The east would have hammered them senseless, especially Phili and Boston.
Also the Eastern Conference was a tighter game and perfection was necessary. When you have four-six strong teams in a conference (Phili, Boston, NYI, Montreal) that matched you skill wise and toughness 20-30 games a season, your not going to registar the same amount of points as you are in the Western Conference. Mind you you'd see some really exciting Habs-Oilers games then too.