As most of us know by now, the NCAA men's basketball tournament has officially ended (congrats Kansas fans) and the MLB season has just begun (sorry Tigers fans). But what most of us seem to forget is that something special started April 9. That "something special" was the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs, with 16 teams all fighting to win one of the most historical and prestigious trophies in all of sports.
As time has passed, unfortunate events have significantly decreased the interest in the sport of professional hockey. The lockout, the salary cap, and the nation's economy are among those events responsible for the sharp decline of the NHL. But every spring, those diehard fans come back. Who wouldn't come back to a game with such intensity, such speed, and such rewarding endings that games leave fans speechless? Lord Stanley's cup is the ultimate prize, and today I will give you a round to round, in-depth summary of the playoffs that will guide you for the next month of school.
Eastern Conference:
No. 1 Montreal Canadiens vs. No. 8 Boston Bruins:
As much as I want to say the Bruins have a chance, it would be an utter lie. This series will be over before it begins. In my opinion, Montreal has been one the best teams in the entire league all season. It has developed wonderful minor league talent in Tomás Plekanec, the Kostitsyn brothers Andrei and Sergei, and rookie goaltender Carey Price. It outmatches the Bruins in every category ranging from power play. (Montreal has the best PP in the league) to goals scored (The Habs scored 50 more goals than the Bruins this season.) With Marc Savard's back problems and Patrice Bergeron's life-threatening injury on October 27, the Bruins do not have enough firepower to match that of the Canadiens.
Prediction: Canadiens advance four games to one.
Players to Watch:
Montreal: Carey Price?will try to become the third rookie goaltender to backstop a Stanley Cup for the Canadiens.
Boston: Phil Kessel?first playoff game and without leading scorer Savard.
No. 2 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. No. 7 Ottawa Senators:
The tables have turned as Pittsburgh and Ottawa meet in the first round of the playoffs for the second year in a row. Last year, Ottawa had home-ice advantage and won the series in five games. This year will be drastically different. With the unfortunate injuries to Daniel Alfredsson and Mike Fisher, the Senators have lost their leader and one of their leading scorers in Alfredsson and a great two-way center in Fisher. When the three were healthy, Jason Spezza, Dany Heatley, and Alfredsson were one of the best lines in all of hockey, but without the captain, it will be hard to contain the Russian superstar Evgeni Malkin and NHL poster boy Sidney Crosby.
Prediction: Penguins advance four games to two.
Players to Watch:
Pittsburgh: Marc-André Fleury?will solidify No. 1 goaltending spot in Pittsburgh.
Ottawa: Martin Gerber?will end goaltending drama with strong performance.
No. 3 Washington Capitals vs. No. 6 Philadelphia Flyers:
This is the most intriguing series of the playoffs, which can be labeled the coming out party for the 2008 Hart Trophy winner Alex Ovechkin. I cannot decide who will win this one because of all the match-up problems. If Ovechkin continues to put up the points that he was producing at the end of the season, Philadelphia doesn't stand a change. But if the Flyers (specifically Mike Richards and Kimmo Timonen) can contain him, Philadelphia can win this series. Goaltending is also a big factor in this series. Cristobel Huet is on fire since being traded from the Canadiens to the Capitals, posting a 1.63 goals-against average and a record of 11-2. Martin Biron was 5-1-1 in his last seven games of the regular season.
Prediction: Capitals advance four games to three.
Players to Watch:
Washington: Nicklas Backstrom'55 assists in his first season, and has become a nice compliment to Ovechkin.
Philadelphia: Martin Biron?first opportunity to start for a playoff team.
No. 4 New Jersey Devils vs. No. 5 New York Rangers:
Although the standings put them side-by-side, this will be a lopsided series. Not only did the New York Rangers win the season series by a dominating seven games to one, but the only loss came in a shootout, meaning that the Rangers received 15 out of the 16 total points from the games. Both teams lacked an explosive offense during the regular season, even though the Rangers acquired two high-profile scorers in Scott Gomez and Chris Drury. The Devils also had to fill a big hole on defense, losing the last great defenseman from their cup teams of the 1990s in Brian Rafalski. Although the Devils have a wonderful goalie, Martin Brodeur, it will not be enough to stop Jaromir Jagr and the Rangers.
Prediction: Rangers advance four games to one.
Players to Watch:
New Jersey: Zach Parise?led the Devils in scoring this season.
New York: Henrik Lundqvist?going to be hard for him to outplay Brodeur, but if he does, the Rangers will have no problems with New Jersey.
Western Conference:
No. 1 Detroit Red Wings vs. No. 8 Nashville Predators:
The Predators are the Western Conference version of the Washington Capitals in that they are a miracle story. They went through a multitude of turmoil before this season, which included losing the core players of their team in Kimmo Timonen and Scott Hartnell, losing their starting goalie in Thomas Vokoun, and almost losing their team because of ownership issues. Even after all of these problems, this team still making the playoffs is quite an accomplishment, although it will be short-lived. The combination of Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg (fourth and sixth in point standings at the end of this season) will be too overwhelming for the young Nashville defensemen, and the addition of Tomas Holmstrom will once again reunite what can be considered the best line in hockey. Also, the Wings are finally healthy, bringing back Brad Stuart and Kris Draper for Game 1 in Detroit. Overall, the Predators will be out-hit, out-scored, and out-played, and the series will be quick and painless.
Prediction: Red Wings advance four games to one.
Players to Watch:
Detroit: goalie combination of Dominik Hasek and Chris Osgood?need to be healthy and play well in order for Wings to advance.
Nashville: Alexander Radulov?lit up the Red Wings for 7 points in 8 games this season.
No. 2 San Jose Sharks vs. No. 7 Calgary Flames:
This is my upset pick of the playoffs. Although everyone is talking about San Jose winning it all, Calgary has all the pieces in place for a stunner. They have a future Norris Trophy winner in Dion Phaneuf and a proven playoff leader in Jarome Iginla. They also have Miikka Kiprusoff, who has been one of the most clutch playoff goalies in the last five years. If Joe Thornton plays well, and Evgeni Nabokov shuts opponents down, San Jose wins, but if all of Calgary's pieces come into place, expect the Stanley Cup favorite to suffer an early exit.
Prediction: Flames advance four games to three.
Players to Watch:
San Jose: Brian Campbell?powerplay.
Calgary: Kristian Huselius?scoring goals.
No. 3 Minnesota Wild vs. No. 6 Colorado Avalanche:
Two blasts from the past came back for one last playoff run with the Avalanche, and if they play like they did four years ago, the Avalanche has a good chance of stunning the hockey-crazed fans in St. Paul. Peter Forsberg and Adam Foote are both suffering from injuries and fatigue, but if they get healthy, and if Forsberg clicks with long-time friend Joe Sakic and second-year phenom Paul Stastny, the Wild will not be able to keep up. The only positive that the Wild have that trumps Colorado is its goaltending. Nicklas Backstrom was a top five goaltender in the NHL this year, and he needs to be a wall in order for the Wild to have a solid chance of winning the series.
Prediction: Avalanche advance four games to two.
Players to Watch:
Minnesota: Marion Gaborik?spark for team.
Colorado: Jose Theodore?solid goaltending for Colorado.
No. 4 Anaheim Ducks vs. No. 5 Dallas Stars:
The defending Stanley Cup champions have their eyes set on a repeat, but they must go through a division rival first to get there. Anaheim brings back most of its core players from the championship last year, but one key piece that is missing is Dustin Penner. Penner scored numerous garbage goals last year that helped the Ducks win close games. Without his grit, the team will have to rely on others like Corey Perry and Teemu Selanne to provide the offense. It still has one of the best one-two punches on defense in the league with Chris Pronger and Scott Niedermayer, but it will have to contain a revamped Mike Ribiero and newly acquired Mike Richards in order to get past Dallas.
Prediction: Ducks advance four games to three.
Players to Watch:
Anaheim: Francois Beauchemin?fewer mistakes on defense.
Dallas: Marty Turco?have another outstanding playoff performance, like last year.
Short second, third, and fourth round predictions:
East semifinals
1. Montreal over 5. New York Rangers 4-2
3. Washington over 2. Pittsburgh 4-3 (in a perfect world)
West semifinals
1. Detroit over 6. Colorado 4-2
4. Anaheim over 7. Calgary 4-1
East final:
1. Montreal over 3. Washington 4-2
West final:
1. Detroit over 4. Anaheim 4-3
Stanley Cup Final:
1. Detroit over 1. Montreal 4-2