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NHL Playoffs 2014 Predictions (Round 1)

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Of course the weather outside doesn’t matter: it’s playoff hockey time! This year provides us with something old (classic rivalries ), something new (the format), and something (black &) blue: such as any team surviving most of the 2-3 seed match ups. Plus a whole lotta goal-tending uncertainty.

To the predictions then….

Bos vs Det

An original six match up! Not since the 1950’s have these two teams gone head to head in the playoffs. That adds a little something. And, in fact, this series at first blush did seem to offer good potential for an upset. But, when you consider just how solid the Bruins are offensively and defensively (even without d-man Siedenberg), and with the edge in nets (Rask), even the wiley, well-coached Red Wings with their long-in -the-tooth vets and surprising up-and-comers are no match for the President’s trophy winners. Bruins in 6

Tampa Bay vs Montreal

Here’s one of those 2-3 seed match ups, although probably the least gritty of the four. Pretty even points-wise during the regular season, these two teams arrived at similar places in the standings, but by different means: the Habs with defensive play; the bolts with scoring punch. Something’s gotta give. As with NY, BOS, and LA, the Habs’ edge is in goal with Corey Price. It’s a cliche by now, but as Corey goes, so go the Habs. If the Habs can out-check Stamkos and Co. they’ll win. Habs in 6

Philadelphia vs New York

Another of the 2-3 seed match ups, this one will feature a little more edge (hitting) than the Montreal/TB pairing. These two teams have played each other tough all year and this series promises to be hard fought. A match-up that contrasts offense (Philly) with defense (NY) should see NY prevail based on King Lundqvist’s presence in goal. But something tells me that a Berube coached Flyer team will have a little more fire in the belly that coach V’s blue shirts. So, Philly in 7

Pittsburgh vs Columbus

The perennially playoff-participating Penguins certainly resemble their former, successful editions, but aren’t as much of a sure thing as in the past. Injuries, age and some question marks in goal are a factor for these Pittsburghers. And Columbus has obviously made some great strides in their development to be in the post season–with strong goal-tending being a notable element. Pittsburgh will still prevail, but it’ll be much closer than anticipated. Pens in 7

Anaheim vs Dallas

The Ducks are a formidable team. Great offense. Not bad defense. A little bit uncertain in goal. Would have picked ’em to win it all, but not sure they have the battle hardness to do so. In this series against the Stars we have two teams who are decidedly offense-first. Anaheim’s Perry and Getzlaf are the elite goal scoring duo in the league, but not far behind are Benn and Seguin in Dallas. The Ducks have more balance in their lines, 1 thru 4, and certainly a deeper defense corps. Dallas, though, does have a better goalie. I’d be surprised if Dallas wins more than one game.
Ducks in 5

Colorado vs Minnesota

Hard to really access this series. Colorado appears to have been punching above their weight this season, and missing Matt Duchene, for at least a while, could spell a bit of a coming down to earth for the Avs. Plus Minnesota is rounding out nicely with a pretty good balance between offense and defense, and has some playoff experience to build on. This has upset written on it. Yet, if Varlamov stands on his head (with inspiration from Patrick Roy), those dynamic Avs forwards O’Reilly, Mackinnon and Landeskog just might be the difference. Avs in 7

San Jose vs LA

Once again, another 2-3 seed match up. This series, like the CHI/ST.L one, will be war. It features offense (SJ) against defense (LA). Year after playoff year the Sharks seem poised to go deep into the later stages of competition. They look even better now than over the last 5 years. But are they really capable of getting shut down again? If so,  the stingy LA Kings and Jonathan Quick would be the team to do it. The Kings have a lot of difficulty producing goals, but in the playoffs, in a grind ’em out battle royale, maybe they don’t need many. Kings in 7

Chicago vs St. Louis

The final of the four 2-3 seed pairings. It boggles the mind how any player is not going to come out of this series  hurting. Big time. An old Norris division tilt, this has all the hall marks of a classic tilt. Two well developed, mature playoff-seasoned teams with a bunch of newly rehabed players on both sides that will undoubtedly be engaged in the toughest series of the first round–along with that between SJ and LA. Which teams’ players returning from injuries will be up to speed and ready to rumble? I like Chicago’s integrity as a team just a little bit more than the blues’. And also, Ryan Miller is a shade past his best before date and I doubt he will be the difference maker St. Louis needs him to be. Black Hawks in 7

 

 

 

2010-2011 Stanley Cup Final

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Looks like Lost in Skates lost the handle on the conference finals this year. Not only did we not pick the correct winners, we were also wrong about which series was going to be the most interesting. Way back in the first round we said that Tim Thomas couldn’t win the cup all on his own, but he’s 12 out of 16 wins from doing just that! The Boston/Tampa Bay series was a real battle and  turned out to be much more entertaining, by far, than the Canucks/Sharks penalty riddled, special teams, affair.  Who knew?

 

Stanley Cup

Vancouver Canucks vs Boston Bruins

 

You get the sense that the referees, by this stage, are going to be swallowing their whistles. No way the NHL or any fan is going to want to see what happened between Vancouver and San Jose in the last round. If the whistles are put away, then that would help Boston a lot.  The Bruins have an inept power play and are not quite as good at killing penalties as the Canucks have been. Otherwise, if Vancouver’s speed draws power play opportunities in any significant number, Boston won’t survive.

For the Bruins to win it’s going to have to be the Zedeno Chara/Tim Thomas show all the time. These two are the story where limiting scoring chances in the defensive zone is concerned. Also, the B’s have shown decent fore checking, smash and crash pressure down low, which will have to continue period in, period out.  If they can do it they’ll have to stymie Vancouver’s (break out) speed and the ‘Nucks creativity in the attacking zone. Boston has been blocking a helluva lot of shots, and that may be the key to being able to prevail once again.

Vancouver, the President’s trophy winners, have been the best team all year and  have to be considered the favourite in the final. They stack up just fine against the Bruins in every and any category you care to pick.  The thing that is problematic for the Canucks is playing against relatively tight, defense-first minded teams. Boston is that. (Look how much fun Vancouver had with the Predators.) The glaring difference maker in the final though, we believe, is going to be the depth that Vancouver can boast at every position as compared to the Bruins. And Manny Malholtra might even return you say? If they have him (at 100%) just to take draws and get off the ice that would be enough to seal the deal. Vancouver looks too well rounded, too explosive offensively not to win their first Cup. It’s possible the bruisin’ Bruins could smash and crash their way to victory, but doubtful. Take ‘Nucks in 5.

 

 

2010-11 Nhl Playoffs (Round 3)

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The final four. Lost in skates went 3 for 4 in round 2.  Somewhat surprising how both Tampa Bay and the Bruins swept the Capitals and Flyers, respectively, so convincingly in round 2. That Philly looked so tepid was a real shocker. Not surprising that the two western conference series were real grinds.

 

Eastern Conference final

Boston (3) vs Tampa Bay (5)

I’m still amazed that the Bruins are at this stage, in a way. They have the goal tending and the shut-down defensive parings, but not much offensive fire-and no power play to speak of at all. So much for acquiring Kaberle…I know defense wins championships, but!… The team they are facing has a very effecient defensive system of their own. Bruins don’t have the edge in that department, and they certainly don’t in the offensive category either. And Roloson (who didn’t face the Bruins in the regular season) seems to be the equal to Thomas, at the very least, to boot. Probably lucky to see this series go 6, with the Bolts prevailing.

 

Western Conference final

Vancouver (1) vs San Jose (2)

 

Living in Vancouver it’s hard not to have a soft spot for the ‘Nucks. I would love to see them win. San Jose , too, though, also has that need for a ‘finally, at last’ result that’ll take them into the final. This is going to be the series to watch, and it’s going to go 7 games. I’m thinking that if things go shaky for Luongo you’ll see Schneider put in nets a lot quicker than in the Chicago series. I feel that if it were Corey starting in goal that the Canucks would take the series! But we know that ain’t going to happen and, of course, he’s been sitting so long. The Sharks are going to have a lot of confidence coming in having dispatched an elite Red Wings team. Vancouver, on the other hand, doesn’t really have two particularly good confidence-buiding series under their belt. It’s more of the same old: ‘will the President’s Trophy winners show up, or are they going to be struggling to find their complete game. The doubts still linger. Should be fun. Sharks in 7

Nhl Playoffs 2010-11 (Round 2)

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First round is in the books for 2010-11 playoffs. Mostly things went without a major upset; two fifth seed teams won out over two 4th place teams, but there wasn’t much daylight between the Ducks/Preds, or the Bolts/Penguins (especially with Pittsburgh missing so many key guys). But how about Tampa Bay, nonetheless? Who’d have thought they’d have the edge in goal with Roloson playing just as he did for the Oilers back in the 2006 Cup run? The Lightning are a complete team with a great coach (and GM) and i think they’ll take the Capitals in this second round.

LA Kings put up a good fight and showed they were a better team than at first glance. Positives for them to build on.  San Jose and Detroit took care of biz more or less as predicted: the wings proving to be even more formidable than thought.  The Bruins did not look all that convincing in prevailing over Montreal. Thomas is mighty good, but can’t win the cup for them all on his own.  Philly looks just now to be coming together as a team and should go by the Bruins without much trouble. And finally the Canucks at last exorcised their big nemesis the Blackhawks. The jolt or wake up call that that series provided (basically telling them that from President’s trophy to the Stanley Cup ain’t no smooth ride) is really just what Vancouver needed.  They left their season hang in the balance on one goal, but were fortunate to prevail. They really are the better team this year.

 

East

 

Washington vs Tampa Bay

 

Can the Bolts maintain their stellar defensive play (against a decent defensive team in Washington) while still getting the offense they clearly possess? I think so. If Roloson doesn’t tire, the Lightning are a balanced team and might, in fact, hold the edge in coaching– and Boudreau ain’t no slouch behind the Caps bench. Take TB in 6.

 

Philly vs Boston

 

As mentioned above, the Bruins didn’t look that impressive in dispensing the Habs and Philly did look a lot better by the end of their series than at the beginning. With Pronger back…I think the Bruins are cooked in 5 games.

 

West

 

Canucks vs Predators

Vancouver and Nashville play tight, low scoring, wear-em-down type games and I’m not sure that if the Predators had’ve been the Canucks’ first round opponent that they wouldn’t have won. But the lift (lesson?) of getting by Chicago I think will help Vancouver immensely. Pekka Rinne: fantastic goalie. Luongo and Sneider: better, certainly with the team playing in front of them. The music stops in the ‘Music City’ this round. ‘Nucks in 5

 

San Jose vs Detroit

 

This is going to be the best of all the second round match ups. The perennially solid and well coached Redwings are capable once again of getting to the cup. They have all the pieces, are getting key players back and have pretty good (under rated) goal tending. They play so methodically and with such determination (sense of entitlement?) that it’s hard to see them failing…

The Sharks however seem superior in their explosive, opportunistic offence and creativity. San Jose has, like Vancouver, some playoff bogeymen to exorcise themselves. They seem a bit more intense this year. And they have a lot of scoring threats.  If Niemi has it together, the Sharks will take hockeytown in 6.

NHL Playoffs 2010-2011 (Round 1)

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Well, that time again. Lost in Skates comes out of hybernation for the ‘real’ hockey season. Herewith the first round match-up predictions and Cup final choices.

 

Eastern conference

Washington (1) vs NY Rangers (8)

By all accounts this one could shape up to be a quick series with a much improved Caps team, defensively, taking care of business over an injury riddled also-ran blueshirts squad that can only hope for ‘king’ Lundqvist’ to steal a game–but only one at best. Caps in 5.

 

Philly (2) vs Buffalo sabres (7)

There has to be an upset (or two) in the post season, right? That’s why we watch. Philly, a preseason cup favorite and still so pegged by many, are also dealing with some injuries (Pronger) and still have question marks in goal. Nevermind the sabres’ inconsistent season; they’ve been hot down the stretch and Lindy Ruff is a great coach. And to top it off they have that most prized of commodities the elite goalie, in Ryan Miller. Sabres in 7

 

Boston (3) vs Montreal (4)

Shouldn’t be a lack of intensity to this match up. Boston finally has a pretty well rounded team with strong defense, impressive goal tending and an ability to score some goals. And they have size. If they play their game (ie, don’t get chasing the darting little guys in red, white and blue around and lay on the big bodies) then there isn’t much even a Halak-like performance from Carey Price can do to stop the B’s. Bruins in 6.

 

Pitts (4 vs Tampa Bay (5)

This series will be tight and will go the distance, I think, to 7 games. Am tempted to take theBolts with all their fire power, but Bylsma is by now a well seasoned coach, has configured his team to carry on with the loss of some key guys (Malkin, Crosby…) and will have his team ready to grind it out playoff style. Plus the pens have the edge in goal, which is always crucial at this time of year. Pittsburg in 7

 

 

Western conference

 

Vancouver (1) vs Chicago (8)

It really is poetic justice that the road to the cup, for the Canucks, should go through Chicago. Not that it’s going to be easy for Vancouver. But if they do win it all, it’ll be all the sweeter for having slayed the Blackhawk dragon en route.  Chicago has simply lost too many of it’s decisively gritty players, and Vancouver has stocked up well in all departments, especially defense, for this series to go the way it has the last two seasons. There will probably be more jitters early for Vancouver than the Hawks, but finally the Canucks will prevail. Vancouver in 6.

San Jose (2) vs Los Angeles (7)

Along with the Washington/Rangers series, this will be a short one. The Sharks are pretty solid looking and with Niemi in goal are set for a pretty good run this year. Maybe because the spot light has been off them a bit this year, but they have quietly gone about their business: they are a physical club, a scoring club and, again, have the goal tending. LA unfortunately hasn’t got the fire power to match (especially with Kopitar out) and can’t have their goalie stop everything. Sharks in 5.

 

Detroit (3) vs Phoenix (6)

Experience is again the huge intangible in this series, even though the two teams met last year. Detroit is too well coached and has too much experience together and in the playoffs to not get the job done. Phoenix will give them fits, especially if Bryzgalov is solid. The desert dogs have some wiley vets themselves to be sure: Whitney, Jovo, Fiddler, Vrbata, Doan.  Belanger is a good pick up, and Yandle can score…so it won’t be a cake walk. Wings in 6

 

Anaheim (4) vs Nashville (5)

This series, along with the Flyers/Sabres one, is ripe for an upset. If you can call the Preds winning an upset since both teams finished with the same number of points. You’d figure Nashville would be due to win their first playoff series; they’ve been in the post season a number of times. And if they do, it’s going to be largely because of goal tending–again. Pekka Rinne is a superb net minder. Add that to a team that plays to win 2-1 almost everytime they hit the ice and you’ve got one defensively tough opponent.  Nashville’s coach Barry Trotz fashions his teams  on a playoff-style-of-play template year after year, so why wouldn’t they finally see some successs? I’m tempted to pick the Preds, but I’ll still have to go with the Ducks, mostly because of their size, but also because they have 6 guys who pose a major scoring threat. Anaheim also has a decent veteran back end, if, albeit, some question marks in goal. Still, Ducks in 6.

 

Cup final prediction:

Sorry Vancouver fans, but that President’s trophy is probably going to be too much of a jinx. Something tells me that San Jose will finally reach the promised land and win in the final against….what?….Buffalo!  Hey why not? Don’t you think something unusual has to happen? Sharks over Sabres in 6.



 

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