Seguin, Hall distancing themselves from the competition

With nine points in four and eight points in three OHL playoff games, Tyler Seguin and Taylor Hall are pretty much justifying the belief we've had all year: that they are the upper crust of the 2010 draft class.

Both are off to tremendous starts, and it will be interesting to see how far Plymouth and Windsor go this spring. It goes without mentioning that a head-to-head matchup between the Whalers and Spits would be a dream for every NHL team who has a shot at one or the other of these guys to be able to witness firsthand.

There are several big games tonight, with interesting ramifications for both the B's playoff picture and the tank. Boston will take on Tampa Bay, who got an OT win over Carolina earlier this week after looking dead in the water with their recent struggles and down 2-0 in the third period. Boston winning means that the Bruins continue to put distance between themselves and the Thrashers and Rangers, who crushed their crosstown rival Islanders last night by a 5-0 score. If Tampa wins, it's not the end of the world, as they'll add two more points to their cushion with Toronto. Best case: Bruins beat the 'Bolts in OT to get the two points, while Tampa at least gains one.

Elsewhere, Toronto is taking on Atlanta, who trails the Bruins by three points in the playoff race. An Atlanta win helps the tank, but gets them closer to Boston. If you're a draft watch fanatic, then you're obviously hoping that the Thrashers bounce back from the beating Boston administered to them on Tuesday and take it to the Leafs. If you're a Bruins purist who doesn't care as much for the draft, then you're pulling for a Leafs win to keep the Thrashers down in the standings.

Also, the Isles are facing Calgary. Tank nation really wants them to prevail and keep building on the slim points lead they have over the Leafs for 29th. Carolina's in Washington, in what will be a tough game for them to win without the services of Tuomo Ruutuu for the remainder, they're even more shorthanded up front.

Unrelated to the 2010 draft or standings watch, but a pair of Bruins prospects are having themselves a pretty decent battle against one another in the Quebec league playoffs. Jordan Caron is currently seventh overall in playoff scoring with four goals and seven points for Rouyn-Noranda, while the recently returned Max Sauve has a respectable 3-2-5 line in a series evened up at two games apiece.