Boston vs Carolina
Hard not to see the Bruins advancing from this series, but as i’ve already committed to Carolina being my dark horse in the East, i’m thinking that the ‘Canes are indeed cabable of the upset here. Given that they’ve got a core group of at least a dozen guys from their Stanley Cup year; plus with the Coach in an ‘old-hat- new-lease-on-things’position, Carolina has an experienced working system with some added upgrades. They are good in the face-off circle; have a dangerous offense; and with Ward and a familiar bunch of faces around him in the D positions, these guys are a solid team. It just remains to be seen if they can handle the physical play of the well rested bruins. Take the ‘Canes in 7
Detroit vs Anaheim
Boy is this going to be some match up. Watch out for those Ducks! It’s going to be the first real test for the Wings in this post season. We’ll have to see how slow or fast Detroit is out of the gate in sizing up with some pretty battle tested Ducks players. This is going to be a fairly long series, but unless Osgood (or Conklin) are awful, the Wings should have the depth to handle Anaheim in the end. Wings in 6
Washington vs Pittsburgh
Just like with the Boston series, i’m going with the ‘dawg’ in this one if only, perhaps, to see Ovechkin play a little longer into May. He is for sure the best nhl player and the most entertaining to watch. I’m very impressed, however, with how Pittsburgh has come together since the coaching change and with the addition of Guerin and Kunitz at the trade deadline. Their team play is probably better at this point than the Capitals. But just as better teams seem to sometimes struggle with lesser teams, I think the Rangers didn’t bring out the best in Washington and the Penguins most likely will. Take Washington in 7
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Canes in seven. They have ten players from their Stanley Cup winning team and have improved their defence corp from that team. They are battle-hardened and will not be satisfied with anything but the Cup. The Bruins are a well-coached, disciplined team that executes their game-plan consistently. Savard and Chara are among the elite players at their positions right now. Boston also has Yelle, Ward and Recchi with Cup rings. I think the keys are to Carolina winning are slightly better forwards, defencemen, goaltending and coaching.
Penguins in seven. Pittsburgh’s on a mission to win it all this year. Adding Guerin was one of the best deadline deals. Malkin and Crosby are twin threats whenever they’re on the ice. Their defence is only average. Ovechkin is a dynamic talent and is surrounded by a great supporting cast including Semin, Backstrom, Green and Laich. Their defencemen are underrated but overall team defence can be suspect at times. Fleury is on his game and Varlamov has been solid and made the saves he’s had to so far. Fedorov brings veteran leadership. The key to this series is Pittsburgh found out last year what commitment is needed to get there and now must win two more games.
Vancouver in five. Both teams boast a diverse group of talented forwards with three lines that can roll and a fourth that can make things happen. Vancouver has an excellent defence corps but Black Hawks’ may be even better. Khabibulin has one Cup while Luongo is the best goalie in the world right now. The key to this series is the Canucks time is now while Chicago may need a bit more experience to match their impressive skills.
Detroit in six. The only weakness for both teams is goaltending. The Wings now how to win and have talent up front and on the back end. Datsyuk, Zetterberg and Lidstrom are the leaders with everybody aware of their roles. Anaheim has an outstanding group of defencemen, two high octane forward lines and team playoff experience. I think forward depth and goaltending experience will be the keys to winning.
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