Welcome one and all to an annual tradition here in my section of the blogosphere, playoff predictions! The playoffs this year are sure to be interesting. Lots of questions: Can Pittsburgh repeat? Can Ovechkin match his rival from last year? Has there ever been more goaltending issues at once? Wait a minute…Phoenix is in the playoffs? And so on, and so forth. Here to help me, as always are my good friends Jeff and Troy, as well as a coin, which I do believe bested my last year.
Archive for the ‘Remixes and Collaborations’ Category
Heel Heat – Episode 6
Sunday, March 28th, 2010Welcome all to the 6th episode of the most irregularly scheduled Wrestling talk program, Heel Heat. Today, Tenacious Trav and myself, Gorgeous Glen preview the big show scheduled for today, and provide our thoughts on what should happen after Wrestlemania. Hope you enjoy.
Glen and Troy’s NOlympic Team – Part 3
Friday, January 15th, 2010…and so it ends.
Today we will compelte the final 8 rounds of the NOlympic draft, as well as state our line combinations to compete for NOlympic Glory.
Just to recap from last time, our picks were:
Trontario: F – Stamkos, LeCavalier, St. Louis, Penner, Doan, Smyth, Cammalleri, J. Staal, Lucic, Tanguay, D – Campbell, Regher, Beauchemin, G – Price, Turco
Glenitoba: F – Carter, B. Richards, Savard, Fisher, Weiss, Sharp, Horton, Neal, Roy, D – Bouwmeester, Phaneuf, Green, Robidas, Hamhuis, G – Ward
Again, Troy definitely has the advantage in offense, and made some gains in goaltending. But he is still lagging in defense, both from his back end but also from his forwards.
Which brings us to…
Glen and Troy’s NOlympic Team – Part 2
Tuesday, January 12th, 2010Welcome back one and all to Glen and Troy’s NOlympic Team. Today we are going to have more drafts and analysis to round out our squad’s.
In case you forgot from last time, here are our teams after the first five rounds
Trontario: F – Stamkos, LeCavalier, St. Louis, Penner, Doan
Glenitoba: F – Carter, D – Bouwmeester, Phaneuf, Green G – Ward
So Troy still has to take 8 forward, 7 defensemen, and 3 goalies while Glen needs to nab 12 forward, 4 D, and 2 goalies.
That brings us to the start of round 6 with…
Glen and Troy’s NOlympic Teams – Part 1
Tuesday, January 5th, 2010Steve Yzerman gave me the best birthday present I could have ever asked for. A chance to talk about hockey!!! The team was named back on December 30th, and since then a great deal of debate has started, and as usual it has been focused on who is not playing as opposed to the great picks that were made. With a host of names ranging from Green, Doan, Fisher, Ward, and pretty much anyone good who plays for Tampa or Calgary.
Instead of giving a position by position break down like I was intending, I decided to start my Olympic analysis a little differently. My hockey-hetero-life-mate Troy and I have decided to play scavenger and each take our own teams full of players that have been left over. This is going to be a series of posts, starting with today, as we both make our initial 5 picks today.
Just out of interest, we are starting with the team that was named. Any replacements made due to injury are going to be ignored, because, really, that would be a little too difficult.
In debating over this we argued about who should make the first pick and decided to have an MSN rock-paper-scissors war. It lasted forever as we both insisted on taking rock every time. Finally in the 127th round a victor was declared as Troy took…a bigger rock.
He used his first pick to take:
Glen and Troy’s Quarter Season Predictacular – Western Conference
Tuesday, November 24th, 2009Today Troy and I continue our look forward to the rest of the NHL Season. Yesterday we looked at the East, today we will look at the conference that is full of surprises. Early season favourites like Detroit and Vancouver are struggling will basement dwellers Phoenix, Colorado, and Los Angeles are soaring. Will these trends continue? Read on to find out what we think…
Glen and Troy’s Quarter Season Predictacular – Eastern Conference
Monday, November 23rd, 2009Well the season is just over 20 games old and things are starting to get interesting. In keeping with a very rarely followed tradition, my hetero-life mate Troy and I are going to try and lay it on line and see where each team will be at the end of 82 games. Because of the sheer volume of writing we did I decided to split this post in two. We’ll look at the boring Conference first today.
Stanley Cup Final Prediction
Sunday, May 31st, 2009Well here we go yet again, this time for all the marbles, three men and a coin all find themselves confronted with a mysterious bit of deja-vu. My apologies for this being posted after Detroit’s Game 1 victory, but I assure you that nothing has been changed at all, sorry but a 12 hour time difference gets in the way sometimes…
Going 1-1, upping his point total to 9, which is far below his Monkey-esque run in 2008 is last year’s undisputed Champion, Jeff…
Jeff Says: So, the third round is over and again i was wrong on another one. Carolina really crapped out. Pittsburg played pretty solid, i will admit, hard to stop both Malkin and Crosby and they were both on fire. So no worries Carolina, you played well, and had a good run. Same to Chicago, who had to face Detroit which is a daunting task at all times. They played with heart and put forth a good effort. Detroit is just to deep, and simply to good.
Also going 1-1 to bring it’s total to 11 is an inanimate object, the Chinese Reminbi.
Going 2-0, with an extra point for predicting the length of Detroit’s victory, giving him four out of six picks (with two extra points) is Troy, who is short on words this time.
Troy Says: Hey bud, I’m in.
Seriously, that’s all he had to say…
And going 2-0, with another point for Detroit’s victory, is this blog’s namesake. This brings his total up to 11, tying him with a piece of foreign currency.
Glen Says: After the best second round in recent memory, we get treated to perhaps the most anti-climactic Conference finals we could have asked for. Neither series was ever in doubt, as last year’s finalists truly proved to be a cut above their competition dominating the next big things and the team of destiny. That being said, both Chicago and Carolina should be incredibly happy for their deep runs, and both teams should be ready to do some serious damage next season.
We have decided to add to the predictions by including guesses for MVP and favourite moment of these wild playoffs.
STANLEY CUP FINALS
Detroit Red Wings vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
Jeff Says: So here we go, Pittsburgh vs Detroit part 2
This will be a good series. Pittsburgh is older and more mature. At this point in time their best two players are the best two players in the playoffs so Detroit is going to have to step up. Fleury is playing super well and the team seems to be rolling. Detroit is battling injuries so if Pittsburgh is smart they will capitalize early on this. Those players will be back eventually, so they need to win, and they need to win now.
Detroit can muster up some talent as they are deep so by no means is it going to be easy for Pitt to win, but I think they can steal a game in Detroit for sure, if not both. However, having said that, it is Detroit we are talking about and I do believe they will emerge victorious again. I think this will be a harder fought series then last year so that means a game 7 could be very likely. I think the most interesting thing about this series is the Hossa situation. It would be funny to see him lose with Detroit after having switched after losing with Pittsburgh, 
not that i wish any ill will towards Hossa as he is very good. Just would be humourous. I do believe he will get his ring though.
Prediction: Detroit wins in 7
Troy Says: My pick…
Prediction: Pittsburgh in 7.
Coin Says: Detroit in 7.
Glen Says: Here we go again! I for one am very excited to see the two teams that were unquestionably the best of the Spring go head-to-head. Everyone keeps saying that this is youth vs. experience, but that was so last year (or even last round with Chicago). The Penguins are a fundamentally different team this year.
Oddly they have been able to add by subtraction. No matter how you look at it losing Whitney, Roberts, Malone, and Hossa in exchange for Satan, Fedetenko, Guerin, and Kunitz is a loss. However, somehow the Pens are a better team than they were last year. Both Crosby and Malkin are on an absolute tear, playing with a purpose. Also add to the fact that the Penguins wingers are going well (namely the four that I mentioned), and most importantly, they are being much better coached than they were last year.
That being said, the Pens can not exactly claim to be the heavy favourites here. Despite injuries to Lidstrom, and the disappearance of Pavel Datsyuk, the Wings are still rolling along. Henrik Zetterberg continues to be the best two way player in the league, Johan Franzen is still a clutch performer, and roll players like Clearly and Helm are contributing and then some. The Red Wings very clearly have the best organization in the league, and possibly all of professional sports, but the time has come for the best two players in the world to assume their place in hockey history, by slaying the big red dragon.
Prediction: Pittsburgh in 6.
CONN SMYTHE PREDICTION
Jeff Says: As for MVP I think that Crosby will get it, even if they lose. No player on Detroit has been dominant. Very good yes, I think Cleary or Osgood have the best shot really. But I think that regardless, if Crosby has a great series he gets it. Maybe even Malkin. They have just been to good to not get it. Unless a player on Detroit absolutely steps up and dominates this next series (I am looking at you Franzen or Cleary) then a Pittsburgh player is getting it.
Glen Says: I hate to agree with you Jeffrey, but Crosby is my prediction for this. He was at the start of the playoffs, and he has been simply dominant these playoffs. That being said, Malkin has been no slouch, and is somehow underrated for reasons that I don’t fully understand. They are able to do so well because of one-another. Even if they don’t play together, one of them are going to draw the oppositions best checkers (i.e. Zetterberg and Lidstrom) and the better one plays, the more room the other gets. If it were possible to have it be a tie, I think that it should be given out, but this isn’t soccer, so I’m going to go with the Kid.
FAVOURITE PLAYOFF MOMENT
Jeff Says: As for my favourite memories….I can’t help but get chill from when Lebron hit that winning 3 pointer with 1 second left…..oops, wrong sport……umm…..I think my fondest memories will simply be the second round which had 4 series almost go to game 7 having 3 of them do that. I think that was the best hockey I have seen in a while. With the Crosby/Ovie hat trick night being absolutely amazing and Carolina’s 90 second miracle also being near the top. It has bee a great playoff run for the NHL. I still just wish St.Louis could have won at least one game lol.
That’s about it…..I would once again like to thank Glen for inviting me to do this, even though I have had a challenging time predicting it this year after my near perfect run last year.
Troy Says: I’ll go with the 90 seconds for Carolina against Jersey.
Glen Says: Damn, they stole my two choices…but I think that I am going to go with Game 2 of the Pittsburgh/Washington series. The three best players in the world on the same ice at the same time, is going to be special no matter what, but when you have two of them put on what was arguably the best game of either of their lives, both getting hat tricks is something special. To have that game get followed up with Evgeni Malkin absolutely taking over, showing that he deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as those two was pretty great as well.
But my favourite moment will be Crosby hoisting the Cup, can’t wait for it!!!
Until next time,
G
3rd Round Playoff Predictions
Sunday, May 17th, 2009Well it’s getting down to the wire. While the playoffs are technically half over, the field has been reduced to a quarter of it’s original size. After perhaps the best second round in recent memory, the next round has all sorts of potential as well. Our experts put their money where their mouth is trying to predict the next round…
Finishing a shocking 1-3 (after going nearly perfect last year) bringing his point total to 8 is Jeff...
Jeff Says: So that round went rather poorly for me. But at least all series were close and not complete blowouts. I thought Boston had it in them but clearly Carolina is playing really well and have a lot of heart and momentum. Vancouver/chicago could have gone either way. I thought Luongo would have stood out and stolen some games for them. Chicago is playing well. Detroit won a competitive series, something they have not had to do in a while. And Washington came just short. Ovie did everything he could, but in the end depth was probably an issue. So yah, did not do to well. Been a tough year to call them.
Anyways, onto round 3!
Going 2-2, with an extra point for correctly predicting Carolina’s seven game thriller is Troy…
Troy Says: It’s that time again where I make a complete ass of myself. But hey…I was perfect in the eastern conference!.
Going 3-1, with one extra point (also for Carolina) is yours truly, the 8 points currently puts him in a tie with Jeff…
Glen Says: Seriously that may have been the best second round ever. We have a shocker of an upset, an upset that almost happened, a coming of age, and well, Crosby-Ovechkin. What more could you ask for really? I’m rather for excited for a youth vs. experience match-up out West, and a brotherly showdown in the East this round…
Going 4-0, and gaining 2 extra points for correctly predicting the Carolina and Detroit series lengths is the Coin…it has a total of 10 points now, putting it in the lead…yes, we are all rather embarrassed.
EASTERN CONFERENCE
#4. Pittsburgh Penguins vs. #6 Carolina Hurricanes
Jeff Says: This is a tough one to call. It is going to be a very good series. Both teams some in riding game 7 highs and i like the match-up between the brothers Staal. I think Eric will enjoy a bit more of a favourable match-up now that he doesn’t have to hang out with Chara every shift. So he will be quite the factor in this series. Crosby is playing like an MVP and will win the Con Smyth if they win the cup for sure. This round Pittsburgh has to face a better goaltender then they did against Washington so that is going to give them issue. Carolina gets to play a less physcial team or well less overbearing team size wise so they will be able to play with speed and skills right along with pittsburgh.
Prediction: Carolina wins in 6 (or 7 since they really like these game 7’s)
Troy Says: Last year the Penguins steamrolled their way into the finals, never going deeper than 5 games in any series until they finally met up with the big red freight train. This year though the Pens are even better. Better offense, better goaltending, better defense, and more experience. I think this experience will serve them well in this series. We must not forget though that Carolina is a very experienced team as well. I tend not to think of them as an elite team but they know how to win in the playoffs. Cam Ward is now 4-0 in game 7s and although he is still very young, he’s very experienced in the NHL playoffs and that can go a very long way. In my opinion though Pittsburgh’s offense will put them over the top in this once. Also, when the game is on the line there is no one better right now than Crosby. He raises his game and puts his team on his shoulders. Just ask Alexander Ovechkin and the rest of the Washington Capitals. I don’t think this is going to be an easy series for Pittsburgh though. Carolina is always a tough team in the playoffs (just ask my Montreal Canadiens) and they never go away easily.
Prediction: Pittsburgh in 6.
Glen Says: Well, I had the Pens penciled in as champions at the start of the playoffs, and I don’t plan on changing it now. These guys are good, really, really good. They made two very good teams in Philly and Washington crumble, and on paper they should have an easier time this round than before. That being said, there is no team that has opened more eyes that the Hurricanes. Both Eric Staal and Cam Ward have upped their Olympic stock a great deal, and Eric Cole is looking like one of the best deadline (re) acquisitions ever. But, Fleury is no slouch, and well, there is that simple matter of Mr. Crosby. Sid has been unreal, notching 12 goals in the first 2 rounds (the record for most in a single playoff is 19), and he seems to have taken last years finals loss, and his early season slump personally. Make no mistake about it, this man is on a mission, and no team of destiny is going to stop that.
Prediction: Pittsburgh in 6.
Coin Says: Carolina in 5 (EDITOR’S NOTE:…ballsy…)
WESTERN CONFERENCE
#2. Detroit Red Wings vs. #4 Chicago Blackhawks
Jeff Says: Both teams come in after hard fought series’. Chicago is young and super talented and their goalie is playing well. Detroit comes in, well, as Detroit. Super skilled offensively and defensively and Osgood is good enough to keep them in any game. This is a tough series to call, or not as I have maintained all along that Detroit is going to win the cup again…as usual. So yeah, although the series could be exciting, I see no way Detroit loses after surviving Anaheim, a team that probably would have gone to the cup and won had they beat Detroit. I do wish however that Anaheim would have won because it would have been great seeing former London Knights alumni playing each other. And it would have been simply a very entertaining series overall. Plus a Anaheim/Pittsburgh series would be a great one. Well any of the combinations would be great.
Detroit wins in 6
Overall, I’m calling it, Detroit vs Carolina for the cup and Detroit winnnig in 5.
Troy Says: Although I’m not a huge Red Wings fan, I must say that there is a piece of me that thinks it’s nice to see an Original Six matchup this deep into the playoffs. This should be a very series and to this point I have been thoroughly impressed with the fortitude of Chicago’s young talent. Having said that though, so far in the playoffs the Black Hawks have played Calgary and Vancouver, two teams which have struggled big time with putting pucks in the net. The Detroit Red Wings do not have this problem. The Wings have one of the best offenses in the league and Chicago has yet to face a team with this type of talent. So far Chicago’s young stars have been great at scoring goals but in this series they’re going to have to be great at stopping goals. Detroit’s only weakness in this series will be their goaltending. Fortunately for the Wings though their offense is so good that on most nights their goaltending only has to be good – not great- for them to win. This series makes me think a little bit of the Cup Finals last year between Detroit and Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh was a great team but young and inexperienced and Detroit picked them apart. (We all know that series had no business going 6 games). I think Detroit will do the thing this year to Chicago.
Prediction: Detroit in 5.
Glen Says: With a look at the offense from top to bottom, we may just have the most exciting and explosive series since, well…Pittsburgh-Washington. If that was the battle between the two best pure talents in the league, then this is going to be a match up between the two best duos that the game has to offer, as Zetterberg and Datsyuk take on the challengers in Kane and Toews. Chicago has done a fantastic job of coming back in games that they had no business winning, and have really impressed me with their perseverance, as they are playing well beyond their years. While it is one thing to continually come back against second tier teams like Vancouver and Calgary, it is another thing to do it against the mighty Red Wings. This is a team that knows how to play well at both ends of the ice, and I just don’t see the Hawks being able to come back against a team like this. If you take away those emotional come from behind wins, the Hawks lose a lot of momentum and steam. As much as I know that the league would love a Chicago-Pittsburgh final, I think that we’re going to end up with a rematch from last year’s main event.
Prediction: Detroit in 5.
Coin Says: Detroit in 6.
But I guess we shall have to see…
Until next time,
G
2nd Round Playoff Predictions
Thursday, April 30th, 2009Greetings one and all to the predictions for the 2nd round of the NHL’s playoffs. This time Jeff, the Coin, and I will be joined by Troy, who has been seamlessly added to the logo…
New to this prediction this round is this blogs frequent prognosticator, Troy.
Troy Says: Well, I must say that after my very long sabbatical it is great to be back in the greatest blog on the internet. I like to thank both of my fans for all their support while I was away. Now lets get to the picks…
With a total score of 4, for getting 3 series right and one at the correct length is this blog’s namesake…
Glen Says: Well, it was a bit of a rough first round for me. While I knew that there would be some upsets, I called the wrong ones, as my gamble picks of St. Louis, Montreal, and Columbus failed to come through for me, while my top ranked predictions of San Jose and New Jersey failed me. That’s right, after the first round I was a dismal 3-5, with only Pittsburgh, Washington, and Chicago coming through for me.
Ahh well, there is always next round, which poses some VERY interesting match-ups, as we have the last two Stanley Cup champions coming toe-to-toe (which hasn’t happened since 1991), two tough teams that ended their regular season contests with an intense brawl, a team of destiny going up against a giant, and of course the first Crosby-Ovechkin playoff meeting. The first round did not disappoint, and the second round looks to be even more intriguing.
Going 4-4, which included a perfect Eastern Conference prediction, and 0-4 in the West is the 1RMB Coin, which had to be silenced for obvious political reasons.
Fairing much better was an actual human, Jeff, who went 5-3 on predictions, and correctly guessed the amount of time it would take both Detroit and Chicago to win, bringing his total points to 7.
Jeff Says: So the first round did not go as planned….seems every year is supposed to be San Jose’s year, and yet again they exit early. Maybe we will all learn our lesson and never pick them to win again….probably not. They did run into Anaheim that is well, a really good team with a terrible regular season record. Lets be honest, Anaheim is a power house, they slept all year and are waking up at just the right time. Poor SJ. Remember when I picked Joe Thornton to be MVP……..As for my Blues, I expected more of a fight from them. Although the series was not a blow out, I wish they could have at least won one game. Young team, they’ll be back. Philly, such a dissapointment. Last year they did wonders for me, this year, not so much. Everything else went as planned however….even if it was tight.
As for round two, there are some interesting match-ups that will have me glued to the tv for sure i think. Lets get started…..
WESTERN CONFERENCE
#2. Detroit Red Wings vs. #8. Anaheim Ducks
Troy Says: Well well well Detroit….time to face the music. How great would it be to see the 8th place Ducks knock out the defending champs….again? It would be fantastic. And the truly great thing about this is that I actually believe they have a decent shot of doing it. The play of super-rook Bobby Ryan has been great and one of Detroit’s greatest strengths (besides an insanely good offense) is playoff experience and knowing how to win the big games but that strength is shared by Anaheim as well.
Anaheim may be an 8th place team but they definitely don’t play like one.
Prediction: Anaheim in 7.
Glen Says: Well last round I was totally convinced that the Wings would screw up, and I want to pick against them so badly. The Ducks are good, don’t let that #8 in front of them cloud your view, they have a ton of talent, however so do the Wings. The last two times that these teams have met the Ducks have won, and moved onto the finals as a result. Even though it pains me to say so, I see the 2008 Champion defeating the 2007 Champion, in what should be a hell of a series.
Prediction: Detroit in 6
Coin Says: Detroit in 7
Jeff Says: Anaheim is a monster this year just like Dallas was last year. A sleeping giant that nobody really thought much of because of a lackluster series. They have all the tools to win the cup just like they did years ago. I think that they could go very far in these playoffs…..however they are facibng Detroit and will not go any farther….sorry guys……Detroit wins this one……and eventually probably the Cup again…….nuff said….
Prediction: Detroit wins in 5
#3. Vancouver Canucks vs. #4. Chicago Blackhawks
Troy Says: Well since two of my favourite teams (Montreal and Calgary) both decided that they’d rather play golf than hockey I’ve now fully jumped on the Canucks’ bandwagon. Luongo is one of those goalies that can not only steal a game, but he can outright steal a series. Vancouver had no business sweeping St. Louis in the first round but thanks to Luongo that’s exactly what happened. This is going to be a very tough series though because Chicago’s young talent is incredible and up to this point they don’t seem to be shaken by the pressure that comes along with being under the playoff spotlight.
I think Chicago is the better team here but not by a huge margin so I’m going to take Vancouver on the strength of their captain, Luongo.
Prediction: Vancouver in 6.
Glen Says: How much does the league want Chicago to be in the finals against either Pittsburgh or Washington? I am really torn on how to asses the Hawks performance in the first round, did they play well, or did Calgary just play bad? While it’s impressive that the Hawks came back so many times to win, the Flames were almost out of defensemen by the end of the series. And with all due respect to the Flames goalie, he’s no Roberto Luongo. The real test for the Hawks is how they can perform when they are down in a series, which never happened against the Flames. I just don’t see them being able to rally back after Luongo steals a game, which is bound to happen a few times.
Prediction: Vancouver in 6
Coin Says: Chicago in 7
Jeff Says: This is a tough series to call. Both teams are fast and physical and have great goaltending. They both beat teams rather easily, well, Calgary put up more of a fight, but Vancouver played well and weathered a couple St.Louis storms. Luongo seems to be hot right now so look out. I am really not sure who is going to win this one. I can only expect that each team will win their share of games. I wanna say this will go to 7 however I think one goalie will make sure that does not happen…..and I think that goalie is going to be Luongo.
Prediction: Vancouver wins in 6
EASTERN CONFERENCE
#1. Boston Bruins vs. #6. Carolina Hurricanes
Troy Says: Before I talk about this series I would like to say something to Carolina’s last opponent, New Jersey, about what it feels like to lose a game 7 with very little time left in the game …..ahem…..HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA… now you know what the 2003 Ottawa Senators feel like suckers!! New Jersey was actually WINNING with 80 seconds left! BAHAHAHAHAHA!!! But I digress…time to talk about Boston vs Carolina. I think this will be a tough series and I’m almost not sure who to go with but since Glen pays me….well….let’s face it…A LOT of money to make predictions I will do just that. I will take Carolina for two reasons…Firstly….Boston sucks and nobody likes them and Two….Cam Ward is 3-0 in game 7s and I think
Carolina is strong enough to push this series to the limit.
Prediction: Carolina in 7.
Glen Says: Easily the most difficult series to predict. Boston looked completely dominant against Montreal, while Carolina looked to be as much of a “Team of Destiny” in the first round as imaginable, seriously, who scores a goal with 0.2 seconds left, what is this basketball? Also, down by 1 with 80 seconds to play against the greatest goalie of all time, only to come back and win. That happens? Carolina’s emotional high, coupled with Boston’s lull, should propel the Canes to an early charge, which should give them at least a split in the first two games in Boston. Then, at the end of the day, it’s all up in the air from there. Both teams match up very well, with a strong work ethic, a balanced attack, and phenomenal goaltending. I think that the Bruins are going to be realyl special in no time, but I’m going to give it to the team of destiny on this one.
Prediction: Carolina in 7.
Coin Says: Carolina in 7.
Jeff Says: One of the hottest teams of the second half won game 7 in a minute and a half….what a game that was. Now they face the Bruins who are rested and well prepared. Carolina has a great team, they are playing well, and they are fast. Boston has a solid all round team that can beat you up and make you pay on the score board. I like Carolina, and hope they do well, however, I think Boston will take this series. Their goaltending is top notch and they have the scoring and defence to shut down Staal and Whitney. It could be a good series, and I hope it is, but oston takes this on. (Remember when Paul Maurice was fired as head coach by a certain team not to be named…..shucks…..he must really look back and complain about that)
Prediction: Boston wins in 6
#2. Washington Capitals vs. #4. Pittsburgh Penguins
Troy Says: This will be an AMAZING series and you know the NHL is lovin’ this! My gut is telling me that Pittsburgh will pull out to a 3-1 series lead and then blow it but these are definitely not the same teams that met frequently in the early to mid 90s. If you look overall I think you’d have to say Pittsburgh is the better team here. They have a better offense, a deeper defense and stronger goaltending. Simeon Varlomov is still an unknown at this point and although we’ve seen Fleury be shaky at times we’ve also seem him stand on his head and steal games that Pittsburgh had no business winning. In this edition of the Crosby-Ovechkin rivalry (the best player rivalry in a long time) I’m taking Crosby. I think last year’s run to the finals will really pay off this year for the Penguins.
Prediction: Pittsburgh in 6.
Glen Says: Here we have the main event of main events. Crosby and Ovechkin are going to do something that Gretzky and Lemieux never did, meet in the playoffs. Needless to say, the entire hockey world is drooling over this one. This is going to be a wide open, end to end series, and at the end of the day, it’s sad that only one of these teams can move on. All that being said, I don’t expect this series to last seven games, because quite frankly, the Penguins are too good here. Sure the Caps won three straight, and rookie sensation Simeon Varlamov has been playing great, allowing only 7 goals in his 6 games, but he never had to face Crosby or Malkin in the last round. The Rangers offense is really quite weak, and I just don’t think that he can match those numbers against the Pens. This should be a very high scoring series, but I think that Fleury has more in him to shut the door, and the Pens should be able to move on here.
Prediction: Pittsburgh in 5
Coin Says: Pittsbugh in 5
Jeff Says: This is going to be a great series to watch. Three maybe 4 or 5 of the bestplayers in the league this year are in this series with Wshington owning 3 of them. I think these two teams match up well. They both have scoring from both the forwards and the defence. Pitt is deeper but Washington didn’t finish as hig in the standings as they did because they suck. Ovie will e fired up in this series as his rivalry with Sid the Kid and Malkin will make him want to one up them. I picked Washington to make it to the finals and I am sticking with that prediction. Hoping the goaltending stands up…..
Prediction: Washington in 6.
Let’s see how this one unfolds…
Until next time,
G
