2nd Round Eastern Conference

                     The Washington Capitals vs The Tampa Bay Lightning

ap exchange

The Washington Capitals made quick work of the New York Rangers in only 5 games, while playing an impressive defensive game. The Capitals have attempted to change their game to be more ready to make a deep run in the playoffs by adding veterans Jason Arnott and Dennis Wideman while also benefiting from the emergence of Marcus Johansson. Much has been said about Alex Ovechkin only scoring 30 goals this season yet the Capitals still finished with the east's best record. Mike Green is also expected back after again running into concussion problems. Alexander Semin will have to continue his recent scoring touch as he has played well with Arnott.

They now meet division rival Tampa Bay fresh off their comeback defeat of the Pittsburgh Penguins in 7 games. The Lightning play a laid back style in the neutral zone which can easily affect the zone entry of the Capitals. The big story of this series will be the play of 41 year old Dwayne Roloson between the pipes for the Lightning. Roloson was key in defeating the Penguins even shutting them out at home in game 7. The Capitals remember vividly the late season acquisition of Roloson as he shut the Capitals out at home while still dawning Islanders pads, twice. The Lightning also have Hart candidate Martin St. Louis who will look to have a big role. Don't forget about Steven Stamkos even though it is easy to the way he finished the season and for how he has been thus far. Simon Gagne has also been a bright spot with his 7 points last round which ties him with former teammate Danny Briere of the Philadelphia Flyers for the overall lead. 

The X factor for this series will be Steven Stamkos and whether he is able to get going like he was early in the season when critics threw out the question of 50 in 50. ( 50 goals in 50 games) So far he has looked exactly like a young player playing in his first playoff series, scared. If he turns it on it could me a trip to the east finals for Tampa Bay.

The goalie battle is between 23 year-old Michal Neuvirth and 41 year-old Dwayne Roloson. If Neuvirth looks shaky Washington has only more youth behind him with Braden Holtby and Semyon Varlamov. Roloson is experienced and is looking as confident as ever and may be able to steal a few games completely on his own. The Capitals late additions could be monumental in their ability to move on in this series with Jason Arnott being added to the lineup bringing a Stanley Cup ring with him. 

Capitals in 6

                                  The Philadelphia Flyers vs The Boston Bruins

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The Philadelphia Flyers were taken to 7 games by the Buffalo Sabers mainly due to incredibly inconsistent goal tending. Ryan Miller was his usual self as he shut the Flyers out twice. In goal for the Flyers was first rookie Sergei Bobrovsky but he was unable to last past game 2. Brian Boucher was then the next to start with Leighton now backing him up and Bobrovsky sitting in the stands. When Boucher allowed three weak goals in the first period of game 5, Leighton came in relief and impressed. He would then get the nod the next night but he too only lasted the first. Boucher then regained his starting position and will now look to be the guy for Philadelphia. Daniel Briere and Claude Giroux are running the Flyers offense just how they did in the Flyers run to the finals last season. Briere has 6 goals and 7 points thus far. Chris Pronger will look to have a bigger impact in this series after only playing 2 games against the Sabers.

ap exchange

The Boston Bruins are trying to forget their collapse from last season where they became the 3rd NHL team to lose a best of 7 series after having a 3-0 lead. The Bruins can't help but hear it everywhere now as they once again meet the Philadelphia Flyers in the second round. This Bruins team is much different from that one however with 7 new names on the roster. Nathan Horton and Chris Kelly have been the most important additions for them in the post season so far. Goalie Tim Thomas will also be in net this time as he once again is in the running for the Vezina trophy. The Bruins were also taken to 7 games in the first round with Montreal just falling short in overtime. The Montreal Canadians however, do not have the scoring depth that Philadelphia has and the Bruins defense will have their hands full. Mark Recchi continues to impress at the age of 43 and has no signs of slowing down. Zdeno Chara and Tomas Kaberle will have to slow down the Flyers offense or Tim Thomas will be in trouble. 

The X factor of this series is Milan Lucic as he is yet to score a goal in these playoffs. Lucic will have to do what he does best and be physical and show why he was able to be a 30 goal scorer in the regular season. If Lucic can be that presence for the Bruins it could help them immensely in their chances to advance.

The Flyers goalie woes were an issue but the better goalie performances in other series didn't always win. Both Roberto Luongo and Antti Niemi were pulled twice in the first round but their teams still advanced. Brian Boucher will likely have to take control of the staring position if the Flyers expect to advance. 

Flyers in7

Stanley Cup Finals

         The Stanley Cup Finals are here and after two short series that still managed to provide some excitement we are left with the #2 seeded Chicago Blackhawks and the #7 seeded Philadelphia Flyers. There are many stories that can be talked about with the way these two made it to the finals and I will look into the basics then break down the teams.

The Chicago Blackhawks
       The Hawks really got going last season with Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews developing into to huge stars in the league. Chicago went to the Western Conference finals last season but ultimately fell to the more experienced Detroit Redwings. Like the Flyers, the Hawks were a preseason pick by many to bust through to the finals this year. This team was considered one of the worst in the league a few years back and has made a huge turn around by revamping this team with young talent. Jonathan Toews is only 21 years of age and he captains this team even though through interviews he appears wise beyond his years. This team has one of the hottest lines in the playoffs made up of Toews, Kane and Dustin Byfuglien. Byfuglien was playing defense at the start of the playoffs and since being placed on a line with Kane and Toews he has done nothing but score big goals. He scored in all four games of the Conference Finals sweep of the San Jose Sharks including a couple of game winners. He will be a heavy task to deal with in front of the net as he stands at 6'5 and 257 lbs. The defense men for the Hawks is a talented group and includes one of the best shut down pair in the league with Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook. This skilled group also includes Brian Campbell, Niklas Hjalmarsson and Brent Sopel. The Hawks have a lot of momentum and celebrities on their side along with a city amped with excitement.

The Philadelphia Flyers
      The story of the Flyers has been well documented in how they fought through injuries after making it into the playoffs on the last game of the regular season in a shoot out against hated rivals the New York Rangers. At that point in time it looked as though the Flyers excitement would be short lived until they realized they would be playing the New Jersey Devils in the first round. Philadelphia had beaten the Devils five times during the regular season this year and took care of them in only five playoff games. After Montreal upset the Capitals it meant the Flyers would play the Boston Bruins in the second round. This series did not begin well as stars Jeff Carter, Simon Gagne and Ian Laperriere would all be forced out of competition due to injury. G Brian Boucher struggled against the Bruins and the Flyers found themselves in a 3-0 hole. Simon Gagne would return for game 4 and bring the team a huge lift as he would score the winner in OT to propel the team to victory. It was also in this game that Boucher would too go down in what has been an injury plagued season for Philly men between the pipes. The hero from earlier in the season Michael Leighton was ready on the bench and helped the Flyers make history as they were the 4th team in pro sports to come back from a 0-3 deficit in a best of 7 series. Montreal was their opponent in the Eastern Conference Finals and it was there where Michael Leighton really made a name for himself. Leighton posted three shut out in the first four games of the series and the Flyers beat the Canadians in five games. Mike Richards showed all kinds of heart in the series clinching victory and sets up what should be a great race for the Conn Smyth trophy between the two young captains. The Flyers have also gotten healthy and now have Jeff Carter and Ian Laperriere back in the line-up just in time.

Match-up Breakdown
      There are many interesting match-ups in this series and how the coach's choose to deal with them will be heavily important. The main one being talked about is the line of Kane, Toews and Byfuglien and who on the Flyers defense will be left to deal with big Buff. The man that is assumed to be left with that task is Chris Pronger. Pronger was picked up by the Flyers to be a shut down defense man and help this team to the Stanley Cup Finals. He has done his job so far by logging a lot of minutes each game and is, I think, the best D man left in the playoffs. However Flyer coach Peter Laviolette could also put very capable D man Kimmo Timonen on big Dustin Byfuglien. Timonen is a 12 year veteran who has spent most of his career shutting down talented forwards despite being only 5'10 and 194 lbs. Timonen makes up for his lack of size with great positioning skills and an active poke check. Pronger and Timonen are not defensive partners so Laviolette will be able to maybe use both on Byfuglien instead of only one at different times.

      The top line of the Philadelphia Flyers includes captain Mike Richards, Jeff Carter and Simon Gagne. This highly skilled line of the Flyers will probably be forced to deal with Dave Bolland of the Chicago Blackhawks. Bolland is a great agitator and is very effective at getting at the other teams top lines and did a fantastic job against the Sedins' in the Vancouver series and followed it up quieting the powerful forwards of the San Jose Sharks. Bolland is also the teams best penalty killer and has even put in a few big goals to help the Hawks move on. Another veteran that will be used for defensive purposes is John Madden, who like Ian Laperriere of the Flyers, is the kind of player every championship team needs. They are the kind of players that lay it all on the line and will do anything to win.

Depth
      In order to make it to this point in the year you have to have scoring depth and both teams have just that. The Blackhawks get scoring from lines other than their top group with guys like Marian Hossa, Patrick Sharp, Kris Verteeg and Andrew Ladd. The Hawks overpowered the Predators, Canucks and Sharks but the Flyers can also throw back four lines. Philadelphia has been getting scoring from Daniel Briere, Claude Grioux, Ville Leino and James Van Riemsdyk. The top lines will be important but possibly more important is the depth.

      The defensive depth is impressive as well for both teams. One of the best shut down pairs in the league is that of Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook. They did a great job in keeping the high octane offense of San Jose down. San Jose only scored 7 goals in the entire series against Chicago and Patrick Marleau scored 4 of them. Philadelphia has four D men that will have a large task in front of them as well. The pairs of Chris Pronger and Matt Carle along with Kimmo Timonen and Braydon Coburn have been successful thus far in the playoffs and will see all kinds of time against the many offensive weapons that the Blackhawks have.  Pronger will no doubt continue to see large of amounts of ice time and his success in his job will be very important if Philly is to pull away with the Cup. 

       When people picked these two teams at the start of the season Antti Niemi and Michael Leighton were not the goalies that were in their minds. Both goalies before this season spent more time in the AHL then the NHL. Cristobal Huet was brought in to be the goalie for the long haul last season and the play of Niemi gave him the starting job and he has been wildly successful this year. In the four game sweep of the Sharks, Niemi had two games where he made 44 saves. On the other side Michael Leighton has spent a lot of his time in the NHL moving from team to team. Leighton was drafted by the Blackhawks in 1999 and since then has not been able to stay put. His journey may be over as he saved the Flyers season in December when down went both Ray Emery and Brian Boucher. The Flyers had been struggling and then in came Leighton off waivers and he went on a great run. He again came in to save the Flyers in the playoffs and since he has been in has been playing out of his mind. In the last series alone he had three shut outs in the first four games, the series only lasted five. 

     Both these goalies are red hot and are showing no signs of slowing down. In my opinion all the match-ups mean nothing compared to this one. This series will come down to which goalie makes less mistakes. Neither of them have been on a stage like this and one of them will have to falter, at least a little. This will be a long series with a lot of back and forth play. Many people have made the "easy pick" with the Blackhawks but I don't think it that simple. This series could easily go either way and it will depend on who shows up and who doesn't crack under the pressure. 


X Factors
      For the Chicago Blackhawks the X factor is Marian Hossa. He will be competing in his third straight finals with a third different team( He has yet to win). He looks like nothing more than bad luck at this point due to his lack of performance for at least what he could bring to the table. With all the great players the Redwings have, the role of Marian Hossa was uncertain. On this Blackhawks team he seemed to shine early when being put with Toews and Kane, but who wouldn't have. Now that he is one the second line if he is able to produce more in the playoffs then in years past, it could be the overwhelming factor that brings Chicago its first Stanley Cup since 1961. 

For the Philadelphia Flyers the X factor is Chris Pronger. The Philadelphia Flyers are the third team since 2006 that Pronger has taken to the finals. He brought the 8 seeded Edmonton Oilers to a game 7 in the finals against his current coach Peter Laviolette and the Carolina Hurricanes. The Hurricanes won that one but Pronger would play a pivotal role in winning the Stanley Cup with the Anaheim Ducks. Now at age 35 he is looking to continue what has been a stellar 14 year career with another chance at Stanley Cup glory. He is logging more minutes than any other player in the playoffs and whether or not he is able to do his job of shutting down key forwards against Chicago could determine the finals. 

Flyers in 7  

Conference Finals

               There are not many words that can describe what has happened in the Eastern Conference playoffs this year. Remarkable, improbable and incredibly entertaining come to mind. The Eastern Conference looked pitiful all season long except for a few choice teams at the top. None of the lower half teams looked anywhere near worthy of a playoff spot. Yet here we are at the Conference Finals with two teams left, the 7th seeded Philadelphia Flyers and the 8th seeded Montreal Canadians.

              Everywhere in American sports television it has been said how the fact that Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby are out of the playoffs is bad for hockey. Those people have no idea what they are talking about. For the true hockey fans this postseason has been filled with surprises and what more could you ask for? I for one am very happy not to see another rematch of Penguins vs Redwings in the finals for the third straight year. This excitement is much more the case in the Eastern Conference then the West and here is why. The paths taken by the two teams remaining in the East Finals is simply amazing. The Montreal Canadians as an 8 seed had the mighty task of facing the 1 seed Washington Capitals in the first round. I for one picked the Canadians to bail out after only 5 games and after being down 3-1 in the series I felt great about that pick. 3 games later the Capitals were left wondering what just happened as the Canadians were moving on to face another superstar and last year’s Stanley Cup Champions. Sidney Crosby and the Pens would face the same fate as in yet another game 7 the Canadians prevailed against all odds. This time I didn’t make the same mistake as I chose the Canadians in 7. (They really helped me look good on that one).

         The Philadelphia Flyers were a team that had a roller coaster ride of a season after being many people’s preseason pick to make it out of the East. Injuries would be their downfall for much of the season as they struggled to even make the playoffs. Ray Emery was the starting goalie at the beginning of the season but he would be forced out due to hip surgery. Brian Boucher would be his replacement and it was quickly realized that someone else would have to come in. When Boucher too would go down to a fluke injury in came journeyman Michael Leighton. Leighton was brought in to be a part time solution until the others healed, yet with him in net the team began to win. There was once again hope in Philadelphia. Although near the late push for the playoffs, Leighton too would find himself on the list of injured goalies in Philly. By this time Boucher was back and would have to keep the team a float. The Flyers were the last team to make the playoffs as they beat their bitter rivals the New York Rangers in a dramatic shoot out. They would then handle the New Jersey Devils in only 5 games in the first round of the playoffs. In round two the Flyers met another rival in the Boston Bruins. Boucher struggled as the Flyers went down 3-0 to start the series. Then came some good news as Simone Gagne would return to the line-up just in time to help the Flyers pull off a Game 4 OT win to stay alive. Then once again came the injury news as Boucher would indeed go down with yet another injury. This would happen in the same game Leighton was activated to back up Boucher as he became healthy. Leighton and the rest of the Flyers then went on a tear as they became the 3rd team in NHL history to erase a 3-0 deficit to win a series. They also came back from a 3-0 lead in Game 7 in dramatic fashion.

                So here we are the 7 and 8 seeded teams in the East defying all odds to make it to the Conference Finals and a chance to play for the Stanley Cup. The Canadians now appear to be a team no one wants to pick against because of the play of G Jaroslav Halak. His play has already put him in the running for the Conn Smythe if the Canadians find their way to the Finals. Montreal has also benefited from the spectacular game of Mike Cammalleri, who is looking to set Canadian playoff records with his goal scoring. The Flyers now have home ice as a 7 seed in the Conference Finals, something that has never happened in the history of the NHL. The Canadians have been great on the road so home ice should mean little in this series. Both teams needed 7 games to get to this point in their last series and the Canadians have played more than anyone thus far. Montreal has been deemed the team of destiny after their performance so far and look to make it to the Finals. However, the Flyers have been so impressive and haven’t lost since getting Gagne back and seem to have an abundance of confidence in Michael Leighton by the way they have played in front of him all year. Chris Pronger was added to this Philly team to do one thing and that is take this team through the playoffs and he is doing just that. It would appear to be foolish to pick against the Canadians if this series goes seven games. Which is exactly why the Flyers must take care of business before then and I think they will.


Flyers in 6.

The Western Conference Finals will again display the Chicago Blackhawks who exploded on to the scene last year with the emergence of young stars like Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane. They fought their way to the West Finals last year only to look very young and inexperienced against the mighty Detroit Redwings. This year they look like a team that has learned from their past mistakes and are ready to take the next step. Their opponent will be the San Jose Sharks. The last few seasons the Sharks have been seemingly unstoppable in the regular season and have finished with the best record in the West. Then would then go into playoffs only to exit soon after. Their recent collapses have made them an easy target for jokes around the league. I once again had little faith in the Sharks to win the cup this year because of those faults but did think that this year they would make it to at least this point.

            Chicago is full of youthful exuberance and the line of Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Dustin Byfuglien was extremely strong in defeating the Vancouver Canucks for the second straight year in the Western Semi-finals. This team added depth and has gained experience over the last year and is looking to make a name for itself. Marian Hossa was added to this squad last offseason after making it to the finals the last two seasons with both the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Detroit Redwings. His playoffs experience will be quite valuable however in both those trips to the finals with those different teams, Hossa was on the losing end. The Blackhawks faced all kinds of criticism of their goaltending all season long and many said it was their only downfall. This was not a problem last year when Nikolai Khabibulin was between the pipes for the Hawks but they let him go for G Cristobal Huet. Huet was later replaced by newcomer G Antti Niemi, who has claimed the starting job for the Blackhawks run at the cup. They have great defense with the likes of Brian Campbell, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, and Kim Johnsson who should cause problems for the San Jose offense.

            The San Jose Sharks started the playoffs against the 8^th seeded Colorado Avalanche and survived a scare of last year’s fate. They would come up big though against the Detroit Redwings as they handled them easily in 5 games. The poor play of G Jimmy Howard for Detroit had much to do with that. The Sharks won a few close games with some great play from Joe Pavelski and also their big dogs in Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley , and Patrick Marleau. Nabokov still looks a bit shaky in net for the Sharks and hasn’t really looked great since his collapse at the Olympics that sent Russia home early. How will he play this series?

            The Chicago Blackhawks have a lot of speed that was too much to handle for Nashville and Vancouver but San Jose can match it. Both goalies don’t look particularly strong and are neither teams anchor. This series may be a high scoring affair if both teams get going offensively. Both these teams have a lot of star power as they should being 1 and 2 seeds in the powerful Western Conference.  This one will come down to which teams stars show up and which goalie is able to steal a game or two for their team. It is so difficult to choose the San Jose Sharks one year after getting bounced from the first round by an 8 seed. The Sharks finally are living up to their potential as they are in the Conference finals but the Blackhawks were here just last year and are looking for a better showing. The Blackhawks are probably many people’s pick in this one and I’m no different.

Blackhawks in 6

           

Playoff Breakdown: Eastern Conference

  With the last games of the season over the playoff picture is clear and the East needed the final day to finish the current spots.

Eastern Conference
1. Washington Capitals vs 8. Montreal Canadians
The Washington Capitals' offensive statistics are staggering compared to any other team in the League let alone the Eastern Conference. Starting at the top with Alex Ovechkin, (50 goals 109 points) who should have little problem doing what he does best in this series. This high powered offense includes Nicklas Backstrom (33 goals 101 points), Alex Semin (40 goals 84 points) and D man Mike Green with (19 goals 76 points).  This team is built to score and they will, a lot. Although being in the bottom 1/3 of the league in penalty killing may catch up with them but as far as this series goes it won't matter. The Montreal Canadians lie in that area of teams that make up the bottom half of the Eastern Conference to make the playoffs. Teams that were in the top 8 in their conference but were not in the top 16 of the league and are lucky to still be playing. Brian Gionta, Tomas Plekanec and Mike Cammalleri make for decent play but not enough to compete. Scott Gomez was a recent acquisition that has been a clear disappointment in what it could mean for this team if he was playing what his contract is worth. 57 points in 78 games with 47 being assists is average and not worth his 8 mill a year. Don't forget that number one seeds do get up set in hockey but not this time. 

Washington in 5

2. New Jersey Devils vs 7. Philadelphia Flyers
The New Jersey Devils look pretty good going into the postseason and Brodeur with another 40+ win season. The Devils finished the season beating out the Penguins for the division title and taking the 2 seed from Buffalo. Then on the last game of the season the Flyers beat the New York Rangers to slide in to the 7th spot and are the last team in the playoffs. The Flyers could have very easily not been here and have some serious questions marks in net. Brian Boucher has done well lately but this is a team that has not been successful when Boucher is behind the pipes. But when you look at the season series the Flyers have taken 5 of 6 and look to be the one team the Devils didn't want to see. This is why the Flyers went to get Chris Pronger whom the team named team MVP at seasons end. He carried an 8 seed Edmonton Oilers team to game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals in 2006. Not saying that is likely with Boucher in net but it may get them through a rough long series.

Flyers in 7

3.Buffalo Sabers vs 6. Boston Bruins
The Buffalo Sabers have won behind the incredible play of Goalie Ryan Miller and find themselves with home ice advantage in the three spot. The Sabers are not much talked about but have a goalie that can carry a team far. Derek Roy quietly scored 69 points with Tim Connolly and Jason Pominville not far behind. Boston on the other hand won their way into the playoffs at the end of the season and are looking to not be an easy out. Scoring is spaced out on this Boston team much like Buffalo but have only two 50 point players. Boston will end up with two number one draft picks to come but misses scoring from Phil Kessel. Tim Thomas has not been the same since last season but the emergence of Tuukka Rask will have him with the start even with no prior playoff experience. This series may show some surprises later but Buffalo looks to be a bit stronger and sits where Boston maybe thought they would be at the start of the season.

Buffalo in 6

4.Pittsburgh Penguins vs 5. Ottawa Senators
The Pittsburgh Penguins have an abundance of talent lead by Captain and 51 goal scorer Sidney Crosby. The team is not quite where they thought they would be at this point but no one is over looking the two-time defending Eastern Conference champs. Fluery has been inconsistent but again come playoff time he has played more time in the last two years then anyone. Ottawa Senators will miss the play of Alexi Kovalev and it's difficult to know how Elliot will play in net. The Senators do have Daniel Alfredsson and Jason Spezza both whom had good seasons but the only other notable player to have an impact on this series is Anton Volchenkov. The Pens are much more built for the playoffs then Ottawa and shouldn't have much of a problem with them.

Pittsburgh in 5