Battle of the consistent Titans.
Artwork by Rebecca Holt
The fatigue Pittsburgh’s Penguins will be facing headed into the next series will be prevalent if it drags on past four games and, trust me, it will. The Canadiens are potentially in the same boat for fatigue, but the momentum they carry behind them should help eradicate some of that. Upsetting Ovechkin’s Capitals the Montreal Canadiens have observed as net-minder Jaroslav Halak stepped up when they needed him most.
GOALTENDING:
Jaroslav “Stop Pucks A” Halak versus Marc “Snow” Andre-Fleury: does really much else need to be said? Jaroslav Halak showed his true colors this season and produced a lot of donuts at that: five shutouts at the end of the season. Marc-Andre Fleury is blessed with a high-powered offense and a team good at rallying late. Considering that he only posted a .905 save percentage with one shutout at the end of the season, in contrast to Halak’s five shutouts and .924 save percentage. If goalkeeping is any reflection of a series outcome, and it is, this one can go to the Canadiens.
ADVANTAGE: CANADIENS
DEFENSE:
This one is close seeing such stellar players from the Penguins as Sergei Gonchar and Brooks Orpik and Roman Hamrlik with Andrei Markov. When it all comes down to it though, the Penguins take the defensive crown between the two. Why, you may ask? Experience, simply experience. Pittsburgh’s D-Men have traveled the post-season route before and know how strenuous it can be, as well as knowing what needs to be done to win the Cup. Sergei Gonchar is not only one of the top defensemen in the league, but he has two Stanley Cup trips under his belt with his current team, who can beat that?
ADVANTAGE: PITTSBURGH
FORWARDS:
As much as I may hate to say it, Sidney Crosby is all that needs to be said here. Mike Camalleri is stepping up though with eight goals and five assists in his longest post-season run to date. This is his first time making it past the first round and he is certainly making the most of it. Though Brian Gionta, Scott Gomez, and Mike Camalleri form a strong set of forwards, Sidney Crosby, Jordan Staal, and Evgeni Malkin again have the experience. Staal is looked to step up in big games, but his recent injury may cause some issues on the offensive line. Sidney Crosby has both the drive and the talent to single handedly win games, if his team goes under he will claw his way back to the top, no doubt about that.
ADVANTAGE: PITTSBURGH
SUMMARY:
The series is tied at one game each, and if Jaroslav Halak remains consistent, an upset could be seen. Realistically though, the Penguins’ experience, talent, and desire to win will overcome the underdogs in this matter.
CURRENT SERIES: Tied at one game each.
PREDICTION: Penguins in five games.
Boston’s Bruins led by monstrous 6’9” Captain Zdeno Chara and rookie goalie Tuuka Rask, took game 1 over the Philadelphia Flyers quite handily even though it went to over-time. Though it is not yet fair to count out the city of “Brotherly Love.” After slapping around the number two seeded New Jersey Devils, Brian Boucher just needs to get his head on straight and they can make this a contest.
GOALTENDING:
I know: he is only a rookie, these are his first set of big games, he will burn out eventually…as true as some of that may be, Tuuka Rask is the reason Boston has made it so far. Brian Boucher has played well, and has really stepped up in one of his first season’s as a first-string goalie, but Rask has all the potential and raw talent in his corner. Stepping into the shadows of formerly heroic goaltenders, Rask has performed admirably, and whether that play continues will be the deciding factor in the series.
ADVANTAGE: BOSTON
DEFENSE:
6’9” Zdeno Chara versus the battle-hardened Chris Pronger: that is a show I would always pay to see. Both veterans have considerable amounts of post-season experience and strong supporting casts to back them up. However, Boston’s looks to be a bit more physical and so if this series drags to more than a few games Boston’s physical play will pull out the win. On top of that, Boston’s defense has so far produced offensively to counteract their shortcomings on the defensive side (Dennis Wideman putting up eight points, one goal and seven assists).
ADVANTAGE: BOSTON
FORWARDS:
Danny Briere (4 goals, 5 assists) Mike Richards (4 goals, 8 assists) versus Miroslav Satan (4 goals, 5 assists) and game one’s come-back hero, Marc Savard (1 sweet game-winning goal) this is a close horse-race. Though, with the way they are producing at crunch-time right now, Boston has to take the cake. Though my heart goes out to Briere as he is an icon of playoff production, one man can’t take this series. If Boston’s top-notch lines continue their consistency and resist the temptation to slack off, this should be an easy rest of the series.
ADVANTAGE: BOSTON
SUMMARY:
This is the most exciting yet unsung series of the playoffs thus far. With electric finishes in both games, Game 1 and overtime winner from Marc Savard who had been side-lined since early March and Game 2 won in the last three minutes of the third. If this series goes past four games it will only remain exciting and enjoyable.
CURRENT SERIES: Boston up 2 games to none.
PREDICTION: Boston in 6 games.
Number 2 and Number 3 battling for momentum, Vancouver’s Canucks and Chicago’s Blackhawks are two of the most intense teams to watch. Roberto Luongo is also arguably the best goalie in the league today; he sure is overly confident with that opinion, at that. To counter that, Patrick Kane and Johnathan Toews are two of the NHL’s young, electrifying stars that can produce well in the clutch. Each team, led by veteran coaches and players, desirse this series win and it should drag out to at least six games.
GOALTENDING:
Chicago has for the past month or so faced the most unstable goalie situation in the league, if Achilles has a heel this is it. Roberto Luongo again is one of the league’s top netminders and so Vancouver takes this decision hands down. He has always played well under pressure, this year’s Olympics can prove as much, so if he is allowed to get his game back on completely Vancouver will take the series easily.
ADVANTAGE: VANCOUVER
DEFENSE:
Offensive defense, defensive offense, defensive defense, any way you slice it defense runs the game and Chicago can play defense. Brent Seabrook, Brian Campbell, and Duncan Keith form three of the league’s hottest and most productive defensemen all on one Blackhawk squad. On the other side of the ice we see Kevin Bieska and Sami Salo, strong defenders in their own right but against Chicago’s hotter forwards do they really stand a chance? I think not. Chicago takes this decision like Luongo took the goaltending, hands down.
ADVANTAGE: CHICAGO
FORWARDS:
Okay, okay, Henrik Sedin DID lead the league in points and assists with 93, but I am going to rule in favor of Chicago’s young guns here. Patrick Kane, Johnathan Toews, and Kris Versteeg all have constantly surprised us NHL fans, and I don’t think they are anywhere near done surprising us this year either. If they can come together to produce like they did in Game 2, working with veterans Patrick Sharp and Marian Hossa, they should easily tip the odds of the ice in their favor.
ADVANTAGE: CHICAGO
SUMMARY:
Both teams want it, both teams could take it; it has really come down to a mental battle between Chicago’s shooters and Roberto Luongo, Vancouver’s Goaltender. If they continue to pester him in the following games they will be able to reign victorious in the next few contests to advance. utT, if Luongo is allowed even the slightest bit of time to gather his thoughts and get back on his game, Chicago will potentially face blowouts until they are knocked out.
CURRENT SERIES: Tied at 1 game a piece.
PREDICTION: Chicago takes it in 6.
San Jose and Detroit: some of us could have seen another upset due to San Jose’s previous playoff woes, though it looks like this year the boys in the sun are taking it seriously. Up 2-0 the series goes back to Detroit tonight with hopes of Detroit being able to keep their hopes alive with a win. Joe Pavelski has really picked it up of late scoring big goals in both contests to douse Detroit’s alleged fire. This is the year folks, San Jose is finally gonna hit the Western Conference Finals and maybe even the Stanley Cup final.
GOALTENDING:
Evgeni Nabokov was good, Jimmy Howard is good, that is really all that needs to be said on the matter. The rookie Howard has been a dominating presence in net and pulled out all the big wins to get the much loathed wings to where they are currently. Nabokov is much like Pittsburgh’s Marc Andre-Fleury, and is lucky to have a strong offense producing up front. Howard will be groomed to become quite the wall in net in future seasons, and though he wins this battle, he will not be the dividing factor in who wins this series.
ADVANTAGE: DETROIT
DEFENSE:
San Jose’s Dan Boyle and Rob Blake opposite the wily Detroit veterans Nicklas Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski compose the two best defensive units in the Playoffs right now. Dan Boyle has put all of his previous playoff woes behind him, after scoring Colorado’s game-winner in overtime in game one off of a rebounded shot by Ryan O’Reilly, and has really begun to pick it up. Rob Blake has and always will be a man after my own heart after his seasons with Roy and the fabled Colorado Avalanche of those days. Opposite Detroit’s powerful offensive defenders in the two vets, this is possibly the only tie we will see in this playoff prediction competition.
ADVANTAGE: TIE!
FORWARDS:
Dany Heatley, Joe Thornton, Joe Pavelski, and Danny Setoguchi versus Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk, and David Cleary? Four on three may seem a little unfair, but those three can do their fair share of damage against any team. Still, Joe Pavelski has won this battle for the Sharks this time in his strong play presented in the first two games. Coming up big, the young Shark has really shown he can play in the post-season and he deserves to be here. Continued production from him and the other three can only provide a ticket to the Western Conference Finals early for San Jose’s frozen Sharks.
SUMMARY:
Though the series is 2-0, the story on the ice tells itself much differently. Detroit has displayed its hard-fought desire to win as it always does, but San Jose consistently bats them back with timely goals and incredible shut-down comebacks. Joe Pavelski is the moving force in this series, if only he could have played so well in the Olympics.
CURRENT SERIES: San Jose leads 2-0.
PREDICTION: San Jose wins it in 6.
