The race for the Stanley Cup got a little smaller on Tuesday night as the conference semifinals came to a close.
Thanks to 28 saves from goaltender Evgeni Nabokov, the San Jose Sharks ended the Colorado Avalanche's season. San Jose now advances to the Western Conference finals to play the Calgary Flames, who have made an unexpected playoff run, knocking off Vancouver in the first round and finishing off a surprising series win over top-seeded Detroit on Monday night.
Jeremy Roenick's second goal of Tuesday's game came at 7:39 in overtime, and gave the Flyers a 4-2 series win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Flyers will now advance to the Eastern Conference Finals to play the top-seeded Tampa Bay Lightning, who have been waiting since April 29, when they completed their sweep of the Montreal Canadiens.
Thus far it has been the Lightning who have looked the most impressive, easily winning their first two series by scores of 4-1 and 4-0 respectively. The Lightning have some of the best young talent in the league, and they have a lot of speed.
Martin St. Louis, the NHL regular season scoring champion, leads the Lightning offensive attack along with standout forwards Vincent Lecavalier, Fredrik Modin, and Cory Stillman. St. Louis and Modin currently lead the Lightning in post-season scoring, with 11 points each.
Captain Dave Andreychuk provides the necessary veteran leadership, and goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin has been outstanding, leading all post-season goalies with a .99 goals-against average.
Although the Lightning have not had the toughest road to this point, their 8-1 post-season run has been very impressive.
Their opponents, the Philadelphia Flyers, are coming off two hard-fought series with the defending champion New Jersey Devils and the Toronto Maple Leafs.
For Philadelphia fans, the biggest question entering the playoffs was whether or not goaltender Robert Esche was up to the challenge of the post-season. So far, Esche has given his fans a definitive answer, as he has played well given his team the chance to play for the Eastern Conference Championship.
The leading scorer for the Flyers so far has been Alexei Zhamnov, who was acquired from the Blackhawks earlier this year. The Flyers have a lot of firepower, and veteran leadership in the form of Jeremy Roenick, Tony Amonte, Keith Primeau, Mark Recchi, Eric Desjardins, and John LeClair. This should be an exciting series with a lot of offensive fireworks.
As impressive as the Tampa Bay Lightning have been this postseason, the San Jose Sharks are equally notable. The Sharks have gone 8-3, with impressive series wins over St. Louis and Colorado, two very tough teams.
There have been many stars for San Jose this post-season, but none have been more important than goaltender Evgeni Nabokov, who has been outstanding and held the most talented offensive team, the Colorado Avalanche, to only seven goals in six games.
The big scoring guns for the Sharks so far have been Vincent Damphousse, Patrick Marleau, Nicholas Dimitrakos, and Jonathan Cheechoo with 11, ten, nine, and eight points respectively.
In their series against the Avalanche, the Sharks were facing what many experts consider to be the most talented team in the NHL. Not only did the Sharks defeat Colorado, but they were visibly-out played them throughout the entire series. With the way San Jose is playing right now, they will be very difficult to beat.
And finally, the Sharks' unlikely opponent in the Western Conference finals is Jarome Iginla and the Calgary Flames. The Flames have been turning heads during the whole postseason, as they have pulled off an exciting seven-game victory over the Vancouver Canucks and a six-game victory over the top-seeded Detroit Red Wings.
Both of these series ended on overtime goals by Martin Gelinas. In fact, Monday night's overtime winner made Gelinas the first player in NHL history to have three career series-ending overtime goals. Jarome Iginla, the NHL regular season leader in goals, has been the Flames's offensive leader with 12 post-season points.
However, the Flames's goals have been coming off the sticks of many different players. The Flames play an up-beat, gritty style that has helped propel them to this point. They outwork the other team, plain and simple. What other explanation can there be for them defeating the Detroit Red Wings, whose roster is loaded up with stars?
This team is always flying around the ice and playing with a chip on its shoulder. The team plays like it is the only one who belongs where it is, and the team is right.
Despite Iginla's offensive abilities, the key to Calgary's success so far has been goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff, who has provided Calgary with consistent excellence between the pipes. He does not give up weak goals, and he is always positioned correctly. Kiprusoff has given the Flames a chance to win every night, and so far the other players have responded.
The conference finals should provide us with plenty of excitement. What do I think will happen? I have no idea. That what is great about the NHL playoffs; anything can happen. Clearly, I would have to say that Tampa Bay and San Jose are the favorites to advance to the Stanley Cup. However, Philadelphia has a line-up that can beat any team on any night. If Robert Esche continues to play well, that will be a great series.
As for the Flames, if they can beat Detroit, they can beat anyone. My brain says San Jose, but my gut tells me not to bet against Calgary. That would be exactly what they want me to do.