Because it's the Cup...
Simple, but a perfect tag line for the NHL's Stanley Cup Playoffs. There needs to be little explanation for why the athletes we admire do the things they do. Whether it's training camp in September, the trade deadline in February, the start of the the postseason, or all points in between, anything and everything can be explained by one answer: Because it's the Cup. All of the sweat poured onto the ice and absorbed through Reebok armor during games, practice, or even back in the training room, is all for this. All of the blood spilled from taking haymakers to the face or blocking shots on the penalty kill is the sacrifice made for one thing. It's the Stanley Cup.
How the postseason plays out, on the other hand, cannot be answered quite as easily. That's why The Hart of Hockey is here with it's 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs preview.
Season series: OTT, 3-1
Although the season series between these two clubs shows that the Senators may actually have the upper-hand on the Eastern Conference leading Rangers, everybody knows the playoffs are a whole new season entirely. Ottawa is no cupcake opponent, but John Tortorella’s Rangers will just prove to be too much for the surprising Senators.
The Rangers have the advantage when comparing all four lines on paper, and a significant advantage between the pipes. Everyone knows Henrik Lundqvist will be surefire. Brad Richards, Ruslan Fedotenko, and Mike Rupp may all fall on different places on the depth chart, but they all know what it takes to win a Cup, and they all have the drive to do it again. As far as one individual is concerned, it will be interesting to see how the young Erik Karlsson can translate his regular season success into postseason dependability on the blue line for his team.
At the end of the day, the New York Rangers will most likely just out-muscle, out-score, and out-goaltend the Senators. That’s not to say an upset will be impossible. Quite frankly, Paul MacLean has proven this season he’s a great coach capable of bringing out the best in his players and getting the match-ups he wants. But the Rangers are not playing around this season. This will not be your classic, New York City sports failure people seem to love seeing. At least, not in the first round…
Yeah, you never thought you would have netminding issues after Conn Smyth-winning postseason Tim Thomas had last year, but he didn’t exactly finish 2012 strong. His goals against skyrocketed and he was pulled multiple times during the month of March. Dare I say it, has Tim Thomas become… undependable?... again!? *gasp*
Now before you hit the panic button, the Caps have some goaltending issues of their own. Starter Tomas Vokoun went down with a lower body injury in March, which meant the hapless Michal Neuvirth had to lead them through their push for the playoffs. Neuvirth played relatively well, considering his inefficiency that Washington had to deal with throughout the year, but then during the final stretch of games, he went down with a nasty-looking lower body injury of his own. That left the Caps with Braden Holtby, who stood in as their last line of defense the last few games of the season. There’s no word on when exactly Vokoun will be back, but he was shaky and inconsistent at times during the season, too. It also needs to be said that Washington's top two forwards, Ovechkin and Backstrom will most likely be under the watch of Patrice Bergeron, who made a very strong case for the Selke Trophy as the league's most effective defensive forward.
This is bound to be a very exciting series with a lot of goals and a lot of intensity. When it is all said and done, the defending Stanley Cup Champions will probably survive to play another round. Tim Thomas’ whole career has been about rising up when people put him down, so maybe people questioning his ability going into the playoffs will provide just enough emotion to get his game back long enough to win a 7-game series.
Season series: 2-2
Devils’ head coach Peter DeBoer is going to get a good look at his former employer as the revamped Panthers have home ice in this series. Coach Kevin Dineen and GM Dale Tallon have made this destitute franchise into a playoff team once again, but unfortunately for the six die-hard fans down in Sunrise, their run will be short-lived.
With no clear-cut #1 goalie, and an atrocious goal differential (-24), the Panthers just do not have what it takes to shut down the Devils (+19) for seven games. If Zach Parise, determined to raise his value even higher going into free agency, and sniper Ilya Kovalchuk are miraculously held back from dominating this series, the Devils’ secondary guys, Patrik Elias, Adam Henrique, Petr Sykora, and David Clarkson, will be more than happy to make life difficult for the Cats’ goalies.
Offense leans heavily towards New Jersey, defense may be about even, if not in NJ’s favor, too, and as far as goaltending is concerned… never count out Marty Broduer. The Panthers’ day-old-pizza cold finish to the regular season is certainly cause for concern, as well.
(4) PITTSBURGH PENGUINS vs (5) PHILADELPHIA FLYERS
As far as the hockey is concerned, both of these teams are great. Quite frankly, it’s a shame one of these teams will be headed to the golf course after the first round, but that’s the way it works sometimes. Pittsburgh obviously has incredible depth to go along with their superstars, Art Ross Trophy winner Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby, and Marc-Andre Fleury between the pipes. As far as defense is concerned, the pairing of Paul Martin and Zbynek Michalek need to be better, but there have been some questions raised in regards to Philly’s blue-liners, too.
Philadelphia’s big-contract goalie Ilya Bryzgalov finally entered into “Beast Bryz” form towards the end of the season (before he was dinged up by a foot injury.) Moreover, his playoff record is atrocious, so despite being 31 years old he is still considered an “unproven” postseason performer. Jaromir Jagr looks fatigued, but Claude Giroux can bring out the best in any player. Top to bottom, there are a lot of players built to be postseason weapons on the Flyers’ roster sheet.
When the dust settles, Pittsburgh will prove to be just too much for the Flyers, but at what cost will it come to the Penguins’ health?
Yes, L.A. had a lot of trouble scoring goals and can be considered big underachievers if you look at their team on paper, but the Kings have got their game together since the trade deadline. Jonathan Quick is eons ahead of where he was a goalie two seasons ago, captain Dustin Brown has been on a mission since he was plagued by trade rumors in late February, and Anže Kopitar is determined to be an even more effective player in these playoffs.
The Canucks are a force to be reckoned with, though. There’s a reason they captured the best record in the NHL for the second year in a row. Losing Daniel Sedin to concussion hurts scoring a bit, but let’s face it; he wasn’t exactly setting the netting aflame before he went down, anyway. The early season trade that had David Booth land in a Canucks sweater will pay huge dividends as he may provide a little extra something on the scoresheet against a team that struggled putting the puck in the net for a majority of the season.
This is bound to be a fun 1-8 match-up, and we’ll probably see another tight 6-game series like we did two years ago.
Season series: STL, 4-0
These are two physical teams that match up well with one another. Two tight-checking, well coached teams whose roles as underdog and favorite have swapped in this year’s postseason.
A lot of experts are taking San Jose over the surprising Blues because of their playoff experience, but that may be a bit misleading. Offseason acquisitions Jason Arnott and Jamie Langenbrunner have both been key performers that came alive in the playoffs for their teams in the past, and they have the rings on their fingers to prove it. Jaroslav Halak was the netminder for the Cinderella 8th seed Montréal Canadiens two years ago. Yeah, that Canadiens team did not win a Cup, but they sure knew how to upset the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins while riding on the coattails of Halak’s stellar tending. So I think he’ll manage a first round challenge. Also, remember San Jose is always the team we've all ridiculed for never producing in the postseason, but now suddenly they have the playoff experience of the 80’s Islanders? I don’t think so.
San Jose turned up the heat late in the season to ensure they would have a place in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but St. Louis has had the burners on high all year. They’ve committed to a near-unbreakable defensive system under Hitchcock, and even if the Sharks were to find a way through, Hitchcock is a capable enough strategist to make the proper adjustments. His team believes in him, and he believes in his boys. This is gonna be fun.
If the Wings can get someone other than Pavel Datsyuk to produce offense consistently, this series becomes even more intriguing. What if Alexander Radulov proves to be the missing link the Preds have gone without for all these years? Is Jimmy Howard at full health? And if so, will Nashville have the offense to match their defense necessary to beat a team as experienced as Detroit? This series is full of a lot of “what ifs” and other questions, and that is what is going to make it so much fun to follow.
Doing my best to answer those "rhetorical" questions raised above, I say the Wings' veterans DO wake-up offensively, Radulov WILL be a factor in the offensive zone for Nashville, Jimmy Howard just is not the goalie he was at the beginning of the season, and it will be Nashville's role players like Gabriel Bourque, Paul Gaustad, and the young Colin Wilson that come up big in this series.
Prediction: NSH wins, 4-3
Simple, but a perfect tag line for the NHL's Stanley Cup Playoffs. There needs to be little explanation for why the athletes we admire do the things they do. Whether it's training camp in September, the trade deadline in February, the start of the the postseason, or all points in between, anything and everything can be explained by one answer: Because it's the Cup. All of the sweat poured onto the ice and absorbed through Reebok armor during games, practice, or even back in the training room, is all for this. All of the blood spilled from taking haymakers to the face or blocking shots on the penalty kill is the sacrifice made for one thing. It's the Stanley Cup.
How the postseason plays out, on the other hand, cannot be answered quite as easily. That's why The Hart of Hockey is here with it's 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs preview.
EASTERN CONFERENCE
(1) NEW YORK RANGERS vs (8) OTTAWA SENATORS
Although the season series between these two clubs shows that the Senators may actually have the upper-hand on the Eastern Conference leading Rangers, everybody knows the playoffs are a whole new season entirely. Ottawa is no cupcake opponent, but John Tortorella’s Rangers will just prove to be too much for the surprising Senators.
The Rangers have the advantage when comparing all four lines on paper, and a significant advantage between the pipes. Everyone knows Henrik Lundqvist will be surefire. Brad Richards, Ruslan Fedotenko, and Mike Rupp may all fall on different places on the depth chart, but they all know what it takes to win a Cup, and they all have the drive to do it again. As far as one individual is concerned, it will be interesting to see how the young Erik Karlsson can translate his regular season success into postseason dependability on the blue line for his team.
At the end of the day, the New York Rangers will most likely just out-muscle, out-score, and out-goaltend the Senators. That’s not to say an upset will be impossible. Quite frankly, Paul MacLean has proven this season he’s a great coach capable of bringing out the best in his players and getting the match-ups he wants. But the Rangers are not playing around this season. This will not be your classic, New York City sports failure people seem to love seeing. At least, not in the first round…
Prediction: NYR wins, 4-2
(2) BOSTON BRUINS vs (7) WASHINGTON CAPITALS
Season series: WSH, 3-1
Here’s another regular season head-to-head stat that heavily favors the “underdog” in this series. Washington is one of the hottest teams in the NHL right now, and Alex Ovechkin is looking a little bit more like the Ovi of yesteryear after he had to put his team on his back when their playoff hopes were looking bleak a little over a month ago. Also, the Bruins aren’t playing like the team that dominated the month of November. Boston just had too many opportunities have went uncapitalized, too many breakdowns, and too many questions in net.Yeah, you never thought you would have netminding issues after Conn Smyth-winning postseason Tim Thomas had last year, but he didn’t exactly finish 2012 strong. His goals against skyrocketed and he was pulled multiple times during the month of March. Dare I say it, has Tim Thomas become… undependable?... again!? *gasp*
Now before you hit the panic button, the Caps have some goaltending issues of their own. Starter Tomas Vokoun went down with a lower body injury in March, which meant the hapless Michal Neuvirth had to lead them through their push for the playoffs. Neuvirth played relatively well, considering his inefficiency that Washington had to deal with throughout the year, but then during the final stretch of games, he went down with a nasty-looking lower body injury of his own. That left the Caps with Braden Holtby, who stood in as their last line of defense the last few games of the season. There’s no word on when exactly Vokoun will be back, but he was shaky and inconsistent at times during the season, too. It also needs to be said that Washington's top two forwards, Ovechkin and Backstrom will most likely be under the watch of Patrice Bergeron, who made a very strong case for the Selke Trophy as the league's most effective defensive forward.
This is bound to be a very exciting series with a lot of goals and a lot of intensity. When it is all said and done, the defending Stanley Cup Champions will probably survive to play another round. Tim Thomas’ whole career has been about rising up when people put him down, so maybe people questioning his ability going into the playoffs will provide just enough emotion to get his game back long enough to win a 7-game series.
Prediction: BOS wins, 4-3
(3) FLORIDA PANTHERS vs (6) NEW JERSEY DEVILS
Devils’ head coach Peter DeBoer is going to get a good look at his former employer as the revamped Panthers have home ice in this series. Coach Kevin Dineen and GM Dale Tallon have made this destitute franchise into a playoff team once again, but unfortunately for the six die-hard fans down in Sunrise, their run will be short-lived.
With no clear-cut #1 goalie, and an atrocious goal differential (-24), the Panthers just do not have what it takes to shut down the Devils (+19) for seven games. If Zach Parise, determined to raise his value even higher going into free agency, and sniper Ilya Kovalchuk are miraculously held back from dominating this series, the Devils’ secondary guys, Patrik Elias, Adam Henrique, Petr Sykora, and David Clarkson, will be more than happy to make life difficult for the Cats’ goalies.
Offense leans heavily towards New Jersey, defense may be about even, if not in NJ’s favor, too, and as far as goaltending is concerned… never count out Marty Broduer. The Panthers’ day-old-pizza cold finish to the regular season is certainly cause for concern, as well.
Prediction: NJ wins, 4-1
(4) PITTSBURGH PENGUINS vs (5) PHILADELPHIA FLYERS
Season series: PHI, 4-2
Joseph Kony shivers at the thought of being a part of a Penguins-Flyers playoff series, Armin Meiwes has nightmares about being on the ice for a Penguins-Flyers series, and Chuck Norris gets off to the raw intensity and pure, unadulterated hatred between these two clubs. The rivalry between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia is at a boil right now, and a 7-game playoff series is sure to bring out even more disdain.As far as the hockey is concerned, both of these teams are great. Quite frankly, it’s a shame one of these teams will be headed to the golf course after the first round, but that’s the way it works sometimes. Pittsburgh obviously has incredible depth to go along with their superstars, Art Ross Trophy winner Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby, and Marc-Andre Fleury between the pipes. As far as defense is concerned, the pairing of Paul Martin and Zbynek Michalek need to be better, but there have been some questions raised in regards to Philly’s blue-liners, too.
Philadelphia’s big-contract goalie Ilya Bryzgalov finally entered into “Beast Bryz” form towards the end of the season (before he was dinged up by a foot injury.) Moreover, his playoff record is atrocious, so despite being 31 years old he is still considered an “unproven” postseason performer. Jaromir Jagr looks fatigued, but Claude Giroux can bring out the best in any player. Top to bottom, there are a lot of players built to be postseason weapons on the Flyers’ roster sheet.
When the dust settles, Pittsburgh will prove to be just too much for the Flyers, but at what cost will it come to the Penguins’ health?
Prediction: There will be blood… PIT wins, 4-2
WESTERN CONFERENCE
(1) VANCOUVER CANUCKS vs (8) LOS ANGELES KINGS
Season series: 2-2
Vancouver won the President’s Trophy for the second consecutive year in a row, but I have a feeling that this series will be far from a washout. A two seasons ago, L.A. and Vancouver had one of the greatest 6-game series in recent history, with four of the six games going into at least one overtime. Now, both of these teams are even better than they were then.Yes, L.A. had a lot of trouble scoring goals and can be considered big underachievers if you look at their team on paper, but the Kings have got their game together since the trade deadline. Jonathan Quick is eons ahead of where he was a goalie two seasons ago, captain Dustin Brown has been on a mission since he was plagued by trade rumors in late February, and Anže Kopitar is determined to be an even more effective player in these playoffs.
The Canucks are a force to be reckoned with, though. There’s a reason they captured the best record in the NHL for the second year in a row. Losing Daniel Sedin to concussion hurts scoring a bit, but let’s face it; he wasn’t exactly setting the netting aflame before he went down, anyway. The early season trade that had David Booth land in a Canucks sweater will pay huge dividends as he may provide a little extra something on the scoresheet against a team that struggled putting the puck in the net for a majority of the season.
This is bound to be a fun 1-8 match-up, and we’ll probably see another tight 6-game series like we did two years ago.
Prediction: VAN wins, 4-2
(2) ST. LOUIS BLUES vs (7) SAN JOSE SHARKS
These are two physical teams that match up well with one another. Two tight-checking, well coached teams whose roles as underdog and favorite have swapped in this year’s postseason.
A lot of experts are taking San Jose over the surprising Blues because of their playoff experience, but that may be a bit misleading. Offseason acquisitions Jason Arnott and Jamie Langenbrunner have both been key performers that came alive in the playoffs for their teams in the past, and they have the rings on their fingers to prove it. Jaroslav Halak was the netminder for the Cinderella 8th seed Montréal Canadiens two years ago. Yeah, that Canadiens team did not win a Cup, but they sure knew how to upset the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins while riding on the coattails of Halak’s stellar tending. So I think he’ll manage a first round challenge. Also, remember San Jose is always the team we've all ridiculed for never producing in the postseason, but now suddenly they have the playoff experience of the 80’s Islanders? I don’t think so.
San Jose turned up the heat late in the season to ensure they would have a place in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but St. Louis has had the burners on high all year. They’ve committed to a near-unbreakable defensive system under Hitchcock, and even if the Sharks were to find a way through, Hitchcock is a capable enough strategist to make the proper adjustments. His team believes in him, and he believes in his boys. This is gonna be fun.
Prediction: STL wins, 4-2
(3) PHOENIX COYOTES vs (6) CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS
Season series: PHX, 3-1
This series will come down to one thing and one thing only. Goaltending. Before this season, I never thought I’d be saying this, but… Mike Smith will be the x-factor for the Coyotes.
Corey Crawford has been straight butt this season (trying to keep it PG,) and has been the poster boy for consistently being inconsistent. Ray Emery is no better, either. Don’t give me any of that, “Oh! But Ray Emery is great at ho\me,” crap. He’s lucky at home, and he’s lucky Chicago’s goaltending situation is poor enough for him to even have a job (let alone a contract extension!)
Mike Smith has been shining this season. He’s exceeded all expectations, and may be proving to be the tendy Dallas thought he could be when they drafted him in 2001. He’ll have a big test in front of him, facing Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, and Marian Hossa, but if he can handle the Datsyukian deke, he should be able to fend off the ‘Hawks long enough for his offense to shell Crawford. The 'Yotes' Radim Vrbata may have had the most underrated season of anyone else in the NHL, and Ray “The Wizard” Whitney is still a legitimate scoring threat at 39.
With the Blackhawks' captain Jonathan Toews’ return date still undetermined and atrocious netminding, Smith will be able to swipe this one from Chi-town.
Prediction: PHX wins, 4-3
(4) NASHVILLE PREDATORS vs (5) DETROIT RED WINGS
Season series: 3-3
The West goes 4/4 in terms of interesting playoff series, and this one might be the granddaddy of ‘em all. The season series is dead even, but in their latest encounter, Smashville grinded the Wings to bits on their way to a decisive victory. Pekka Rinne has the Motor City sweating, and the fact that their team has struggled putting pucks in the net and stringing together wins lately doesn’t help. But if there is one thing anyone who knows anything about hockey knows to never count out the Detroit Red Wings. Ever.If the Wings can get someone other than Pavel Datsyuk to produce offense consistently, this series becomes even more intriguing. What if Alexander Radulov proves to be the missing link the Preds have gone without for all these years? Is Jimmy Howard at full health? And if so, will Nashville have the offense to match their defense necessary to beat a team as experienced as Detroit? This series is full of a lot of “what ifs” and other questions, and that is what is going to make it so much fun to follow.
Doing my best to answer those "rhetorical" questions raised above, I say the Wings' veterans DO wake-up offensively, Radulov WILL be a factor in the offensive zone for Nashville, Jimmy Howard just is not the goalie he was at the beginning of the season, and it will be Nashville's role players like Gabriel Bourque, Paul Gaustad, and the young Colin Wilson that come up big in this series.
Prediction: NSH wins, 4-3
