After going a perfect 15-0 during last years playoffs I thought I'd really go out on a limb this year and make my predictions BEFORE the playoffs start. I know it's a little risky, but I'm going to try to be brave. I'm going to write a blog tomorrow on the odds of my Vancouver Canucks winning the Stanley Cup. (I only call them 'my Vancouver Canucks' when they actually make the playoffs). Since I have done endless research (Google) and extensive scouting (NHL.com) I'm recommending that after reading this, you head to Vegas to make a whole crapload of money. (Can I say 'shit' on here?) So here are my first round picks, followed by the rest of my playoff predictions. Enjoy. If you can stay awake.
We will start off in the much stronger Western Conference. In fact we'll call the Western Conference the NHL, and the Eastern Conference the AHL. Now that may piss off a few East Coasters, but I don't care. If you want to drop the gloves, I'm sure I could find somebody who would fight you.
Starting with the San Jose Sharks (1) against the Colorado Avalanche (8), I think this is one of the easiest series to predict. While San Jose is notorious for choking in the post-season, Colorado faded big time down the stretch and their goalie Craig Anderson, who played great most of the season, really started to tire down the stretch. Look for a quick exit by the Avalanche. I'll pick San Jose in 5.
My favorite match-up of the first round is definitely Chicago (2) vs Nashville (7). Okay so maybe I'm still a little bitter that the Hawks beat my Canucks in the second round last year but I think this is going to be a lot closer than people expect. Nashville is my dark horse this year. I'm shocked at all the 'experts' that are picking Chicago to win the Stanley Cup. You read it here first, it's not going to happen. There's a little something called goaltending that tends to be pretty important come playoff time and the Hawks simply don't have it. Their so-called number one goalie going into the playoffs is Antti Niemi. Auntie Em would do a better job keeping pucks out of the net and she can't even skate. (For those of you under 40 that is a Wizard Of Oz reference.) Their backup Cristobal Huet, who is likely to play a game or two in this series, has been absolutely horrible as of late. For the Predators Pekka Rinne has been great in net this year. While he is unproven in the playoffs, I think he will be solid in this series. He's going to have to outplay the opposing goalie, which is kind of like shooting fish in a barrel. Let's go with Nashville in 6.
Since I'm writing a Canuck Blog tomorrow (hopefully the first of many this postseason) I won't go into detail about the Vancouver (3) - LA (6) series. Let's just say Vancouver in 5 and move on.
Another great match-up is Phoenix (4) against Detroit (5). Who would've thought going into this season that these two teams would meet in the playoffs and Phoenix would have home ice advantage. Now that's just crazy talk. There were two reasons for the Coyotes success this year. One, they gave Gretzky the boot. Sure he was a brilliant player blah blah blah, but what the Hell does he know about coaching a team with very little offensive talent? Judging from the results during his time in Phoenix, not much. Two, the amazing play of goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov. They also have a solid team with some depth and are well coached. They are in tough against a healthy and hungry Detroit team however. I had the opportunity to watch the Wings practice in Kelowna a few weeks ago and they looked fast and confident. That Red Wing swagger is still there and they are also very well coached. This is the toughest series to predict. I'm going to pick Detroit in 6. For Phoenix to pull off an upset, and it's certainly not outside of the realm of possibility, Bryzgalov will have to steal at least a couple of games.
Over to the AHL err Eastern Conference, the number one team (not to mention the first team overall in the league) is the Washington Capitals. It's important to mention that they play in by far the weakest division in the league. They are the only team in their division to make the playoffs. Why does that matter? Because they play more games against their division rivals than any other teams. And seriously, if the Eastern Conference is the AHL, you could consider the SouthEast Division Bantam C. I'm not saying that they aren't a good team, I'm just saying well, okay yeah I'm saying they aren't a good team. At least not really a serious contender at this point. I'm sure some of you are thinking that I've been smoking too much hash (do people still smoke hash these days?) but I think the Capitals are due to be upset early in the playoffs. It's just not going to be in the first round against the Montreal Canadiens (8). I will pick the Caps in 5.
New Jersey (2) against Philadelphia (7) could also be a tough series. While I would normally pick the Devils to win this series, the Flyers did win 5 of 6 against them in the regular season. But since the Devils have Marty Brodeur, I think that he will probably be the difference. I think he may feel he has something to prove since he sat on the bench and watched Roberto Luongo steal the spotlight and strike Gold in Vancouver. Now is his time to do just that (steal the spotlight, not strike Gold in Vancouver). New Jersey in 6.
Buffalo (3) vs Boston (6): Ryan Miller has easily been one of the top 5 players in the league this season and a serious contender for the Hart Trophy as league MVP and I think that he alone will win this series against the Bruins. The rest of the team can stay home and rest. Sabres in 5.
And finally we have Pittsburgh (4) against Ottawa (5). While there are some question marks concerning the Penguins, namely goalie Marc-Andre Fleury and last year's league MVP Evgeny Malkin, I think they will cruise against a pretty weak Senators team. Let's go with Pittsburgh in a 4 game sweep.
On to the 2nd round. In the West we have San Jose vs Nashville. I'll pick the Sharks. Vancouver vs Detroit. I'll pick the Canucks. (Hey, I've picked them to win the Cup for 40 miserable years, I can't stop now.)
In the East, Washington vs Pittsburgh will obviously be the big match-up. I feel pretty confident that the Penguins will win that series. For New Jersey against Buffalo, it's going to come down to goaltending. I hate to bet against Ryan Miller but I'll pick New Jersey to pull through. I also think New Jersey will beat Pittsburgh in the Conference finals where they will meet and lose to(you guessed it) my Vancouver Canucks.
Lastly, I predict that Luongo will hand off the Cup to Henrik Sedin and I will cry like a little baby after doing laps around my living room in my Canuck jersey and slippers while waving my Canuck flag.
Those are my predictions, free of charge. Now enjoy your trip to Vegas.
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