Here are my first round playoff predictions. Playoff hockey makes for the most exciting playoff action in all of sports. The beautiful part is that every team gets a fresh start and anything can happen. Playoffs are their own season, and nothing that has happened throughout the regular season matters anymore.
Eastern Conference
(1) Washington Capitals vs. (8) New York Rangers
I’m calling this upset now. Losing star forward Ryan Callahan is obviously an enormous blow to the Rangers, but I still believe that players will rise to the occasion and the Rangers will win the series. The Rangers are 3-1 against Washington in regular season play this year, winning their last three meetings by a combined score of 15-1 including a 7-0 shutout in New York and a 6-0 shutout in Washington.
(2) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (7) Buffalo Sabers
The Philadelphia Flyers are not coming into the playoffs playing their best hockey, just 7-7-6 in their last 20 games, but the return of Chris Pronger is certainly going to be a major asset. Although they split the season series 2-2, the Sabers won the last two meetings between the two teams and goaltender Ryan Miller will be huge between the pipes. I think that the Flyers will use home ice to their advantage and win the series, but I won’t be surprised if the Sabers pull off the upset.
(3) Boston Bruins vs. (6) Montreal Canadians
This is a fantastic series for the sport of hockey, adding fuel to the already heated Northeast Division rivalry. This Original Six rivalry intensified on March 8th with Chara’s controversial hit on Pacioretty that had Montreal residents calling the police demanding that charges be filed against Chara. Although the consequences were tragic, it was a clean hit with some bad luck if you ask me, or the NHL, but judge for yourself. Although they lost the season series, the Bruins won that March 8th game 8-6, and then won the last regular season match-up with the Canadians 7-0. This is guaranteed to be a great series, and I believe the Bruins will come out on top. According to NHL.com, a computer simulation predicts that Boston will win the Stanley Cup.
(4) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (5) Tampa Bay Lightning
This series can go either way and is definitely the hardest pick for me to make. The two teams split their four regular season meetings this year. I suspect a long, hard fought series that Tampa Bay will eventually win. A great article by NHL.com writer Michelle Crechiolo stresses the importance of the role that special teams will play throughout the series. Pittsburgh has the best penalty killing squad in the league and Tampa Bay boasts the best power play unit in the Eastern Conference (sixth in the league) led by Steven Stamkos, Martin St. Louis and Vincent Lecavalier. The Penguins have no choice but to play without superstars Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby because of injuries. Malkin is still recovering from knee surgery and Crosby is still showing symptoms from the concussion he sustained in January.
Western Conference
(1) Vancouver Canucks vs. (8) Chicago Blackhawks
This is probably the easiest pick of all for me. The Blackhawks couldn’t even get the job done on Sunday when they needed to, and they had to rely on some help from Minnesota to get the eighth seed. It’s an embarrassment for the defending Stanley Cup champions. Vancouver will win this series.
(2) San Jose Sharks vs. (7) Los Angeles Kings
The quality of hockey in California has been on the rise in recent years, evident by the quality of young California players selected in the 2010 Entry Draft. A San Jose vs. Los Angeles match-up is great for California hockey (and hockey in general), and it should be a battle between the two teams. They split their season series this year, but I suspect that the Sharks will defeat the Kings to advance to the second round.
(3) Detroit Red Wings vs. (6) Phoenix Coyotes
The shaky, inconsistent hockey Detroit has been playing down the final stretch of their season – just 4-4-2 in their last 10 games, including a recent 10-3 loss to St. Louis - and the fact that they will be at least starting the series without Henrik Zetterberg due to injury, leads me to pick the Phoenix Coyotes to upset the Red Wings. This may not be a popular pick, but I’m sticking with it. They split their regular season meetings this year.
(4) Anaheim Ducks vs. (5) Nashville Predators
This series seems to be a complete toss-up. Even though Nashville won the season series 3-1, I’m going with Corey Perry and the Anaheim Ducks to win this one.
