It should come as no surprise that the Pittsburgh Penguins and Chicago Blackhawks are favoured by most to meet in the Stanley Cup Final. Both clubs had remarkable runs in a shortened season, and both looked poised for playoff success. But as we all know, the NHL post-season is as unpredictable as any sporting event in the world. So, with that in mind, let's look at predictions from NHL.com for the first round...
[from NHL.com]
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Pittsburgh Penguins (1) vs New York Islanders (8)
Season series: Pittsburgh 4-1-0. Jan. 29, Islanders 4-1 at
Pittsburgh; Feb. 5, Penguins 4-2 at New York; Mar. 10, Penguins 6-1 at
Pittsburgh; Mar. 22, Penguins 4-1 at New York; Mar. 30, Penguins 2-0 at
Pittsburgh.
Sidney Crosby has done non-contact drills at practice and there is a
chance he will join Evgeni Malkin and the rest of the team that
dominated the Eastern Conference despite missing their scoring leader
the last 12 games with a broken jaw. The Penguins will be that much more
of favourite if he returns, having added character veterans Jarome
Iginla and Brenden Morrow at the trade deadline. They led the league
with 3.38 goals per game. The Islanders are in the playoffs for the
first time since 2007 and many, including star John Tavares, will make a
post-season debut.
Pick: Penguins in four.
Montreal Canadiens (2) vs Ottawa Senators (7)
Season series: Both went 2-1-1. Jan. 30, Senators 5-1 at Ottawa; Feb.
3, Canadiens 2-1 at Montreal; Feb. 25, Senators 2-1 (SO) at Ottawa;
Mar. 13, Canadiens 4-3 (SO) at Montreal.
The teams only a two-hour drive apart meet for the first time in the
playoffs. The Senators are on a high with the recent return of star
defenceman Erik Karlsson and big rearguard Jared Cowen from long-term
injuries, not to mention ace goalie Craig Anderson. They went 6-3-0 down
the stretch. The Canadiens went into a fog after clinching a playoff
spot early and only righted themselves in their last two games.
Questions persist about the readiness of goalie Carey Price and point
man Andrei Markov. But Montreal has three scoring lines and answer
Karlsson' skill with P.K. Subban's flash and dash. This should be very
close.
Pick: Canadiens in seven.
Washington Capitals (3) vs New York Rangers (6)
Season series: Rangers 2-0-1. Feb. 17, Rangers 2-1 at New York; Mar.
10 Rangers 4-1 at Washington; Mar. 27, Capitals 3-2 (SO) at New York.
A clash of hot teams that both started the season in a funk. The
Capitals went 15-2-2 in their last 19 games, a span that coincided with a
scoring binge that gave Alex Ovechkin the Maurice "Rocket" Richard
Trophy with 32 goals. The Rangers' season turned around after an April 3
deal that sent Marian Gaborik to Columbus for Derek Brassard and two
others, which gave them scoring depth. They went 10-3-1 in April. A key
is to stop the Caps' league-best power play (26.8 per cent). Washington
gives up a lot of goals, so New York's edge in net with Henrik Lundqvist
gives them a chance.
Picks: Capitals in seven.
Boston Bruins (4) vs Toronto Maple Leafs (5)
Season Series: Bruins 3-1-0. Feb. 2, Bruins 1-0 at Toronto; Mar. 7,
Bruins 4-2 at Boston; Mar. 23, Leafs 3-2 at Toronto; Mar. 25, Bruins 3-2
(SO) at Boston.
Two big, tough teams collide in what could be a tight battle. Boston,
the 2011 Stanley Cup champs, went 2-5-2 down the stretch, including
Sunday's 4-2 loss at home to Ottawa, to surrender the Northeast Division
lead to Montreal. Several top players have been off their games. Their
power play is a brutal 14.2 per cent, 28th in the NHL, but it was the
same two years ago. Toronto ranked second and Boston fourth in the
league in penalty killing, however. A difference may be goaltending,
where the Leafs will be up against the one they let get away a few years
ago in Tuukka Rask against the inexperienced James Reimer. A late push
got Toronto into the post-season for the first time since 2004. It will
be big first playoff test for rising star Nazem Kadri.
Pick: Bruins in seven.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Chicago Blackhawks (1) vs Minnesota Wild (8)
Season series: Chicago 2-0-1. Jan. 30, Wild 3-2 at Minnesota; March 5, Hawks 5-3 at Chicago; April 9, Hawks 1-0 at Minnesota.
The Blackhawks started the season 21-0-3 and never let up, going
10-3-2 in April. Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane had 23 goals each to
lead a deep group of forwards, Duncan Keith was a workhorse on a solid
defence and Corey Crawford did the job in goal. The Wild had high hopes
after signing Zach Parise and Ryan Suter to 13-year $98 million deals on
July 4. Both played well and, despite the team fading down the stretch,
got them into the playoffs for the first time since 2008 in the last
game of the season. There are good players but little depth in
Minnesota. The Hawks were second in goals-for (3.1 per game) and gave up
the league's least goals (2.02).
Pick: Blackhawks in four.
Anaheim Ducks (2) vs Detroit Red Wings (7)
Season series: Detroit 2-0-1. Feb. 15, Anaheim 5-2 at Detroit; March
22, Detroit 5-1 at Anaheim; March 24, Detroit 2-1 at Anaheim.
The question is whether the Ducks faded down the stretch or were on
cruise control in the final month. Production dropped for older players
like Saku Koivu, Sheldon Souray and Teemu Selanne. But they dominated
most of the campaign, with a 49-point season from Ryan Getzlaf and a
rebound year from defenceman Francois Beauchemin. The Red Wings spent
the season rebuilding their defence after Niklas Lidstrom's retirement
and needed a season-ending four-game run to make the playoffs for a 22nd
straight year. Big performances from Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel
Datsyuk were key and will be again in the post-season.
Pick: Detroit in seven.
Vancouver Canucks (3) vs San Jose Sharks (6)
Season series: San Jose 3-0-0. Jan. 27, Sharks 4-1 at San Jose; March
5, Sharks 3-2 (shootout) at Vancouver; April 1, Sharks 3-2 at San Jose.
Getting Kevin Bieksa back from a "body" injury was a relief for the
Canucks, although they may be missing rearguard Chris Tanev to start the
playoffs. Vancouver wasn't quite as dominant as in recent years, but
still has the Sedin twins and the core of the 2011 Stanley Cup finalist
squad. A big question is whether Cory Schneider, who was rested with an
injury this week, is ready or if Roberto Luongo will have to step up.
The veteran Sharks got a little quicker at the trade deadline. They have
the edge on special teams with both the power play and penalty kill in
the top-10, and a hot goalie in Antti Niemi. But they still need to
shake their playoff underachiever label.
Pick: Canucks in seven.
St. Louis Blues (4) vs Los Angeles Kings (5)
Season series: L.A. 3-0-0. Feb. 11, Kings 4-1 at St. Louis; March 5, Kings 6-4 at L.A.; March 28, Kings 4-2 at St. Louis.
This should be the crash and bang series between two physical teams
that play solid defence. And both finished strong — L.A. at 10-4-3 and
St. Louis 11-2-0. Brian Elliott has been hot in goal in relief of the
injured Jaroslav Halak. The Kings swept the Blues in last year's
conference semifinal and have won eight in a row overall against them. A
concern for the Kings has been goalie Jonathan Quick, last year's
playoff hero who was 38th in save percentage (9.02) this season. But
they won the Cup as the eighth seed last year and come back with most of
the same lineup looking to be the first repeat champion since Detroit
in 1998. They have the edge in playoff experience and scoring.
Pick: L.A. in five.
No doubt, Gary Bettman will be hearing from the fans when the Stanley Cup is awarded.Yet
there really is no playoff juggernaut to intimidate anyone. Two of last
year's conference finalists (the Cup runner-up Devils and Phoenix
Coyotes) didn't make the playoffs. The other two conference finalists
from last year (the champion Kings and New York Rangers) are bottom-four
seeds. As writer Sean McIndoe (NHL.com)
pointed out, only one team in the field has won in the first round each
of the past two years, and that team is the Washington Capitals, those
perennial disappointments, who never escaped the second round and are on
their third coach and third approach in three playoffs.
