• 23May

  Blackhawks Sweep Sharks Out of the Water

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  The Sharks may have had home ice advantage in their first conference finals since 2004, but that didn’t matter to the determined Chicago Blackhawks. The Sharks took the early lead and even went so far as to lead game four 2-0, but the Blackhawks came back to take the only lead that mattered – the one that ended the game. Chicago is the only team that swept a series in the 2010 playoffs and for a third year in a row Marian Hossa will be playing in the Stanley Cup Finals. Is the third time the charm for him? Will he finally be on the happy side of the handshake when the Finals finish, or will he be on the losing end of the Finals for a third year in a row?

  San Jose really can’t seem to succeed in the post season. They did better this year than they had in a while, but they can’t ever seem to live up to their regular season drive. The Sharks make the regular season look easy and win the west (and sometimes even the Presidents’ Trophy), but they can’t seem to get to the Stanley Cup Finals. Since their start in 1991, they’ve gotten to the conference finals twice (including this year). However, they can’t seem to make it past that point. This year, they didn’t even win a game of the conference finals, leaving them with a record of 8-2 in the conference finals and sending them home before the Finals again.

  The Blackhawks will most likely face the Philadelphia Flyers in the Stanley Cup Finals, but the Montreal Canadiens want to change that. They’ve come back from a 3-1 deficit in a series twice already in the 2010 playoffs, so they may surprise everyone again. Either way, the Blackhawks were the first to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals and are certainly happy to get back to the Finals for the first time since 1992 when they lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins as they won their second Cup in a row. This year, they’ve got a young team excited to be in the Finals for the first time.

  Tags: Blackhawks, Canadiens, Flyers, Hockey, Marian Hossa, NHL, Penguins, playoffs, Sharks, Stanley Cup, Stanley Cup Finals, sweep

• 22May

  Three Comebacks After Being Down 3-1?

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  The Canadiens have been down 3-1 in a series heading to their opponent’s arena twice already this post-season. One of the teams they were down 3-1 to had even shut them out at home (the Penguins did it in game 3 last round). The question is how long can their luck hold out? I’m sure the Habs will come on strong Monday night in Philadelphia, but I can’t see them coming back from being down 3-1 a third time. Not against this Flyers team. The Canadiens have only scored a goal in one out of their three games against the Flyers. They won that game 5-1 and definitely had a commanding lead, but they need to score enough to win every game for the rest of the series if they’re going to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals. They’ve been outscored 14-5 by the Flyers in the series and I think the Flyers are going to end the Canadiens’ streak of series comebacks after being down 3 games to 1.

  Until 8:22 in the third period of game three of this series, it seemed like no team would be able to score away from home. The Flyers shut out the Canadiens in their first two games and the Habs were leading 4-0 until Philadelphia scored over eight minutes into the third period. Clearly, the Flyers were not happy with losing game 3 and determined to come away with a different result today. They want to advance to the finals in front of their home crowd and will surely be able to find the necessary energy to face the Canadiens. Will they be the first team to stop the Canadiens from advancing in spite of being down 3-1 in a series? From what I’ve seen, I’d definitely bet on the Flyers ending the Canadiens’ comeback streak. I’m sure all hockey fans will be watching Versus to see what happens Monday night!

  Tags: Canadiens, Flyers, Hockey, NHL, playoffs, Versus

• 14May

  2010 Conference Finals Predictions

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  I only got 50% of the teams moving on to the conference finals correct and I was wasn’t exactly right on either of them. I predicted that the Flyers would beat the Bruins in 6 (not 7) and that the Blackhawks would need 7 (not 6) games to eliminate the Canucks. I thought the Penguins would beat the Canadiens, not be the second team to be eliminated in 7 games by the very determined Montreal team. I’m sure it’s got to be hard for a team that just won the Cup to be as motivated as a team that hasn’t won it since 1993, but that series is still one of the most surprising of the playoffs for me so far. I also thought the Red Wings would beat the Sharks. Instead, the Sharks became the first team to advance, beating the Red Wings in just 5 games. The Sharks have broken through the glass ceiling that’s been in place since the NHL lockout. The last time the Sharks made it to the conference finals was in 2004. The Sharks have never gotten past the Conference Finals into the Stanley Cup Finals. Will this be the year they make it there? I don’t think so, but time will tell. They’re bound to make it eventually.

  Normally, the conference finals are a pretty perfect round for hockey lovers. There’s a hockey game every day, but that still leaves time for other things in your life and all the games are nationally televised. I understand having the first two hockey games in the conference finals on the same day. Sunday is a weekend day and the day that NBC has a playoff game. So, there is a game on NBC and a game on Versus. However, having two games for the second day of games in this round is really silly when playoff games could last a lot longer than a typical hockey game, since there is no shootout. Though the games are set three hours apart (7pm and 10pm Eastern), there could be overlap. If there is, fans outside of Chicago and San Jose may not be able to get the full second game of the day. Some television providers may have alternate channels for Versus set up so you can get all of both games, but in order to find out if that will happen and what channel to watch, one must be watching the games live. Those of us who live on the west coast and work 8-5 jobs can’t do that to start and may not be able to get home in time to catch up to live fast enough without missing the beginning of the game. (Besides, some of us prefer not to watch commercials and don’t watch games live until later in the playoffs.) It would be nice if Versus would announce their backup plans for all providers early so those of us who really care and can’t or won’t turn in to the games live have the opportunity to record the extra channel just in case it’s necessary. Thankfully, they didn’t schedule any games at the same time (or a half hour apart) and as of game 3 of this round, things get straightened out and there is a game per day. I’m sure that the schedules of the arenas had something to do with the way this round starts, but it’s still a shame that they couldn’t work things out. Here’s hoping that the eastern conference game 2 doesn’t go into overtime for too long…

  Here are my Conference Final predictions.

  Eastern Conference

  Flyers vs. Canadiens
  Flyers in 7 – This was a very difficult choice for me. Both the Flyers and the Canadiens have the momentum coming into this round. The Flyers won 4 games in a row to do something no hockey team had done in years and beat the Bruins after being down 3-0 in the series to start. The Canadiens won their last three games in a row to come back from being down 3-1 to the Penguins. Clearly, both teams are determined to win and have taken out teams ranked higher than them twice. The Flyers and Canadiens were ranked 7th & 8th in the eastern conference. They’re the teams in the 2010 playoffs tied with the least points of any team that made the playoffs this season. They’re both ranked below Anaheim (who finished 11th in the west) overall. This series should be very exciting no matter who makes it to the Stanley Cup Finals from the East. The part of this equation that may sway things the other way is Halak. He’s been the best goaltender of the playoffs with a save percentage of .933 and is definitely the main reason Canadiens have made it this far, in spite of Cammalleri’s offensive performance. This is definitely the series I’m looking forward to watching more than I have any other series of the 2010 playoffs.

  Western Conference

  Sharks vs. Blackhawks
  Blackhawks in 6 – In contrast to the teams left in the east (the lowest ranked teams in the east and NHL to make the playoffs), San Jose and Chicago are the two highest ranked teams in the western conference (though the 2nd and 3rd ranked in the NHL). I thought Chicago’s goaltending wasn’t strong enough to get them this far when the playoffs started and didn’t see San Jose getting past the first round, let alone the second. Both teams have their weaknesses, but I think the Blackhawks will beat the Sharks. It should be a great series, but the Hawks have the advantage of not being over-rested, the top scorer in the playoffs by points and points/game (Jonathan Toews), the goaltender with the better save percentage (though not by much), the better power play, and the best penalty killing left in the playoffs (the Bruins had a better pk than the Hawks).

  Tags: Blackhawks, Bruins, Canadiens, Canucks, Flyers, Hockey, Jaroslav Halak, Jonathan Toews, Michael Cammalleri, NBC, NHL, Penguins, playoffs, Red Wings, Sharks, Stanley Cup Finals, Versus

• 12May

  Goodbye Igloo

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  The Penguins fans said goodbye to the Igloo. The Mellon Arena (which some of us will always think of as the Civic Arena) has seen its last NHL game. Though the Penguins fans were surely sad about the game tonight, they cheered at the end to support their team’s efforts and say goodbye to the arena that has been the home of the Penguins since their start in 1967. I haven’t been to all the NHL arenas yet, but the closing of the Igloo means the oldest arena in the NHL is now the Madison Square Garden (the 4th), which has been used since 1968. Though the Islanders’ Nassau Memorial Coliseum (1972) is often mentioned as the worst arena in the NHL (it’s my least favorite of those I’ve visited), it is still not the oldest. The Islanders are the only pre-90s NHL team still playing in their original home as of the start of the 2010-11 season. Clearly, a lot of the newer teams have yet to move, but the Islanders have been around since they started in 1972. Though there has been talk of a new arena for the Islanders for ages, I hear the situation is a lot more complicated than fans would like and that it’s not possible for them to get a new arena any time soon.

  The Penguins were knocked out of the playoffs tonight by the Canadiens, who have taken the 2010 playoffs by storm first by knocking out the number one Washington Capitals. Now, they’ve knocked out the defending Stanley Cup Champions.

  The Cup hasn’t been won by a Canadian team since the Habs last won the Cup (when they beat the LA Kings in 1993). Perhaps it’s destiny. This year’s Penguins had a lot in common with the 1993 Penguins. Everyone seemed to think the 1993 Penguins would win the Cup for the third year in a row. Instead, they were knocked out in the second round of the playoffs by the NY Islanders. This year, they were knocked out in the second round by the Canadiens, but the stories are very similar. Though more people expected the Penguins to win the Cup in 1993 than predicted they’d win this year, the Pens were the defending Stanley Cup Champions and all the pressure was on them. Perhaps even a bit more pressure than in 1993, since this is the last year the Penguins will play in their original home and this time around the Penguins hadn’t yet won back to back Stanley Cups.

  I haven’t had a chance to talk to many Penguins fans about the loss yet, but I’m guessing fans will be split between wanting the Canadiens to win the Cup so their team will have at least lost to the Stanley Cup Champions and those who want to see the Habs go down, since they took out their team. Either way, this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs have been more interesting than most and in spite of seeing both of my teams knocked out, I’ve been enjoying the games. Two game 7s in the first and second rounds of the playoffs. No sweeps as of the end of the second round of the playoffs… Underdogs taking down teams many thought couldn’t be beaten (at least not yet)… This year’s playoffs have everything. I hope you’ve been enjoying them as much as I have.

  Tags: arenas, Canadiens, Capitals, Islanders, Madison Square Garden, Mellon Arena, Nassau Memorial Coliseum, Penguins, playoffs, Stanley Cup

• 04May

  Versus Coverage Gets Worse

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  Just when you didn’t think it was possible, the coverage on Versus gets even worse than it was for the first round of the playoffs. I know it’s not completely Versus’ fault that the national TV coverage of the NHL playoffs is so horrible. However, they’re the “NHL channel” as Romantically Challenged referred to it during Monday night’s episode. They are the home of the NHL playoffs, yet Versus is a channel that many in the country (even those who have cable, DirecTV, Dish, AT&T U-verse, or Verizon Fios) don’t have. Those who do are most likely paying extra for it as I am. The NHL Network is the same way, but at least it would offer those of us who are willing to pay more for our hockey (and other sports) the ability to see complete games. As a Penguins fan, I was worried that the Red Wings (clearly more of a national TV favorite than the Penguins, though the Penguins are definitely one of the teams in the current six-team league of national TV coverage Jim Fox and Bob Miller were discussing during a late season Kings away game) game would start being shown a bit after 4:30 and the rest of the Penguins game would be skipped. What Versus chose to do wasn’t any better, though it was for Penguins fans not living in Pittsburgh and Habs fans living in the US. Versus didn’t even switch games during the Penguins intermission, as I’d assumed they would do when I noticed the times and that Versus was supposedly showing both games. They showed very brief updates of the Red Wings/Sharks game and then went back to rehashing the Pens/Habs game.

  When the Penguins game ended, thankfully in regulation or we would have missed even more of the Sharks/Red Wings game, Versus took a while, but switched over to the game that started a half hour later. The Red Wings lost their third game in a row in the first overtime, so fans of the Red Wings and Sharks who don’t have Center Ice or live in the San Jose or Detroit areas barely saw their teams.

  In addition to their horrible coverage, Versus continued to call the game they were supposed to show the nation “bonus coverage” as they did with the Blackhawks/Predators and other games they would join in progress. Showing small portions of a game they’re supposed to be covering is not “bonus coverage” by my definition. Bonus coverage has always meant extra coverage. Outtakes, behind the scenes coverage, a music video… these are all bonus items one could find on a Blu-ray disc or DVD. If a Blu-ray disc said it had bonus coverage and instead took out 2/3 of the movie you had bought and added nothing extra, you’d demand your money back. Why do we have to put up with Versus? Some of us have no choice. Bettman got us into this mess and doesn’t seem at all interested in getting us out of it. He likes having a network with only one channel that many in the country don’t get as the main NHL channel for the United States. Where most sports prefer the channel that comes standard for anyone who has more than just the converter box to watch the TV that comes over the airwaves, Bettman is happy with a channel most people have to pay to get in addition to their regular cable, satellite, or fiber optic TV bill. Maybe one of these days, he’ll realize that hockey fans would like to see all the games in the playoffs – especially when it gets to the second round and give us an option other than Versus. I’m still very unclear why it’s not possible for the NHL Network to air one game and Versus to air the other. If the channel is not capable of airing both games in one night, they should allow another network to offer it to the fans.

  Tags: Bob Miller, bonus coverage, Canadiens, DirecTV, Dish, Fios, Gary Bettman, Hockey, Jim Fox, NHL, NHL Network, Penguins, playoffs, Red Wings, Sharks, U-verse

• 28Apr

  2010 Playoff Predictions – Take 2

  Hockey No Comments

  First, the results from the first round of the 2010 playoffs… I was bound to do worse than I did last year (7/8). This year, I only got 5 out of 8, though I did get 4 of the series exactly right (winner and number of games), so I guess I could have done worse. I definitely don’t know many people who picked the Canadiens or the Flyers to win and who would have guessed that the Flyers would be the first team to advance to the next round?

  I can’t remember a first round of the playoffs that was this interesting. Almost all the series went to 6 games or more. I hope that round two is as interesting and that this doesn’t mean we’ll have a boring second round.

  Here are my predictions for round two…

  Eastern Conference

  Bruins vs. Flyers
  Flyers in 6 – I know I didn’t pick the Flyers to beat the Devils, but they did it well from what I hear (I didn’t get out to the bars to see any of their full games, so I can only judge on what I read and heard from others in addition to the clips I saw). They split their regular season match-ups, but for the playoffs I have to pick Philly.

  Penguins vs. Canadiens
  Penguins in 5 – The Canadiens looked good against the Canadiens and coming back from being down in the series 3-1 will probably give them a good boost, but I don’t think they’re much of a match for the Penguins’ fire power. Sidney Crosby has 2.33 points per game so far. He has 4 more points than the Habs’ Michael Cammalleri, though Cammalleri played in one more game. The Pens won the regular season series and I think they’ll advance in the playoffs, too.

  Western Conference

  Sharks vs. Red Wings
  Red Wings in 6 – I predicted that the Sharks would lose in the first round as they had last year against Anaheim. They managed to beat the Avalanche, but I can’t see them doing the same against the Red Wings. Though the Red Wings had to fight to get through the first round, they proved in game 7 that when it comes down to the wire they are a great playoff team. They know how to battle through and play well when it counts. The Sharks have years of experience at buckling under pressure and leaving the playoffs before the conference finals. Everyone keeps saying that one of these years the Sharks are bound to break through. I’m sure it’ll happen at some point, but I don’t think this is their year. The Red Wings won their regular season series and I think they’ll advance to the conference finals.

  Blackhawks vs. Canucks
  Blackhawks in 7 – This is the hardest series for me to predict. The Canucks have the top scorer in the NHL and he seems to have started to score a bit in the playoffs now. They also have the second highest scorer of the 2010 playoffs in Mikael Samuelsson. I think before the playoffs started I would have picked the Canucks to win this one, since Luongo is such a great goalie. However, Luongo has looked a bit shaky in the playoffs this year. Though the Hawks don’t have the most solid goaltending, I think they’ll get past the Canucks.

  Tags: Blackhawks, Bruins, Canadiens, Canucks, Flyers, Hockey, Michael Cammalleri, Mikael Samuelsson, NHL, Penguins, playoffs, Red Wings, Roberto Luongo, Sharks, Sidney Crosby

• 25Apr

  Murphy’s Law of Playoff Predictions

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  Though I haven’t read Murphy’s Laws of Playoff Predictions, I’m guessing one of them would work to ensure that the only prediction I’ve gotten totally correct so far (team and number of games – I correctly predicted that the Pens would advance, but thought they’d do it faster than 6 games) was the Kings vs. Canucks series. I predicted that Vancouver would win in 6 games and they did. Since I want the Kings to do well, that prediction was the one I most wanted to have wrong. So, naturally, it was the first I had exactly right. The last couple years, I did really well in playoff predictions. I was due for an off year, I guess. It’s very possible the Kings/Canucks series will be the only prediction I get exactly right in the first round.

  Most of the players seemed to think (as I do) that Roberto Luongo stole the series for the Canucks. Luongo made a huge difference in the series – especially the last two games in Staples Center. Ryan Smyth pointed out that he thought Luongo got better as the series continued and I agree. He didn’t look as sharp in the first few games, but he was really amazing the last few games. In the playoffs, you need your key players to step up. The Kings’ number one scorer in the regular season was almost kept too far out of the equation by the Canucks and when Kopitar hit the post today, you could tell how frustrated he was getting. He knows he’s a player that should be up there scoring more than their defense and closer to the scoring of the Sedins. Perhaps it just takes time to adjust to playoff hockey. Terry Murray thought the Sedins made the difference in this series. They really stepped up their play in the last three games and he thinks they were the reason the Canucks beat the Kings to advance in the playoffs. Murray’s got a point. Luongo played all the games in the series and only really looked like the amazing goalie everyone knows in the games where the Sedins stepped up their play.

  The last time a team similar to this Kings team got into the playoffs for the first time in a while with many players who’d never played a game in the playoffs, they didn’t even make it to 6 games. The Penguins lost a very disappointing 5 game series to the Senators. The picture of Crosby upset in the locker room seemed to be everywhere. A lot of people say you need to learn how to lose the playoffs before you can win them. When Helene Elliott asked Terry Murray’s thoughts on that, he said he agreed with the idea. The Penguins said the main thing they learned from that first playoff series for many of their players was that the playoffs are a lot of fun, but losing in the playoffs is a horrible experience. They made it to the Stanley Cup Finals the two years after that, winning the second year. If Kings fans could look forward to that outcome, I’m sure they’d be perfectly happy about their team not advancing this time.

  This was the Kings’ first time in the playoffs since 2002. Most of the fans stayed for the entire game and cheered for their team at the end thanking them for getting back to the playoffs. The Kings and their fans know the future looks bright. They have a very good young team and a lot of good players in the system. It looks like they’ll be a force for years to come and have a good streak of making it to the playoffs now. However, next year if the Kings don’t make it beyond the first round, players and fans alike are sure to be very disappointed. One round isn’t going to be enough to satisfy the Kings next year.

  As a side note, I’m a big fan of the Kings’ Back in Black logo. Every Kings fan I talked to really likes the logo. Unfortunately, the Kings only thought it was worth using this logo on one t-shirt (men’s sizes only, of course). Someday, perhaps they’ll realize that Alyssa Milano’s Touch line is a lot more along the lines of what women want than pink shirts that are too cutesy and not in line with the team’s colors.
  

  Kat
  Contact Kat

  Tags: Alyssa Milano, Anze Kopitar, Canucks, Daniel Sedin, Helene Elliott, Henrik Sedin, Hockey, Kings, NHL, Penguins, playoffs, Roberto Luongo, Ryan Smyth, Sidney Crosby, Terry Murray

• 21Apr

  Henrik Sedin’s 1st 2010 Playoff Goal Game-Winner in the Canucks’ Win in Game 4

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  Tonight’s game 4 in L. A. looked like it was going to have to be decided in overtime. The Kings scored the only goal in the 1st period. The Canucks scored early in the 2nd. Then, the Kings scored a couple minutes later, then the Canucks… It went back and forth that way until the Canucks scored two goals in a row thanks to the Kings’ too many men on the ice bench minor penalty. Vancouver hadn’t been able to score on the power play or stop the Kings’ power play in LA during the playoffs this year, but they got their power play and penalty kill going by shaking things up a bit in the line-up. Clearly, what Alain Vigneault did worked.

  Henrik Sedin, the number one scorer in the 2009-10 regular season, only had three points in the playoffs this year coming into tonight’s game at Staples Center and none of them were goals. I’m sure Canucks fans think it’s fitting that Henrik Sedin assisted on the Canucks’ first go-ahead goal of the night and scored the goal that won the game for Vancouver. Vigneault had said Monday that his top players needed to be his best players and they definitely stepped up to the plate tonight. Though the Canucks only allowed the Kings to get 26 shots on goal tonight, Luongo was called on to make some very good saves at key times in the game, which definitely had an impact.

  The Kings were outshot 37-26 tonight, which is unusual for them. Clearly, limiting shots again is something the Kings will want to work on before facing the Canucks in Vancouver for game 6 on Friday. Getting the Kings’ playoff-leading power play back on track would also be a good thing.

  With the series all tied up, the Kings are still in a position where they have to win another game in Vancouver. They’ve won one there already, so they know they can do it. Terry Murray has always been big on sticking to the routine. After examining tonight’s game as usual, the Kings will need to move on to concentrate on their game. They know if they play well they can beat the Canucks. They need to do that two more times to advance to the second round of the playoffs and the Kings are convinced they can do it. Fans of both teams are anxiously awaiting Friday’s game and wondering when they’ll be watching their teams on Sunday.

  The game in L. A. was the only game today where the team behind managed to tie the series. Many people may not have expected the Kings to ever lead their series with the Canucks, but the Kings did expect to do well and that might be enough. Kings fans are guaranteed one more game at Staples Center this playoffs. Clearly, they’re all hoping for more. Only time will tell. All the teams can do is prepare as much as possible as their fans hope for the best.

  My favorite sign of the night: “got pk?” Unfortunately for Kings fans, the Canucks found theirs.

  Tags: Alain Vigneault, Canucks, Henrik Sedin, Hockey, Kings, NHL, playoffs, Roberto Luongo, Staples Center, Terry Murray

• 14Apr

  That’s What I Get for Predicting a Sweep

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  I almost never predict that one team will sweep another team in the playoffs. I suppose I should stick to that from now on if they’re all going to work out the way the Penguins/Senators series did for the first game. The Senators clearly aren’t getting swept by the Penguins. I still think the Pens will bounce back and win the series, but they’re obviously not going to do it in 4 games. If they look the way they did in game one, the Penguins could get swept. They had their moments, but the game wasn’t as close as the final score indicates.

  I know NBC couldn’t possibly give up Minute to Win It (which I’d never heard of before I decided to see what was on tonight), Law & Order: Special Victim’s Unit (a show I’ve actually seen), & “To Be Announced” (that’s still what my DVR has listed for tonight, though it looks like a second episode of Law & Order: Special Victim’s Unit or another Law & Order). However, having all the NHL playoff games on only one channel (Versus, of course) in this round is very frustrating for someone who can’t get NHL Center Ice any more. The trade-off (not having to deal with the horrible Cox Cable any more) was well worth it, but I couldn’t watch tonight’s Flyers/Devils game and that was very disappointing for someone who missed fewer than 2 full games the last two playoff years. Four playoff games in a day and only three on TV in the United States is disappointing, but it could be worse. Last year, only two of the first four games were on Versus in the US. All of the games are, of course, televised in Canada and if it were the Los Angeles games that were being skipped by National TV, I’d be fine. Sadly, I won’t get to see ANY of the Devils/Flyers series (I can’t count the in-game updates and NHL on the Fly as watching the game). I really can’t imagine how the network deemed that series completely unworthy of national television. Of course, I guess it’s almost worse to say that the entire Penguins/Senators series is worth except for game 7 if it happens. I still don’t think that series will go to 7 games, but what if it does? If that series goes to 7 games and the only game of the series not televised nationally in the United States is the most important game of the series, Gary Bettman and Versus should be completely ashamed of themselves. Just as much as when NBC and Bettman chose horse racing pre-show coverage over the overtime ending of a playoff hockey game.

  I thought it was great to see Muhammad Ali in Phoenix for the Coyotes/Red Wings game. Perhaps he can take some of the credit for the Coyotes being the only home team to win game 1 in the first day of the 2010 NHL playoffs. Then again, perhaps it’s the Coyotes’ reaction to a completely full building. I’ve never seen the Glendale Arena so full. In talking to the players when they were here for one of the Kings’ last games, I found out that their building has been a lot more full recently and that they’ve enjoyed seeing so the building get more crowded as they continued to do well. I’m sure it’ll stay that way through the playoffs. Hopefully, the attendance burst will carry over to the 2010-11 season for the Coyotes, too. The Glendale Arena isn’t that far from downtown Phoenix. Hopefully, those living in Phoenix will figure that out during the playoffs and keep going back. The Glendale Arena is beautiful. It’d be nice to see it full more often.

  Due to the way the games were scheduled on Versus, I saw under 8 minutes of the Sharks/Avalanche game. It seemed like that game was going to go into overtime. I was thinking how fortunate it was for the NHL and Versus that the last game of the day would be the only game to go into overtime. No sooner had I thought that than I got to the Avalanche goal with just 49.3 seconds left in regulation. Stewart banked it off of Rob Blake’s skate and won the game for the Avalanche. Oddly enough, this was the only series that started out the way I would have guessed. It’s definitely going to be an interesting playoff season!

  Tags: Avalanche, Center Ice, Chris Stewart, Coyotes, Devils, Flyers, Gary Bettman, Glendale Arena, Hockey, Kings, Muhammad Ali, NBC, NHL, Penguins, playoffs, Red Wings, Rob Blake, Senators, Sharks, sweep, Versus

• 12Apr

  Kat’s 2010 Playoff Predictions

  Hockey No Comments

  In 2009, I went 7 for 8 in first round predictions. Somehow, I think that’s very unlikely this year. It was difficult for me to decide who I think will win a couple of the series this year, which I hope means there will be some great match-ups. Here are my predictions…

  Eastern Conference

  Capitals vs. Canadiens
  Capitals in 5 – I don’t think this will be at all challenging for the Capitals, but I think the Canadiens will win a game, hopefully at home for their fans.

  Devils vs. Flyers
  Devils in 6 – I think the Devils will take this one unless they have a completely unexpected breakdown or the Martin Brodeur of the Olympics resurfaces. It seems like Marty is determined to make everyone forget about his horrible performance in the 2010 Olympics, which will probably help the Devils, but the Flyers are still a very good team in spite of how they were playing the last couple weeks. I think they’ll bounce back and win a couple games.

  Sabres vs. Bruins
  Bruins in 6 – I know it’s not a popular choice, but I think the Bruins are going to step up and beat the Sabres. Buffalo hadn’t been doing that great in their last couple weeks and Boston may just take their winning streak into the playoffs.

  Penguins vs. Senators
  Penguins in 4 – A lot of those who know me will say I’m being too much of a fan in this prediction, but I disagree. I think that the Penguins (especially their Captain Sidney Crosby) still remember the 2007 meeting with the Senators in the playoffs. The Penguins swept the Senators when they faced the team the following year in the quarterfinals and I think they’ll do the same 2 years later.

  Western Conference

  Sharks vs. Avalanche
  Avalanche in 6 – I know everyone keeps saying the Sharks are bound to break out of their playoff slump some year, but I don’t see it happening any time soon. The one thing that makes me a bit skeptical about this pick is that (unlike recent playoff years) the Sharks went 8-1-1 in their last 10 games of the season as opposed to barely squeaking by to win the western conference title. The Avalanche have struggled at the end of the season, so if the Sharks don’t crash and burn early, they may get past the Avalanche and lose in round 2.

  Blackhawks vs. Predators
  Blackhawks in 6 – I think the Blackhawks will take the series, though it’ll be more difficult for them than it would if they had a better goalie. A team can win the Stanley Cup with an amazing defense and an okay goalie, but Huet is near the bottom out of all ranked goalies. Niemi has been doing well, but has very little experience. Of course, many new goalies (even those like Hedberg with the Pens, who had played only 9 regular season games) have great playoff runs, so I think the Blackhawks will get through the first round in spite of the goaltending questions.

  Canucks vs. Kings
  Canucks in 6 – I’ve talked to a lot of people who think the Kings will win this one, but I have to go with the Canucks for a few reasons. First, the Canucks have a lot more playoff experience than the Kings. I don’t see them making it to the Stanley Cup Finals, but I do think they’ll get past the Kings. In 2007, I was sure the Penguins would beat the Senators and then collapse. Instead, they were out of the playoffs in 5 games. I think the Kings will win one more game than the 2007 Pens, but they don’t have much playoff experience and I think that’ll hurt them. The other issue in this match-up is the goaltending. Luongo just won the gold medal with Canada in his home arena in Vancouver. Conversely, Quick (who Terry Murray keeps reminding everyone is the “number one guy”) had never played as many games as he did this season (72). He played only 44 last season and came from college hockey, where he played fewer games. It’s been speculated that part of Nabokov’s problem in the playoffs is that he’s so tired (he played 71 games this season). If a lot of games affect a seasoned goalie the way they have Nabokov, what will it do to a goalie with a lot less experience? As if that’s not enough, the Canucks have the number one scorer in the NHL (and 3 of the top 25). All those factors add up to me thinking the Canucks will win this round and a picture similar to that of Sidney Crosby’s depressed locker room shot of captain Dustin Brown.

  Coyotes vs. Red Wings
  Red Wings in 7 – This series was the hardest series for me to pick a winner, which is why I had to predict that it’ll go to 7 games. The Red Wings have been doing so well lately (8-1-1 in their last 10 games) that I had to pick them. Until I started writing this, I was going to pick the Coyotes. I think it’ll be a great series. The Red Wings do seem to already be in playoff mode, though, and their playoff goaltending has been amazing lately (leading them to two Stanley Cup Finals in the last two years and one Cup). I don’t think the Red Wings will get as far this year, but I don’t think they’ll collapse until at least the second round. The Coyotes have been playing really well this season, but recently they’ve been good, but not great and I don’t think that’s quite enough to beat the playoff Red Wings. Would anyone have predicted that the Coyotes would have home ice advantage in this series? It’s doubtful. The Red Wings didn’t play that well overall this season, but they know how to win in the playoffs. They have a history of winning for a reason.

  Hopefully, a lot of the match-ups will be exciting this year. I think that’s all most serious hockey fans want (other than their own team winning the Cup, of course, but we can’t have that every year).

  Enjoy the playoffs!

  Tags: Avalanche, Blackhawks, Bruins, Canadiens, Canucks, Capitals, Coyotes, Devils, Dustin Brown, Evgeni Nabokov, Flyers, Hockey, Jonathan Quick, Kings, NHL, Olympics, Penguins, playoffs, Predators, Red Wings, Roberto Luongo, Sabres, Senators, Sharks, Sidney Crosby, Stanley Cup, Terry Murray

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