup. Right now Colorado looks great.

Kevin Schloemp Moline IL: Do you think the Devils have a shot at winning the Stanley Cup?

John Davidson: To me the Devils do have at least a chance at winning the Eastern Conference. They've got to get their offense going, especially Bobby Holik who actually has no goals in the last 22 playoff games he has played.

Chris Johnston: Hi John!! Do you think Dominik will return next year (I do), and with the additions of Doug Gilmour and Chris Gratton, if they can keep the "D" healthy, do you feel they can make another good run at the cup next year?

John Davidson: Yes, Dominik will be back next year and I hope they don't make too many changes because that team should have a much better regular season than Buffalo had this year. The problem is they have a lot of restricted and unrestricted free agents and they have to be careful with their budget. So it will be interesting to see if they can keep the team together.

JOHN POCHMARA: JD .. What do you think will happen to Ron Wilson in the offseason???????

John Davidson: John, I talked to George McPhee the GM and the coaching for Washington will remain intact. He is hoping to add a little more offense to his lineup. He feels that they weren't good enough offensively to beat Pittsburgh.

tulax16: your camera's keep fading in an out it is really annoying!!!

John Davidson: Hey tulax16, who do you think I am the producer? Maybe the director? I don't know anything about cameras. Sorry.

Chris Jennings: What do you think of Matthew Barnaby as a player, and would he be a player you would want on your team?

John Davidson: Chris, the Penguins have so many Europeans on their team that they need a North American influence to add some grit to their lineup and Matthew Barnaby has done that. You may like him, you may not like him, but he draws a lot of penalties and he sticks up for his teammates.

Crusher: Mr. Davidson, What does Detroit need in order to beat an incredible Colorado defense?

John Davidson: Crusher, in watching the series to this point, Detroit needs Sergei Fedorov to get his game going. Also, Slava Kozlov is not playing well. He took a bad penalty in the first game. If Ray Bourque and Adam Foote are playing against Steve Yzerman's line that means Fedorov should be available for the other players, the other defensemen. He's got to get it going.

Alex Patriquen: What do you think of Wendel Clark's play in the Leafs' last three playoff games?

John Davidson: Alex, I'm just thrilled for Wendel Clark. He's one of the classiest people I've met in the game and he kept himself in great shape considering he did not play in the early portion of the Ottawa series and then was put in to be fresh and has not looked back. He earned his time to play and now he earns to stay in the lineup.

EMILY from Florida: Can Bob Clarke be vindictive enough in his obvious hatred for Eric Lindros to actually hurt this team by keeping him out of the playoffs (if they even make it past this Penguin team). This Flyer team cannot put the puck in the net and Lindros can do that, make the big hit and also set up LeClair. This team sorely misses that guy and Clarke and his ventriloquist doll Ramsay are living in a different era.

John Davidson: Emily, Eric Lindros is not healthy enough to play right now. But it's obvious they miss his style of play, his hits, his faceoff wins, his penalty kill, the focus of the other team would have to be on him as much as it is on Jagr for the Penguins. Yeah, they miss him and they miss him a lot.

Tom: Why does it seem that all of the ABC and ESPN commentators are pulling for the Flyers?

John Davidson: Hey Tom, relax will ya? Enjoy the game. ABC and ESPN commentators are not pulling for the Flyers. We have no vested interest. I'm sitting here watching the game and frankly Philadelphia is not the better team through almost two games, Pittsburgh is. They are smarter, they are staying out of the penalty box and the Flyers have not played their game. So Tom, please, relax.

JRM: For John D. What was your lifetime record against the Flyers?

John Davidson: I'm not sure but I thoroughly enjoyed playing against the Flyers. It was always a tough battle especially when we played in the Spectrum. It was a smaller arena, the Flyers were a very physical, tough team, kind of like where I grew up and that was in Western Canada. I've always had respect for the Flyers and their toughness and we used to play them tough too.

Jason Kopeny Chicago, IL: Hey J.D., why has everybody written off the East for the Cup? I understand the West is very good, but any team that gets hot can carry it to the Cup. Hopefully the Pens can pull this off.

John Davidson: Jason, the West is better, let's face facts. Dallas, Colorado and Detroit could beat any team in the East. The hope for the teams in the East is that the West goes seven games in a conference final and bang each other and bang each other and bang each other. Then it may even things up. In my opinion, the teams have much more pace to their game, much more speed to their game in the West. son

Dana Zenko - Bethlehem, PA: Pang and Levy are incredibly one-sided in their commentary during this game. Is Mario bankrolling these guys or what???

John Davidson: Dana, when you announce a game, you call the game the way a game is being played. And through two periods, Pittsburgh was the smarter and better team.

It's been really fun taking your questions. I have to get ready for the post-game report now. Enjoy the rest of the games and we'll talk again next weekend!