Chicago Blackhawks coach Brian Sutter might be the most openly competitive of the Sutter brothers -- and that's saying something. So he's the perfect man to size up just how tough it is to compete in the Western Conference.

	CHIRPIN'
	"I guard against saying this, but I think there are less questions about this group than any team we've had. The outlook is as bright as it could be at the start of the year." -- Detroit captain Steve Yzerman
	THE NUMBER
	1 By winning their season opener, the Columbus Blue Jackets are officially over .500 for the first time franchise history.
	WHO'S HOT
	Stanislav Chistov's four points (one goal, three assists) in Anaheim in a 4-3 win at St. Louis on Thursday were the most by a player in his first NHL game since 1977. At 19, he is also the youngest player in NHL history to record at least four points in his debut.
	WHO'S NOT
	If the San Jose Sharks were hoping to put a little pressure on holdout goalie Evgeni Nabokov, they didn't do it opening night. Miikka Kiprusoff (6 goals on 15 shots) faced an onslaught from the Red Wings on opening night, but he also let in a couple of softies.
	THIS WEEK'S SIGN ...
	...that low-scoring hockey can still be fun: On the surface, a 1-1 tie between Dallas and Colorado and a 2-2 tie between Edmonton and Philadelpia sound boring. But under the NHL's new crackdown on obstruction, players were flying all over the ice in both games.

"You get off to a .500 start out here," Sutter barked in his military drill sergeant style, "and you're looking straight up somebody's butt."

With all proctology jokes aside, Sutter is right.

To make the playoffs in the West, a team needs to get off to a fast start. The Blackhawks did it last season with a 12-4-3 record after 19 games and broke a four-year playoff drought. This season, it won't be that easy with Theo Fleury suspended and Eric Daze sidelined while recovering from back surgery.

But that's the breaks in the West. Ask the Sharks, who are missing Evgeni Nabokov (contract), Brad Stuart (contract) and Scott Thornton (injury) and have yet to find a replacement for the now retired Gary Suter. With each loss, the pressure to improve on last season's record will get greater and greater.

And you have another competitive Sutter brother (Darryl) coaching in San Jose, so expect things to get just as unpleasant if "you get off to a .500 start."

So ... did he say anything else?
Marty Turco's big toe is barely on the radar screen in the NHL, so he'll take all the compliments he can get. Of course, in his move to become the Dallas Stars' No. 1 goalie, Turco also will wander across a few critics.

Take the season opener in Colorado on Wednesday. Turco stopped 40 of 41 shots to earn first star in a 1-1 tie against the Avalanche. Patrick Roy was trying to be diplomatic when asked about the performance of his 27-year-old Western Conference rival, but he couldn't stop without mentioning that Turco might have been lucky.

"We had a lot of good chances and he made some very good saves," Roy said. "And, at times, I thought he was a bit fortunate."

Turco's style is a little bit Martin Brodeur, a little bit Dominik Hasek, so he's gotten used to being called "lucky." Plus, it's sometimes good to receive a dig from one of the league's greats.

"I don't really worry about that stuff," Turco said. "Hey, at least he's talking about me. It's my first acknowledgment that he knows I'm there."

Nash rambler
Rick Nash said before his NHL debut Thursday that he just wanted to try to stay with the Columbus Blue Jackets all season. The 18-year-old winger, who was the first overall pick in the 2002 draft, made a great start at achieving that goal.

Nash scored in a 2-1 Blue Jackets victory over Chicago, was hitting everything on the ice and recovered from an awkward fall into the boards after he took a rookie-style run at veteran Phil Housley. All in all, it was a great night.

"It was an amazing dream come true," Nash said.

Maybe for Blue Jackets fans more than anyone.

Oh, by the way, Nash's potential bonuses on a three-year rookie contract add up to $8.561 million. Add in his maximum rookie base salary of $1.185 million and the total tops $12 million.

The depth chart