Wednesday Wrap Up

Which team that is down 0-2 has the better shot of coming back?

San Jose Sharks: I live in the Bay Area and have heard the following from Sharks fans today: "We're done", "Give the Blackhawks the Cup", "Nabokov stinks"

Easy now Shark fans. I week ago they were planning a parade down Julien Street. Here are a few things in the Sharks corner heading to Friday nights game. Chicago has struggled at home this postseason including a thumping by Vancouver in their last game at the United Center. The Joe Pavelski line which was so key in the first two rounds is bound to start producing. Finally, perhaps the real Dany Heatley may actually show up.

Montreal Canadiens: Michael Leighton has to give up a goal sometime doesn't he? Maybe the Flyer fans yelling Ole, Ole, Ole, motivated the Habs as they return to the Bell Center. This team has been resilient all year and we expect them to play with the nothing to lose attitude that helped them beat Washington and Pittsburgh. Would it surprise anyone if Halak got hot again? If we have learned something from this postseason, it is that anything can happen. Enjoy the rest of the conference finals because they are far from over.

AHL Update:

Manchester has tied the series with Hershey at 2-2 behind a shutout by Jonathan Bernier. Game 5 will be played on Thursday night.

Hamilton(Canadiens) leads the Texas Stars 2-1. Game 4 is on Friday night.

Monday Minutes

Lots went on in the hockey world this past week and I am filled with thoughts such as these:

Boston Bruins blowing a 3-0 series lead: Before this series began, most people thought that this series featured two evenly matched teams that would probably play six or seven closely contested hard fought games. Although the Bruins won the first three games, two of them were by one goal. As the series went on, it appeared the Bruins were a step slow and the Flyers wore them down. Still it is inexcusable what the Bruins let happen to them, but I am amazed by how well Philadelphia is playing right now. What is it about Chris Pronger during playoff time? Michael Leighton coming in after recovering from an injury and not playing in two months was unbelievable. I had no idea Ville Leino and James Van Riemsdyk were this good. What else can be said for Danny Briere and Simon Gagne? Looking at their roster it is evident that they underachieved during the regular season and are a team built for the playoffs. According to Philly newspapers, Jeff Carter may return for Game 3. Things only seem to be getting better for the Philadelphia Flyers. As for Boston, the future is bright as they hold the second overall pick in this years draft. They also have a solid goalie in Rask, and can dangle former Vezina trophy winner, Tim Thomas as trade bait. But they will have a long depressing summer thinking about what could of been. I think Claude Julien will keep his job, but it is certainly a dicey situation. The Bruins had trouble scoring goals all season, and it cost them this series. Miro Satan and Mark Recchi were great stories this postseason, but Boston, as most teams, need at least two top six forwards this offseason.

Pittsburgh exits, Montreal's amazing run continues: The effort from the Pittsburgh Penguins may have been the most pathetic effort in a Game 7 that we have seen in years. Perhaps, playing until mid June the last couple of seasons took its toll. Let's not forget, teams that miss the playoffs play less than over two months of hockey than the teams that reach the Stanley Cup finals. Montreal deserves all the accolades that they are getting for upsetting Washington and Pittsburgh in seven games. Even though they were blown out 6-0 last night, nobody should be writing them off. Michael Cammalleri did not appear to have as much room in the offensive zone last night as he did in the last two rounds. Look for the Habs to make adjustments, but Philly's defense is playing so well right now and their confidence level is sky high it appears that Montreal has a difficult hill to climb.

Finish Goaltenders: Like many, I was skeptical of Antti Niemi leading the Blackhawks in net. But after a 44 save performance yesterday, and watching him during the postseason, the guy is a pretty solid goalie. It made me think of all the exemplary goaltenders from Finland. How about this group that is scattered all over the league, Kiprusoff, Backstrom, Rask, Rinne, and Niemi. Not a bad group of netminders.

Niklas Backstrom signs 10 year contract with Capitals: The 22 year old Capitals center signed a 10 year, 67 million dollar contract today. Good for Washington for keeping one of their core young players on the team for awhile, but 10 years? I can't help but think of the Islanders disastrous investment into Rick DiPietro when I see clubs sign players for long durations. Still it's hard to argue with Backstroms' productivity as the center for Alex Ovechkin. As a 100 point scorer at that young of an age, the Capitals had to sign him, and if the 10 years got it done, than it's probably worth the risk.

Florida Panthers new GM: Dale Tallon, the former Hawks GM, and their current senior advisor was appointed general manager of the Panthers today. Good move by Florida, as they are one of those teams that has lots of young talent, but appears to be missing something to get over the hump of not making the playoffs. Tallon drafted Kane and Toews, and made some key trades that brought in Patrick Sharp and Kris Versteeg, but had a mess up last offseason of offering players qualifying offers too late which led to him being replaced as GM. Florida is one of those GM jobs that in my dreams, I would love to have. Beautiful weather, not a pressure hockey market, a delightful arena, and young talented players like David Booth, Stephen Weiss, and Nathan Horton. I guess I better keep dreaming!

Thumbs Up: Peter Laviolette: Along with the whole Flyers team, its amazing that this team clinched a playoff berth during the last game of the season in a shootout, and now are three games away from the Stanley Cup. Getting his team to come back from 0-3 is historic, and also after the Flyers were down 0-3 in game seven to come back is remarkable.

Thumbs Down: Pittsburgh Defense: I hate to keep harping on it, and we put the video on the website after the game, but Sergei Gonchar and the Penguins defense was atrocious in Game 7. Not the way anybody would envision the Stanley Cup Champions going down.

Western Conference Finals Preview

(1) San Jose vs. (2) Chicago

Season Series: 3-1 Chicago

San Jose Sharks breakdown: Defeated Colorado in six and Detroit in five.

These are not the San Jose Sharks of the past that have had playoff setbacks. Through the previous two rounds this team has displayed the grit in addition to their skill that is necessary to succeed in the playoffs. Joe Pavelski is playing out of his mind, and I have never seen Joe Thornton play as well at both ends of the ice as he did in round two.

Offense: Similar to Chicago, San Jose has an explosive offense led by Joe Thornton, who looked like a beast during the Detroit series. Clearly he is motivated, as he dominated the Detroit series, and silenced his critics but finally producing in the playoffs. His linemates, Patrick Marleau, and Dany Heatley, have been solid, but not spectacular. The Sharks second line is the reason that this team is different than years past. Everyone has heard of Joe Pavelski by now, as he has been the best forward west of Michael Cammalleri during the playoffs. He is flanked by Ryan Clowe(10 points), and Devin Setoguchi(5 goals) Role players such as Manny Malhotra, and Scott Nichol have been tremendous on faceoffs, and youngster Logan Couture has chipped in three big goals this postseason. Torrey Mitchell, a speedy forward, has also played well, and sometimes is shifted with Thornton. Overall, San Jose's top six forwards matchup with anyone, however they are not as deep as the Blackhawks from top to bottom. For San Jose to win, Thornton will have to continue his torrid pace as will Pavelski. The Sharks have a size advantage in this series, which could give them a good chance if they wear the Hawks down as the series goes on.

Marleau-Thornton-Heatley
Clowe-Pavelski-Setoguchi
Couture-Malhotra-Mitchell
McGinn-Nichol-Ortmeyer

Defense: The Sharks defense has a mix of veterans with Stanley Cup rings, (Boyle, Blake, and Huskins), a stay at home bruiser in Douglas Murray, a technically sound Marc Vlasic, and a surprising rookie in Jason Demers. This group will have its hands full with the speedy Blackhawks, but they do play a more physical game than Chicago's past two opponents. It will be interesting to see what combination head coach Todd Mclellan puts on the ice to defend Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane. Dan Boyle is the key, as he logs loads of ice time and supplies most of the offense from the Sharks blueline.

Boyle-Murray
Blake-Vlasic
Huskins-Demers

Goaltending: Besides one bad game each in the Colorado series, and the Detroit series, Evgeni Nabokov has certainly redeemed himself from a poor playoff last season. When he is on his game he is one of the leagues best, and on paper this is the position where the Sharks have the biggest advantage. Chicago did make Roberto Luongo look silly at times, and you know Nabokov will be seeing a lot of Dustin Byfuglien's rear end in front of the crease. However, the Sharks defense is much better than Vancouver's depleted unit. In any series goaltending is the biggest key to winning so obviously he will need to play as good or even better as he did against the Red Wings.

Nabokov-Greiss

Chicago Blackhawks breakdown: Defeated Nashville in six and Vancouver in six.

Nashville gave the Hawks a big scare in Round one and if it weren't for a late shorthanded goal that the Hawks scored in game 4, that series could of turned. For whatever reason, the Hawks looked like a much better team on the road, than at the United Center. This team is scary on offense from top to bottom, they possess two of the best defensemen in the league, and they may have found a solid goalie in Antti Niemi.

Offense: Anytime you have six players on your roster that scored over 20 goals it spells trouble for opposing defenses. Jonathan Toews at 22 years old has proved to be one of the best leaders and scorers in the league. He has amassed 20 points in only twelve playoff games, and sets up one of the leagues best snipers in Patrick Kane(7 goals). If that is not enough, the other forward, Dustin Byfuglien, uses his 6-4 250 pound frame to cause havoc in front of the opposing net. Patrick Sharp centers the 2nd line that consists of a 40 goal scorer a year ago, Marian Hossa. Hossa has only scored two goals this postseason, but if he gets hot along with the likes of Kris Versteeg, who had a strong series versus Vancouver, and the players mentioned it may be impossible to stop them. Chicago is very fast, and like the Sharks they win plenty of faceoffs, but they are not very physical. Tomas Kopecky, Andrew Ladd, and Troy Brouwer are probably the Hawks most physical forwards in addition to Byfuglien. Kopecky especially had a good series against Vancouver and will attempt to get under the skin of Thornton and Pavelski.

Kane-Toews-Byfuglien
Kopecky-Sharp-Hossa
Ladd-Bolland-Versteeg
Eager-Madden-Brouwer

Defense: Anyone who watched the Olympics this February realized that one of the keys for Canada's gold medal win, was the play of defensemen Duncan Keith, and Brent Seabrook. These two are some of the best in the game and will most likely be paired against Thornton's line. I thought Niklas Hjalmarsson has played better as the playoffs have gone on. Brian Campbell, a former Shark, who also supplies offense, and the rugged stay at home Brent Sopel, round out a very formidable defense. Keep in mind that Chicago basically shut down the explosive Sedin twins in the second round.

Keith-Seabrook
Hjalmarsson-Campbell
Sopel-Hendry

Goaltending: This was a supposed weak spot of the Blackhawks, but Antti Niemi has been solid thus far for Chicago. The rookie from Finland, has had a few poor outings, but always seems to respond well after a loss. He will drive Hawk fans crazy as he is prone to give up a soft goal, but he also has two shutouts this postseason. Chicago plays such a puck possession game that most of the time the Hawks have the puck in the offensive zone. However, the Sharks play the same way and usually outshoot their opponents. In our opinion, Niemi will have to play better than he did against Vancouver, and can ill afford to give up soft goals.

Niemi-Huet

Prediction: This is a dream matchup for hockey fans as both teams possess extreme skill, speed, and a plethora of talent. Both these clubs enter Sunday's game playing on top of their game and hitting on all cylinders. In what promises to be a classic series, I feel that the Hawks have too much offense, and I think they will be able to contain the Sharks somewhat, similar to what they did against the Canucks. It would not shock me if San Jose won, but after watching both these teams closely, I think the Blackhawks are the best team in hockey right now.

Chicago in six

Eastern Conference Finals

Montreal Canadiens vs Philadelphia Flyers

When thinking about the format on how to preview this series, I decided that I wouldn't even use a format like I did when writing about previous series. How could I? If anyone had these teams matching up in the Eastern Conference Finals (We had Philadelphia) then you deserve a job with Espn or Tsn.
In most seasons in sports, a Cinderella team and story unfolds before our eyes. In this Hockey season, we have two. It's almost a shame that one of these teams has to lose but that is how these things go.
Both the Flyers and Canadiens had to win their final game just to be part of the extra season. It was Montreal that took headlines when they ousted the President Trophy winning Washington Capitals in 7 games with a mix of heart, defense and superb goaltending. Mike Cammelleri and Hal Gill lead the way along with Jaroslav Halak. So if that wasn't enough, Montreal proved maybe that it wasn't such a fluke and took out the Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins in another 7 game series. This time Brian Gionta joined the party with Cammelleri and the Canadiens held Sidney Crosby to just 1 goal in the series.
The Flyers had a season fulled with turmoil. They fired coach John Stevens in November, lost starting goalie Ray Emery, then lost backup goalie Micheal Leighton and relied on journey Brian Boucher down the stretch. The Flyers beat the Rangers in a shootout the last game of the season just to make the playoffs. They faced a Devils team who they owned in the regular season and it carried over to the post-season as they won in 5 games. It was the first time we have seen the Devils look intimidated in 15 years. Then came the Boston Bruins. Many people were expecting a tight and even hard fought series. That happened, sorta. The Bruins won the first 3 games of the series. Although the games were close, the Bruins appeared like they were going to move on. Simon Gagne who had been hurt decided to lace them up for game 4, and the Flyers were glad he did. The Flyers had a 1 goal lead late, but Mark Recchi tied the score with 30 seconds to go to send it to OT. However, Simon Gagne deflected a pass through Tuukka Rask to avoid the sweep. In game 5 the Flyers dominated the Bruins and more of the same in game 6 back in Philly. The Flyers were on the brink of being the first team since the 1975 New York Islanders to come back from a 3-0 deficit and only the 5th team in pro sports to do so. Tied 3-3 in the later stages of the 3rd period, the Bruins took a too many men on the ice penalty and hero Simon Gagne scored on the powerplay to give the Flyers the lead to stay.

With both of these teams defying odds to be where they are, it's almost impossible to break down this series and come to a prediction that would make anyone feel 100% confident. We break down these teams head to head in the following categories.

Offense: edge Flyers, barely. The Flyers have players like Arron Asham and Claude Giroux that can score gritty goals which are usually huge in playoff series. While Gionta,Gomez,Cammelleri and Plekanic can go head to head with the Flyers best, the Montreal drop off is bigger.

Defense: edge Flyers. Hal Gill might be playing better than any defensemen left in the playoffs, but with players like Marc-Andre Bergeron being a big liability and PK Subban who hasn't seen a physical team like the Flyers, Philadelphia gets the edge here.

Goaltending: edge, Montreal. Jaroslav Halak has been going bananas out there while the Flyers are going with Micheal Leighton. Leighton played well in games 6 and 7 but hasn't played much at all in the last few months. Big edge to Montreal there.

Coaching: edge, Flyers. Peter Laviolette is probably the most underrated coach in sports. Wherever he has gone, he has won. He took the Islanders to the playoffs 2 straight years, won a cup in Carolina and brought the Flyers to the Eastern Conference Finals all in a span of 9 seasons. It's amazing the turnaround he has on teams.

Special Teams: edge Montreal. The Flyers have a great penalty kill to thwart off Montreal's very solid PP. The Flyers Power Play won't match up well with the Canadiens power play.

Home Ice Advantage: edge, even. Home Ice will be huge in this series. The Flyers fans make people watching on TV uncomfortable and the media coverage and circus that is Montreal will keep the Flyers from feeling secure on the road.

Predicition: Montreal in 7.

Montreal has the edge in one catergory that seems to be the difference maker this time of year in the playoffs. Goaltending. If Halak continues to play the way he has been playing, it will be very tough for the Flyers to win.

A Game 7 situation we didn't see coming

Philadelphia Flyers at +110 +1.5 (-275)
Boston Bruins -130 -1.5 (+235)

The Flyers will try and become the 3rd team in NHL history to come back from a 3 games to none deficit in a playoff series and win. Only twice in the history of this great game has that happened. It's almost hard to believe that with the amount of playoff series played every year and how hockey is a game where a goalie and take off and carry a team, that it hasn't happened since 1975. The New York Islanders were down 3-0 to the Pittsburgh Penguins when Hall of Fame coach huddled the team at practice and said "If there is anyone here that doesn't think we can win 4 in a row against Pittsburgh, get the heck off the ice."
I wonder if Peter Laviolette heard that story. I'm sure he has as Peter was a big part of the Islanders rebirth if you will getting them back to the playoffs in 2002 for the first time in 8 years. Al Arbour and that story probably gave him the motivation to keep his team fighting when as we look through history they basically had no shot.
But the Flyers got an overtime goal from injured Simon Gagne in game 4 that sent the series back to Boston. In Boston in game 5, the Flyers lost journeyman goalie to injury Brian Boucher and trotted out Micheal Leighton. The Bruins still couldn't score as Mark Recchi started to look his age and the Bruins weak forward unit were beaten and kept very far away from the score sheet. More of the same in game 6 as the Flyers were all over the Bruins most of the game and Leighton just had to stop the ones he was supposed to stop in order to get to a game 7.
So here we are, the Flyers have completely taken over this series and if they play the same way they have been, they will win tonight. The Bruins need to forget about everything that has happened these past 3 games and go out and play a great game. They need to find a way to get traffic in front of Leighton and be more hungry for rebounds. They won't score on skill or style. If not, the Flyers will be the 3rd team in NHL history that comes back from a 3-0 deficit. Not bad for a team that fired their coach, lost their starting goalie for almost the entire year, had to play their 5th string goalie for a period in a loss to the Islanders in early April and got into the playoffs by winning the last game of the season on a shootout.

Prediction: Flyers straight up

The most pathetic defensive effort of the playoffs!

AHL Update

As compelling as the NHL playoffs have been thus far, the AHL playoffs also deserve mention. We will periodically update the AHL playoff brackets as well, and here is how they stand at the moment, with only four teams left.

Eastern Conference Finals:

Manchester (LA Kings)
vs.
Hershey Bears (defending AHL champions)

Series 1-0 Hershey after beating Manchester on Wednesday night in Game 1 4-2. Kings prospect Jonathan Bernier made 24 saves in the losing effort. The series resumes in Hershey on Saturday night.

Western Conference Finals:

Texas Stars (Dallas)
vs.
Hamilton Bulldogs (Montreal)

Series begins on Friday night. Not only are the Habs going to the conference finals, but so is their minor league team. For Texas, Jamie Benn, who played well in the NHL for Dallas, has scored eight goals in 11 games. It appears that Hershey is the favorite to win the cup and we will be keeping an eye on how these series' progress.