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At the NHL's Christmas break, days before the calendar turns to 2015 and two weeks from the mid-way mark of the NHL season, it is time to "feel good" about what we've seen so far, or "feel bad" if we must.

What follows are choices--the obvious and the not so obvious-- for "feel good" and "feed bad" teams and players. First, the Eastern Conference, and tomorrow, the Western Conference.

Thumbs up to the "feel-good" team in the Eastern Conference--the Toronto Maple Leafs. No, I mean it--this isn't some attention-getting, tongue-in-cheek submission--it's a good thing if the Leafs are in a playoff spot. It's certainly good for the NHL, which would take a Toronto-Pittsburgh series in the first round, or, better still, a Toronto-Montreal matchup, and be downright giddy. It's a good thing for Leaf lovers and haters alike--you can cheer for them or hope they get knocked off in the first round after blowing a three-goal lead in game seven. (Oh, wait, Boston isn't in a playoff spot right now. More on the Bruins momentarily).

The obvious choice for "feel-good" team? The New York Islanders. It's a nice story if they leave Nassau Coliseum on a positive note--better to remember the glory days than the other kind.

Thumbs up to the "feel-good" player(s) in the East--Tyler Johnson, Nikita Kucherov and Ondrej Palat--we'll call them the "super sophs" of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Without any fanfare, Palat led the Bolts in scoring last season; Johnson was one goal shy of the team lead and Kucherov was needing only more ice time to be better noticed. To be sure, the rookies wouldn't have been as prominent if Steven Stamkos had played a full season, but look at them now, with Stamkos healthy and back among the NHL's top ten scorers--Johnson ranks 8th in the league, Kucherov is in the top 20 and Palat hit the Christmas break with a three-point game in a win over Pittsburgh.

The obvious choice for "feel-good" player(s)? Rick Nash of the New York Rangers. Twenty-six goals last season--23 already this season. Enough said.

Thumbs down to the "feel-bad" team in the East--the Columbus Blue Jackets.

They were supposed to pick up where they left off last season, which was a game-six defeat at the hands of the Penguins in a first-round playoff series that could have gone the other way. Columbus fans had reason to hope for the team's first-ever appearance beyond the first playoff round in 2015, and the All-Star Game  guaranteed a league-wide spotlight. Well, the story in Columbus has been one of injuries. You feel bad for any team so dramatically affected, but especially for a team that was so optimistic after so much failure since joining the league in 2000. Recovery is possible, but even after a hot streak that saw the Jackets win seven straight games, they are nine points out of a playoff spot.

The obvious choice for "feel-bad" team? Those Boston Bruins. First in the East last season, a point out of the playoffs right now. There is no reason to panic, but there's every reason for disappointment so far.

Thumbs down to the "feel-bad" player(s) in the East--two Bruins, and you can pick the one you think is most obvious--Tuukka Rask or David Krejci.

Rask was among the leaders in any statistical category that applied to goaltenders last season, and he is currently nowhere to be found on those lists.

Krejci should be Boston's leading scorer, but he can't be if he's not playing, and he has been out of the lineup more than half the time. He has responded to criticism by saying he should stay off the Internet. Or get healthy and play better, the latter being hard without the former.