The NHL's Power Division?

With Edmonton and Hartford both on their way to this year's Cup Finals, guess which division (based on current alignment) has the most Finals appearances in the last decade? Give up? It's the Southeast with five appearances from four different teams (also a high). Here's a look at the breakdown:

• Southeast (5 - Hartford twice, Tampa Bay, Washington and Florida)
• Northwest (4 - Colorado twice, Edmonton and Calgary)
• Atlantic (4 - New Jersey three times and Philadelphia)
• Central (3 - Detroit three times)
• Pacific (3 - Dallas twice and Anaheim)
• Northeast (1 - Buffalo)

Of course, the Southeast only has one Stanley Cup win in the entire (relatively short) combined histories of all of its franchises. But that was the last Cup. And with stars like Alex Ovechkin, Eric Staal, Vincent Lecavalier, Kari Lehtonen and Roberto Luongo in the division, who's going to bet against the mighty Southeast going forward?

One last thought - the Northeast Division with all of its "tradition" and half of the original six teams has exactly one Finals appearance since the Habs won it all back in 1993. We're all very impressed.

[Cap tip to fjc33 for pointing out the stat]