Central Division Preview

Central: The central division has long been owned by the Detroit Red Wings as they make their annual march to the playoffs. In recent years the Chicago Blackhawks have given them a challenge and look to do so again this season. At the bottom of this division are three teams that could push to make the postseason depending on how things go.

Chicago

The Hawks look to rebound from a season long hangover and have retooled themselves after having to dump salaries to get out of salary cap jail. Back again to lead the way is Captain Jonathan Toews and fellow top sixers Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, Marian Hossa, and Dave Bolland. Joining them is newcomer Andrew Brunette who figures to start out on the top line with Toews and Kane, which allows Coach Joel Quinnville to put Patrick Sharp on the 2^nd line with Hossa and Bolland to spread out the offensive punch. Last season the Hawks lacked the role players that helped them win the Cup in 2009-2010, so this offseason GM Stan Bowman picked up Dan Carcillo, Jamal Mayers, Sean O’Donnell, Steve Montador, and Sami Lepisto, who along with Brunette will provide support for the stars that already glitter the roster.

The blue line features the top defensive pairing in the league with Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook. The pair had a down year last season and look to bounce back to the form that earned them spots on the Canadian Olympic team. With the departure of Brian Campbell (Florida), Nick Hjalmarrson, and Nick Leddy are the only other two returnees to the group. Newcomers Montador, O’Donnell, and Lepisto will bring experience to the group with a little bit of toughness. Leddy will be the odd man out for the most part but could find a way to crack the line up since they like the speed he brings.

In goal the hawks are young but skilled. #1 goalie Corey Crawford took charge and became the go to guy the second half of last season and they will rely on him again next season. His back up will be former Amerk Alexander Salak. Not the calmest of characters, and a little unorthodox but he does very well for himself. My favorite memory of him was watching him squirt his water bottle at the goal judge in Syracuse and clean the glass for him after the turned the light on for a shot that clearly hit the post. (1^st Cent. 3^rd WC)

Detroit

The Red Wings boast many veteran players up and down their line up and two early playoff exits have given their older players time to rest up and get hungry to make a deep run this year. The team and it’s defense is led by Nicklas Lidstrom who is back for his 20^th season in Motown. The loss to retirement of Brian Rafalski will be offset by free agent addition Ian White who will start out paired with the Captain. Niklas Kronwall and Brad Stuart team up to form a very solid second pairing for Coach Mike Babcock. His third pair will be made up from a combination of Jonathan Ericsson, Mike Commadore, and Jakub Kindl. The wings are hoping for Ericsson to finally put everything together and no longer be a question mark on the back end. Commadore is getting a chance to get back in the league after spending most of last season in the AHL. The wings are hoping he can bring some toughness to their squad. There is an outside chance that prospect Brendan Smith can make the squad and begin to take his place as their future franchise defenseman.

Up front the Wings have two superstars and a bunch of solid two way players that slide up and down the line up. Coach Babcock has the luxury of being able to roll four lines that can do damage. Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg lead the charge with offensive punch that is only rivaled by their defensive ability. Tomas Holmstrom is back for anther round of punishment in front of the opponents net on the powerplay. Johan Franzen, Jiri Huddler and Daniel Cleary form a solid second line. The rest of the forwards include Patrick Eaves, Darren Helm, Valtteri Filppula, Todd Bertuzzi, Drew Miller and Jan Mursak.

Jimmy Howard is looking to solidify his place as number one goaltender in Detroit after taking over from the aging Chris Osgood, Howard has put up decent numbers but some say the skaters in front of him have carried him. Ty Conklin the journeymen back up will be back in Detroit for his second go round. (2^nd Cent. 5^th WC)

Columbus

One of the busier teams in the offseason, the Blue Jackets are looking to get themselves back into the playoffs for the second time in franchise history. The addition of number one center Jeff Carter will help. GM Scott Howson made a blockbuster move sending underachieving winger Jakub Voracek and 8^th pick overall in the June draft to Philadelphia for Carter. This was great news for franchise cornerstone Rick Nash who has never had a real number one center on his line, and still has managed to put up solid numbers. With a premier center on his line who knows what Nash will produce point wise. Joining Nash and Carter on the top line will most likely be R.J. Umberger who has found a nice home for himself in Columbus. There’s an outside chance that veteran Vinny Prospal could find himself on the top line at some point. The second line will be made up of thus far disappointment Derick Brassard, Antoine Vermette, and Krisitan Huselius. The 3^rd and fourth lines are a mix of grinders and youngsters such as Derrick Dorsett, Matt Calvert, and Jared Boll.

James Wisniewski was brought in over the summer to take over a defensive unit that lacked an established top player. Though I don’t think he’s a real number one guy, he is an upgrade over what they have. Fedor Tyutin, and Kris Russell could see top minutes though the Jackets would prefer it was Russell since he was supposed to be the guy when he was drafted 10^th overall. Grant Clitsome, Marc Methot, and Radek Martinek fill out the defense and do an adequate job.

The goaltending is the biggest question on this squad. Which goalie will they get? The guy who carried the team to the playoffs in 2008-2009 or the stiff who has sunburn on his neck from all the red lights behind him from 2009-2011? The Jackets hope it’s the 2008-2009 model that will again bring them to the postseason. If not, then they will turn to an unknown in Mark Dekanich and that won’t bode too well. (3^rd Cent. 8^th WC)

St. Louis

The Blues could jump up the standings and into the playoff picture but injuries and failure to devleop top line talent will most likely keep them out of the hunt. The Blues brought in veteran leadership this offseason in the form of Jamie Langenbrunner and Jason Arnott, who are very solid role players that are successful in 2^nd and 3^rd line roles at this stage in their career’s. But the Blues will go as far as their home grown talent will take them. Top line of newly elected captain David Backes, T.J. Oshie, and David Perron, have all come up through the system and have great potential but have yet to show it consistently. Backes is the most proven of the three and is close to being an elite power forward in the NHL. Oshie has had problems with growing up and being in the NHL at a young age. There were some disipline issues with him and the team last season. Perron is on the comeback trail from a concussion suffered early last season. Funny how nobody talks about his injury yet we get updates on Crosby’s daily. A combination of Langenbrunner, Arnott, Chris Stewart, Andy McDonald, Alexander Steen and Patrick Berglund will form the second and third lines. There is plenty of talent and experience lines 2-4, the question is if they will stay healthy.

On the back end the Blues rely heavily on Alex Pietrangelo. The 21 year old’s emergence as a franchise defensemen made former number one pick Erik Johnson expendable and was used to bring Stewart to the Show Me State. After Pietrangelo the group isn’t flashy and could use some help. Roman Polak and Barrett Jackman bring a physical presence but lack speed to keep up with speedy forwards. Kent Huskins came over from San Jose and might get top pair minutes. Kevin Shattenkirk who also came over with Stewart can put points on the board for both teams, and Carlo Colaiacovo continues to be an average NHL defenseman even though he was drafted 4^th overall by Toronto.

The biggest question in St. Louis is if Jaroslav Halak is a real #1 goalie like he was during the 2009-2010 playoffs where he stonewalled Pittsburgh and Washington in consecutive series’ or is he the stiff that played for them last season? They hope he can return to his playoff form and also stay healthy which was a problem last season. Brian Elliot will be his backup and is best suited for that role. (4^th Cent. 10^th WC)

Nashville

This season will be the season that the “little engine that could,” can’t. The Predators magic will wear out this year and they will end up moving two out of their three star players at the deadline. My guess is they send Pekka Rinne and Shea Weber packing, and sign Ryan Suter to a long-term deal. As for the rest of the team, there aren’t many big names and not a lot of scoring. The top line is Martin Erat, David Legwand, and Colin Wilson. Does anyone else see a problem with that? David Legwand is your top center? Ouch…. After that the second line is made up of Sergi Kostitsyn, Mike Fisher and Patric Hornqvist. That line has some scoring punch but not a lot. The rest of the group is made of youngsters and grinders that Coach Barry Trotz has to develop annually to be competitive.

The strength of this team is in its approach to defense. Suter and Weber form a great top pairing and can shut down any line any time. Jonathan Blum and Kevin Klien developed into a solid second pair and might make the departure of the top guys a little easier. Veterans Brett Lebda and Francis Bouillon form the third pair.

Behind the skaters is a solid European pair of goalies. Pekka Rinne became a Vezina Trophy candidate last season and could be in line for a big raise in pay if he does it again this season. His back up is Anders Lindback who filled in for Rinne last season during an injury stint and didn’t skip a beat. Lindback is looking to prove that he can be the #1 guy if Rinne ends up getting moved. (5^th Cent. 11^th WC)

Southeast Division Preview

Southeast:

For a long time this was a one team division in which Washington was the only playoff team the division could produce. Now there are three teams that could all make the postseason. But in Sunrise, Florida and the not so Southeast Winnipeg there will not be a postseason birth.

Washington:

Year after year the Washington Capitals are selected my many to win the southeast division and the Stanley Cup, and year after year they disappoint with an early playoff exit. This offseason General Manager George McPhee brought in character veterans to help get his team over the hump. This comes after a season in which Coach Bruce Boudreau attempted to change the style of play from a full speed, all out attack to a more defensive system. But that plan failed because the Capitals were made up of too many players who are offense first, second and third before thinking of defense. Especially their top line of Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Semin, who when clicking on all cylinders can produce high point totals but forget about the other end of the rink. Semin especially has been called out by former teammates for not being dedicated enough to the team, the system and basically not caring about anyone or anything but himself. The rest of the forward lines are well balanced with some youth, finesse and grit. Probable second line center and second year pro Marcus Johansson looks to build of a rookie season in which he produced 13 goals, 14 assists for 27 points. There is talk of him moving to the top line with Ovechkin and Mike Knuble to spread out the scoring in the line up. Bringing back 3^rd line center Brooks Laich was a huge plus for the Caps. In my opinion he and Knuble are the real leaders of the team and not Ovechkin. The two big additions to the forward group were playoff surprise Joel Ward and Troy Brower who has made an NHL career for himself by playing with Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane.

On defense the Caps have a promising group. Headlined by offensive defensemen Mike Green and Dennis Wideman, youngsters John Carlson and Karl Alzner, newcomer Roman Hamrlik and tough guy John Erskine. Carlson and Alzner formed what Coach Boudreau called his “lock down pair.” Green and Wideman love to jump up and join the rush and can put up a ton of points when healthy. Hamrlik was signed during the summer to add a veteran defensemen who is very dependable and can be effective at both ends of the ice.

The biggest improvement for the Caps this summer was between the pipes. GM George McPhee must have grown tired watching his three young goaltenders fail to take charge and be a true #1 goalie, so he went out and bought one. Enter Tomas Vokun, who has been suffering in Florida the past 5 years. The kicker is that McPhee signed him for only $1.5million, which is a steal. With Vokun, between the pipes the Capitals will be tough to beat, especially if he gets hot. (1^st SE, 3^rd EC)

Tampa Bay:

Last season’s biggest surprise in the Eastern Conference looks to improve on their appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals and advance to the Stanley Cup Finals. No team is more front-loaded than the Bolts. Their top two lines are very that include Steven Stamkos, Martin St. Louis, Vincent Lecavalier, Ryan Malone, Teddy Purcell, and Steve Downie. After that there isn’t much talent for second year coach Guy Boucher and his Assistant Daniel Lacroix to work with but they found a way to make the third and fourth lines productive and a valuable asset during the playoffs. The big line of Stamkos, St. Louis and Downie is a dominant as any in the league and even more effective with the man advantage where Boucher likes to mix and match the set up. Sometimes he will have Stamkos at the point, the off wing faceoff circle, or down by the goal post, depending on what the penalty killers are giving them.

On defense the Bolts showcase top pair of deadline acquisition Eric Brewer and former 1^st round pick Victor Hedman who is starting to come into his own and fill out the potential he was drafted for. The second pair is made up of veterans Mattias Ohlund, and Pavel Kubina who provide a steadying influence for the defense. The third pair consists of powerplay specialist Marc-Andre Bergeron, and Brett Clark. Though this unit isn’t that spectacular, coach Boucher makes it work with the use of a 1-3-1, which clogs the neutral zone and gives teams fits. Just ask the Washington Capitals.

Between the pipes is 42-year-old Dwayne Roloson. A mid season trade made by GM Steve Yzerman brought in the veteran who took the #1 job and ran with it. A health nut that takes care of his body better than most players, Roloson is a young 42 and should be good to go for the entire season. Backing him up is Mathieu Garon who should be more reliable than previous back ups Mike Smith and Dan Ellis. Garon should get 25-35 starts to give Roloson adequate rest for the long haul. (2^nd SE, 7^th EC)

Carolina

The Hurricanes will go as far as Eric Staal, Jeff Skinner and Cam Ward can take them. Ever since winning the Stanley Cup as rookies back in 2006, Ward and Staal have been the go to guys for the Canes. Joined last season by Rookie of the Year Jeff Skinner the trio almost led the Canes to the postseason but fell short by one game.

Goaltender Cam Ward is a workhorse and will get the bulk of the action. He is known to only get better as the games get more intense and the more he plays. Backing him up is newcomer Brain Boucher who left the Philly for Raleigh.

The defensive corps is a solid one that is lead by Joni Pitkinen and the hard-nosed Tim Gleason. GM Jim Rutherford essentially swapped Joe Corvo for Thomas Kaberle with Boston to bring the recent Stanley Cup Champ to the South. Kaberle will pair with Bryan Allen who came over from Florida at the deadline. The final pairing is going to be a combination of journeyman Jay Harrison and youngster Jamie McBain.

Up front it’s the Staal and Skinner show. The loss of Erik Cole creates a hole that youngsters Zac Dalpe and Zach Boychuck look to fill. Brandon Sutter grew into a solid second line center last season, and new addition Anthony Stewart looks to grab top six spot along with Jussi Jokinen. Stewart, who was a major disappointment for the Florida Panthers who drafted him 23^rd overall and really hasn’t played up to his draft status. I had the chance to see him play in Rochester for the most of three seasons and came away unimpressed. Only on the rare occasion did he play like the power forward he can be and made his physical presence known. From my observation, power forwards who don’t play the body and occasionally drop the gloves aren’t effective and for the most part he isn’t effective. So basically just like I said before, the Hurricanes will go as far as Staal, Skinner and Ward can take them, and that is just shy of the playoffs. (3^rd SE, 9th EC)

Winnipeg

The newly relocated Winnipeg Jets will be racking up the frequent flyer miles this coming season. Still placed in the Southeast Division, the Jets will be fighting the effects of jet lag all season.

The future is bright for the franchise with many young forward prospects that are still in the AHL or juniors, along with some who have already made the jump to the NHL and are solid contributors like Evander Kane and Bryan Little. The Jets are looking for a break through campaign from Alexander Burmistrov who made the team last season at the age of 20. He has top line talent and put it on display at times last year. Andrew Ladd is the undisputed leader of the squad and also led the team in points last season. No offense to Ladd who I think highly of as a leader and a key member to two Stanley Cup teams (Carolina and Chicago), but it’s not a good thing when he is your leading point getter. He is best suited for 3^rd line action, possibly 2^nd line with the right line mates. The additions of Eric Fehr (Capitals) and deadline acquisition Blake Wheeler will help take some of the scoring load from Ladd and center Nik Antropov. The 3^rd and 4^th lines could have a Rochester feel to them. Free agent signees Kendall McArdle, and Tanner Glass could join Chris Thorburn and excite the MTS Centre faithful with their hard play and hustle. McArdle has world-class speed and decent hands but is injury prone which sometimes keeps him from playing physical. Glass is one of my favorite Amerks because he always shows up and does his job. He won’t score you 20 goals but he will finish his check, stand up for teammates and play solid defensive hockey. Throrbun, was once envisioned by the Buffalo Sabres front office as their future Captain and 2^nd line winger, but failure to develop his scoring touch derailed that idea. He has found a place in the NHL as a 3^rd/4^th line grinder who also sticks up for his teammates as needed. I remember one night while playing for the Amerks, Throburn started a riot against the Syracuse Crunch after scoring a goal with :01 left on the clock in the third and the score already being 7-1. Oh what wonderful memories…

The Jets have one of the best offensive minded defense corps in the league. But they also have one of the worst defensive defense corps in the league. Led by Dustin Byfuglien and Tobias Enstrom the Jets d-men look to get the puck up ice in a hurry and join the rush. The struggle for Coach Claude Noel will be to get his group to play better defensively. Zach Bogosian, Johnny Oduya, Ron Hainsey, and Mark Stuart will fill out the defensive six for Noel. Bogosian could be a breakout candidate if he can get himself back on the top power play unit.

In goal, the Jets will lean on Ondrej Pavelec who took control of the number one job last season after failing to do so the past two seasons. If the players in front of him can play any type of defense, then Pavelec could have a very strong season and put up some nice numbers. But when you are facing 35-40 shots a night, the law of averages says you’re going to get scored on. (4^th SE, 13 EC)

Florida

Now for what could be argued as the most dysfunctional franchise of all time, the Florida Panthers. The future is bright for this franchise who have picked in the top 5 the last 5 years and are loaded with top prospects all over the farm system. But this has been the case for a long time, and not a whole heck of a lot has been produced from it. The list of players that grew up in the Florida system and then left for greener pastures is pretty impressive or sickening depending on how you look at it. Jay Bouwmeester, Roberto Luongo, Nathan Horton all left to join other teams and become key players for their new teams. The list that is really sickening is the one that shows players who the Panthers drafted that have not lived up to their draft status or been a complete bust. Anthony Stewart, Rotieslav Olesz, Peter Tatieck, Janis Sprukts, Michael Frolik, and Kendall McCardle. Only since GM Dave Tallon has taken over does the future look bright again. He stock piled 1^st and 2^nd round picks like crazy the past couple years and now has a full cupboard of players he hopes can turn the franchise around. Tallon, you might remember was the guy who selected Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane for the Chicago Blackhawks prior to their cup run.

As for the present, the Panthers went on a spending spree this July bringing in plenty of solid players but no superstars. Scottie Upshall, Tomas Fleischmann, Sean Bergenheim, Kris Versteeg, Marcel Goc, Matt Bradley and Thomas Kopecky were either traded for or signed as free agents to fill out the forward lines. That’s 7 out of 12 spots that will be new faces up front. Returnees Stephen Weiss, Jack Skille, David Booth, and Mike Santorelli will need name tags as the season begins. This unit could be dangerous because there’s a lot of depth but no real superstar, which can give other teams trouble while matching up. Booth, Weiss and Upshall will probably get 1^st line minutes. The wild card in this group is rookie Jonathan Huberdeau who was selected 3^rd overall this past June. If he makes the team, he will receive top six minutes but my gut tells me, that they will send him back to juniors and give him another year to develop physically like the rest of their prospects.

Tallon, also went out and brought in some veteran players for his blue line too. He traded for Brian Campbell (former Amerk), and signed Ed Jovanovski who returns to South Beach after trips to Vancouver and Phoenix. Those two will lead a group of young guys looking to make a name for themselves in the NHL. Jason Garrison and Dmitry Kulikov are the most experienced youngsters on the blue line followed by Keaton Ellerby and last year’s third pick overall Erik Gudbranson. Garrison has a cannon for a shot and was deadly on the power play while playing for the Amerks but hasn’t quite been that guy for the Panthers. Ellerby was a 1^st round pick and for the most part hasn’t played like one, but started to improve last season. Kulikov was rushed to the NHL as an 18 year old and has been a bust, which is probably the reason they left Gudbranson in juniors last season and will do the same with Huberdeau this season.

In goal Tallon, signed Jose Theodore to be his number one goalie. Theodore had a resurgent season with Minnesota but has not been the number one guy since leaving Montreal. In truth, he is just keeping the seat warm until super prospect Jacob Markstrom develops into the all star he is projected to be. Markstrom needs another year in the minors by my judgment, because injuries derailed his season last year and also European goalies tend to struggle with the longer schedule when they first come over. Just ask Bobrovsky in Philly, and Alexander Salak in Chicago. (5^th SE, 14^th EC)

A Pre Big Ten Review

As the Hawkeyes prepare to open their Big Ten schedule against Penn State this Sunday, I decided to take a look at their warm up games so far this season. I do this on my way to Pennsylvania so lack of internet is the reason for the lack of details.

So far the Hawks have put together a 3-1 record with 2 wins over non FBS Championship Series teams.  The games against these two teams have provided some very promising performances as well as some worries. Iowa has also defeated a Pittsburgh team who went on to demolish then number 16 USF two weeks late. The lone loss for the Hawkeyes has at the hands of in state rival, Iowa State.

The up side:

The defense: Big plays haven’t been hard to find so far this year, there have been many timely interceptions as well as third and fourth down stops that have been game changers.

The line has been excellent at stopping opposing running backs. There hasn’t been a game where the opponent has rushed for significant yards yet this season. The inside play allows the secondary to be a bit more free and create the plays that they have so far.

The offense: The ability to move the ball has been present throughout the year so far whether by ground or by air. I am a firm believer that you must be able to run the ball to succeed, but I have fallen in love with the up tempo air it out offense that has been present since the fourth quarter of the Pitt game. The Hawks are now able to do to opposing defenses what is done to them from time to time; keep them on the field and throw the ball over the field.

The passing takes some of the carries off of Coker for now, allowing him to stay rested and ready for when the elements hit and the ball has to stay on the ground.

Special Teams: Special teams fall on the positive side since they have not have any glaring holes. Meyer has been solid kicking field goals despite his couple misses at Iowa State. The coverage has been acceptable on punt and kickoff returns, nothing spectacular but nothing to complain about, in this case no news is good news.

I don’t know where to put it in but the fight in this team has to be accounted for somewhere. They were outplayed for a majority of the game but hung around and played well enough late to force three overtimes before finally losing. The next week they faced a Pitt team who again outplayed them for 3 quarters. 21 straight 4^th quarter points later the Hawkeyes walked out with a win. The offense playing well enough to prompt Pitt’s coach to go for it on 4^th down just because he didn’t think his defense could stop the Hawkeyes.

The down side:

The defense: there have been far to many yards given up this year overall to be comfortable facing a more explosive offense such as Michigan, Wisconsin, or any of the other perennial powers in the big ten.

Containing the quarterback is another issue the defense has had this year, specifically the Iowa state game. During the course of the game and the three overtimes there were way to many opportunities to force and third or fourth and long or to force a punt where the quarterback escaped the pressure and picked up the first down. The coverage has been good and the opportunities to create the play have been as well, all to be lost when the containment is broken.

The offense: probably the best down side you can have is that the only concern for the Hawkeyes so far on offense has been their depth. The wide receivers core has proven to be much more solid then anyone anticipated in the pre season. Marvin McNutt is only 2 touchdowns away from the school record; Keenan Davis and freshman Kevonte Martin-Manley have stood out as the top receivers so far. The down side is at running back where the reserves behind sophomore Macrus Coker are thin. Freshman Mika’il McCall, who was initially Cokers backup, went down with a broken leg in the first week and no one has been highly noticed since.  The quarterback position will also be thin for the next two weeks as freshman A.J. Derby was suspended two games for a drunken incident in Iowa City last week. I’m very surprised the suspension was only two games based on the history of discipline at Iowa.

Looking Ahead:

The way I see it, this week is going to be an indicator of what is to come for the season. Penn State appears to be a middle of the pack Big 10 team with a growing offense and an average defense.  If the Hawkeyes can continue their winning ways in College Park the big ten schedule will be off to a good start. A loss could be the sign of trouble.  The key to the game to me is the containment of the quarterback. I believe the offense has enough power to stay in the game and the leaders in the secondary can make plays on the receivers. Making stops when they need to be made is what will change the game.

Atlantic Divison

Atlantic: Quite possibly the toughest division in hockey is the Atlantic Division. With four teams who could be in the hunt for a playoff spot, there is very little room for error in this highly competitive division.

Penguins:

With or without Sidney Crosby the Pens are number one. With Crosby they are as deep as any team in the league especially down the middle. I don’t have to say much more than Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Jordan Staal. Even without Crosby who is still battling post concussion syndrome, the Penguins can slide Jason Williams into the 3^rd line center slot and still have a very formidable punch. The addition of young power forward James Neal at last years deadline was a brilliant move by GM Ray Shero. Neal in my opinion plays a similar style to former NHL star Bill Guerin who enjoyed a resurgence while playing with Crosby. If Crosby is healthy I look for Neal to have a monster year. Another quiet move that I think will pay off is the addition of veteran winger Steve Sullivan. This guy is always productive when healthy and that was on teams without a lot of support (Nashville, and Chicago before they won the cup). On a side note the Pens went out and signed tough guy and former Amerk Steve MacIntyre to protect the assets. Let me tell you I have never seen such a monster of a man. No steroids here folks just good old fashioned western Canada farm muscle. He also is quite the character. While in Rochester, he asked the owner Curt Styres if he could drive the owners Ford F-650 around town to boost awareness for the team. The truck is bright orange and had the Amerks logo on it. MacIntyre told Styres he would go around town and sign autographs and take pictures with fans that recognized him. Time to get back on track.

Kris Letang is an emerging star on defense. 50 points last season is impressive considering he didn’t have Sid the Kid or Geno to feed the puck to while on the mad advantage. Joining Letang to form a solid top four are tough stay at homer Brooks Orpik, Zbynek Michalek, and Paul Martin. The M and M boys both enjoyed their first seasons in steel town. The last pairing will be filled out by a combination of tough guy Deryk Engelland, sophomore Ben Lovejoy who some of you might remember for having a swelled up face during HBO’s 24/7, and Matt Niskanen who came over with Neal at the deadline.

The crease is protected by Brent Johnson’s right cross. Just ask Rick DiPietro how good it is. Anyhow, the number one guy in Pittsburgh is Marc-Andre Fleury. The flower had a slow start last season but managed to turn it around and get his team into the playoffs without Crosby or Malkin.

The biggest reason I think the Pens will be #1 is the man behind the bench. I don’t think there is a coach with a better feel for his team than Dan Bylsma. He knows what buttons to push and when to push them. He will be an annual nominee for the Jack Adams Trophy as the years go by. (1^st Atl, 1^st EC)

Rangers:

Some would fans seem to think that signing the biggest name in the free agency market means you’re going to win the following June. Does that sound like a New York fan for any sport? Want to know where the most outrageous fans in all of sports they are? Look to the Big Apple. One day they think they have the best team in the world, the next day they are a bunch of losers. Anyhow, there is reason for Rangers’ fans to be excited this season. The addition of Brad Richards is huge for a team who’s been looking for a #1 center since Mark Messier left. Though Richards has a bit of an injury history he is a proven leader and playoff performer. Not to mention he has a successful past with Coach John Tortarella. Who by the way cut his teeth behind the bench in Rochester winning the Calder Cup in 1996. Torts is known as a no nonsense coach who demands a high effort level from his players.

No one on the roster exemplifies hard work and determination better than newly elected captain and Ryan Callahan who by the way is from…. you guessed it Rochester! That makes two Rochester natives to be named Captain of Original Six teams. Not failing to mention that Dustin Brown the LA Kings Captain is also from Ithaca, NY. Callahan is the undisputed leader of the Blueshirts and is the correct choice to wear the “C.” To go along with Ricahrds and Callahan the NYR possess Otto’s favorite player, Marian Gaborik who has enjoyed his first two seasons in blue after coming over from Minnesota. The problem with Gaborik is that he is very injury prone. When healthy he can be a top five, point producer in the league and game changer. Joining Richards and Gaborik on the top line will most likely be Wojtek Wolski who didn’t produce as expected in his first season with the club. On the second line will be Callahan, Brandon Dubinksy and most likely second year player Derek Stepan. The rest of the forwards include grinders and guys who put in an honest effort each night.

The biggest concern for the club is the lack of depth on defense. Marc Staal and Dan Girardi are a solid top pair but after that it’s pretty rough. Youngsters Michael Del Zotto, Michael Sauer, and Ryan McDonagh look to hold off up and coming prospect Tim Erixon who the Rangers picked up from Calgary after he refused to sign with the Flames.

The Madison Square Garden faithful love to chant “Henry! Henry! Henry!” to show their love for one of the world’s best net minders Henrik Lundqvist. King Henry put up another solid season in the Garden and looks to get back into Vezina contention. Former Amerk Martin Biron will back him up, who by the way is one of the nicest guys you will ever meet. Even though he hasn’t played in Buffalo for five years he still makes his home in the city and is a regular contributor to many charity functions in the city.

Overall the Rangers will make this year’s playoffs as long as Richards and Gaborik stay healthy. If King Henry can get hot late, this team could be a cup contender. (2^nd Atl, 4^th EC)

Flyers:

Coming to ABC this fall, Extreme NHL Franchise Makeover, starring the Philadelphia Flyers. Gone are franchise cornerstones Jeff Carter and former Captain Mike Richards, in are a boat load of new faces and one super old one.

GM Paul Holmgren grew tired of watching the carousel of goaltenders on his roster not perform to an adequate level and be the main reason his team was knocked out of the playoffs the past two seasons. To fix that problem, Holmgren traded for the negotiating rights to soon to be free agent Ilya Bryzgalov. But since the GM was already bogged down with several long-term deals to skaters he needed to free up some cap space to sign his soon to be franchise goaltender. To start, he sent Carter to Columbus for the #8 pick in the draft who turned out to be Sean Couturier (formerly ranked the top prospect overall by The Hockey News), 3^rd round pick (Nick Cousins) and Jakub Voracek who was a highly touted prospect for Columbus but hasn’t produced at the NHL level. To be honest whom for Columbus has? I mean seriously, has there been a worse team at drafting a developing players than the Blue Jackets? Other than Rick Nash there isn’t a player I can think of and I’ve seen a lot of their prospects play for the Syracuse Crunch. Sorry for the tangent, now back to our original programming…

Not many in the hockey world were shocked when the news of the Carter to Columbus trade broke because everyone kind of assumed he would be the odd man out. But the trade that did surprise the league was the deal that sent Captain Mike Richards to the LA Kings for top prospect in all of hockey Brayden Schenn, power forward Wayne Simmonds, and LA’s next to 2^nd round picks. It was rumored that Carter and Richards were enjoying life away from the rink a little too much and that it became a distraction in the locker room. Other additions to the Broad Street Bullies include Max Talbot (Penguins), Andreas Lilja (Ducks), and 39 year old Jaromir Jagr. Coming back from playing in the KHL the past two seasons, Jagr is looking forward to the opportunity to possible be on a line with Claude Giroux and Danny Briere. Also amongst the forwards in the top six is breakout candidate James VanRiemsdyk, who was the Flyers best skater in last year’s postseason.

The Bullies defense core is lead by Chris Pronger who was named Captain after the departure of Mike Richards. There are questions about Pronger’s ability to be as effective as he used to be for an entire season. The wear and tear from playing a physical style his whole career seems to be catching up with him. Pronger along with Braydon Coburn, Matt Carle, Lilja, Kimmo Timonen and Andreas Meszaros form a very solid group 1-6. As long as Pronger can keep himself in the lineup the Flyers has the defensive unit to get them back into the postseason.

As mentioned before, the GM Paul Homgren is turning over the crease to free agent acquisition Ilya Bryzgalov. After signing a huge contract for $51 Million over 9 years, Bryzgalov needs to develop tough skin especially if he and the team get off to a slow start. Backing up Bryzgalov will be fellow Russian, Sergi Bobrovsky. Bob as he is known around the league came out of no where last season to become the teams number one goalie earning 28 wins but flamed out down the stretch due to fatigue from not being used to playing so many games. (3^rd Atl, 5^th EC)

Devils:

A new coach, an aging goaltender, and recovering superstar. New Jersey is a very intriguing team to me for many reasons. First they didn’t make any significant moves in the offseason, which to me says the GM Lou Lamoriello thinks his team is better than it showed last season. A healthy Zach Parise will be much like a free agent signing since he missed all but 13 games last season. A top line of Praise, Patrick Elias and Ilya Kovalchuck will be a dangerous one with Elias’ passing ability, Parise’s great two way play and Kovalchuck’s deadly shot. After that trio there isn’t much. Center Travis Zajac could see time with Parise and Kovalchuck but disappointed last season being a -6 and only 44 points despite being Kovalchuck’s main pivot.

As usual, with the Devils there aren’t many big names on defense, just steady as she goes players. Adam Larsson, the #4 pick overall in this years draft might make the club out of camp and has been described as “the Swedish Scott Stevens.” I don’t believe it. Though he may be tougher than most Swedish defensemen, there is no way he is Scott Stevens’ tough. If Larsson can make the roster then he would most likely be paired with Henrik Tallinder who enjoyed his first season in New Jersey. 2^nd pairing of Andy Greene and Anton Volchenkov is an OK pairing but nothing to write home about, and the 3^rd pair is just plain ugly and could be a combination of guy even I haven’t heard of.

The aging Martin Broduer is back for another season. New coach Peter DeBoer has to figure out the right workload for Broduer to be successful and last the entire season. The problem with giving Broduer nights off means that Johan Hedberg has to play and though he is a capable back up, he doesn’t give the team the same chance to win as Broduer. This team is a couple defensemen and a winger away from being a playoff team. (4^th Atl, 11^th EC)

Islanders:

There’s reason for hope on the Island in 2011-2012. Franchise center John Tavares signed a long-term deal as did future Captain and power forward Kyle Okposo and late bloomer Michael Grabner. Grabner enjoyed a breakout season potting 34 goals that Florida apparently didn’t need. Talk about a bonehead move by Dale Tallon. Trade for a guy from Vancouver don’t give him a fair shot to making the roster, place him on waivers and then watch him score 34 goals for the Islanders. Anyhow, these three forwards along with 19-year-old Nino Niederreiter, solid two play pivot Frans Nielsen and sniper Matt Moulson give coach Jack Capuano a potentially potent top six. After the top six there is some work to be done, and GM Garth Snow started to improve that with the addition of Rochester Native Marty Reasoner and veteran winger Brian Rolston (his brother is now the Amerks’ Head Coach). Josh Bailey and Blake Comeau combine with a bunch of grinders and no names to fill out the forward lines.

On defense Mark Streit who was recently named captain is the beginning and the end for talented defensemen on the island. Mark Eaton, Mike Mottau, Milan Jurcina, Andrew MacDonald, and Travis Hamonic fill out the defense. MacDonald and Hamonic showed some potential towards the end of last season and look to build off of that.

The Sad to say but the defense isn’t even the worst part about the Islanders. That distinction belongs to the goaltending department. Owner Charles Wang probably gave away the worst contract of all time when he signed goalie Rick DiPietro to a 15 year deal worth $4.5 million a season. Especially when DiPietro is constantly injured, primarily groin and knee issues until he decided to let Brent Johnson use his face as a punching bag and received a concussion by doing so. Since they are stuck with DiPietro long term the team has brought in two goalies to fill in while DiPietro is injured. Al Montoya who was a highly rated prospect for the Rangers but never got a chance with Lundquvist in town and Kevin Poulin who was serviceable last season until he took a page out of the DiPietro playbook and missed the last 29 games with a knee injury. (5^th Atl, 12^th EC)

NHL Season Preview (Northeast Division)

Hello everyone!

This is my first foray into the blogosphere and the first time I have written something this long that isn’t going to be graded. To tell you a little about myself, I like to think I have a pretty objective point of view of the NHL since I do not have a “favorite” team in the league. I am a Rochester Americans fan who has no ties to the NHL other than the fact I live in Buffalo. I have been on the Amerks’ off-ice officials crew for the past 7 seasons, 4 of which I have been at ice level working in the penalty box which has given me a very up close and personal look at professional hockey.

Outside of hockey my other passions sports are the Atlanta Braves, and Women’s Softball Umpiring. Depending how this goes I might try posting on those topics as things arise. Now on to my 2011-2012 preview!

First up, the Northeast Division. Home of the defending Stanley Cup Champion Boston Bruins and home of quite possibly the worst team in hockey, the Ottawa Senators. This is a tough division to be in especially with the improvements made in Buffalo and Toronto.

Buffalo: Prior to this offseason General Manager Darcy Regier was known around the league as a GM who had to build a competitive team while balancing the budget. This summer his new owner Terry Pegula opened up the checkbook and boy did Darcy go shopping. The additions of Robyn Regehr, and Christian Erhoff to the back end will go a long way in improving what was in my opinion a very soft defensive core. Regehr is a tough stay at home defensemen who will log a lot of minutes for Coach Lindy Ruff who all season commented that his team lacked a “lockdown pair.” Well, now he’s got one. Regehr will most likely be paired with Tyler Myers who recently signed a 7 year extension and looks to build off of two strong seasons before the age of 21. Erhoff and his booming slap shot will help elevate a power play that I believe under achieves year after year. Jordan Leopold is a solid veteran will also see time with the man advantage and the 2^nd pairing. The third pair will be some combination of Andrej Sekera, Mike Weber, and Marc-Andre Grangani. All three of them have their share of upsides and downfalls though I think it will end up being Weber and Grangani because Sekera seems to drive Ruff crazy at times with his apparent lack of interest.

Behind that defensive core is world-class goaltender Ryan Miller. Miller had a below par season in 2010 that was partly due to injury and overuse. This year with young Jonas Enroth to back him up the workload should be much less and therefore increase Miller’s effectiveness. If he can play the way he did for team USA during the Olympics, the Sabres will be a team on the rise.

For the most part the forward lines Ruff will roll out opening night will be very similar to last season. The big addition was Villie Leino who will be moved into center ice from the wing. This is a bit of a gamble for the Sabres who are new at this free agency thing. Leino has not played center in the NHL and also hasn’t really had a full season that merits the contract that they gave him. What he does bring to the team is playoff experience and playoff scoring which the current group of forwards desperately lacks. The core of Derek Roy, Thomas Vanek, Jason Pominville, and Drew Stafford are still there to fill in top six slots with Tyler Ennis and Nathan Gerbe competing for the last spot in the top six.

Overall the Sabres improved themselves enough to win their division and hopefully make it out of the first round of the playoffs but I think they are still a #1 center away from being a cup contender. (1^st in NE, 2^nd in EC)

Boston: The Stanley Cup Champions had a very short summer and a few key losses with only a few additions. Then again when you’re the champs you don’t usually have to change that much. The loss of veteran and three time cup winner Mark Recchi will hurt especially at the beginning of the season when it’s time to refocus and start the long season again. I anticipate a let down from guys like Brad Marchand and Tyler Seguin as well as most of the squad. It is a difficult thing to get ready for the upcoming season after spending the summer with the cup. (See Chicago Blackhawks 2010-2011) The team is built from the goal out. Tim Thomas and Tukka Rask are arguably the best 1-2 punch in the league and both have been the top guy the past two seasons. Thomas is the guy for now and Rask the future. The one thing that Boston does not have to worry about is goaltending.

The defensive core is a steady as any. Zdeno Chara is an annual Norris Trophy Candidate and Dennis Seidenberg used last year’s playoffs as a breakout party and let the world know that he is a top pair d-man. After the top pair Johnny Boychuck, Andrew Ference, Adam McQuaid and newcomer Joe Corvo who was basically traded for the disappointing Thomas Kaberle. This group is well rounded and steady.

Up front the Bruins are a pretty unexciting group but an effective group. Led by the trio of David Krecji, Nathan Hortorn and Milan Lucic. Coach Claude Julien preaches a defensive dump and chase style that likes to sends his big wingers to the net hard, and make things difficult for opposing goaltenders. The question will be if Horton can avoid the concussion problems that many Bruins have encountered over the years.

As the season progresses, the Bruins will get back to the level they were at when they won to cup and end up in second place in the Northeast. (2^nd in NE 6^th in EC)

Toronto: The playoff drought in Toronto will NOT continue. That’s right Leafs’ fans your boys will make the playoffs. This of course hinges on two things; a majority of their roster staying healthy and James Reimer being a real #1 goaltender. I like what Brian Burke has done the past couple years. The lineup isn’t really flashy but has a nice mix of players. The addition of the often-injured Tim Connolly to center the top line with streaky sniper Phil Kessel will hopefully help Kessel become a consistent scorer and not just a streaky sniper. Clarke MacArthur will most likely get first crack at the LW slot on the top line but I wouldn’t be surprised if Joffery Lupul gets a shot too. Mikhail Grabovski finally had the breakout season that the Montreal Canadiens were looking for when they drafted him, except he had it with their rival the Maple Leafs…. oops. I remember Grabovski on the Calder Cup winning Hamilton Bulldogs and he had a brief playoff stint but had 11 points in 7 games before being knocked out for the rest of the championship run. He falls into the category of Amerk Killer. The rest of forward group is pretty steady with a lot of interchangeable parts. A wild card could be Nazim Kadri. If he can tap into that potential and become a dynamic scorer he’s supposed to be then he too could see time in the top six.

On defense the Leafs improved with the addition of Cody Franson and John-Michael Liles. Franson is a young up and coming defensemen who along with Captain Dion Phaneuf will form a shutdown pairing for Coach Ron Wilson, who by the way might be on the hot seat if the team gets off to a slow start. Liles will help the Leafs on the man advantage. He is a proven power play quarterback who should succeed in the less physically demanding Eastern Conference after spending his entire career in Colorado.

Between the pipes the Leafs are going with James Reimer. He took Toronto by storm the second half of last season and almost brought the team into the playoffs. It should be interesting to see how he responds to not having a veteran back up to rely on. The departure of J.S. Gigure (Colarado) has opened the door for another youngster in Jonas Gustavvson, who has been injury prone in his brief career and dealt with a bad heart condition, which cut last season short meaning the number one job, is Reimer’s to lose. With all that being said, I like the Leafs to sneak in to the playoffs. It’ll be close but I think they have enough talent and a good compete level to make it. (3^rd NE, 8^th EC)

Montreal: The Canadiens are hoping for bounce back seasons up and down their line up with the exception of goaltender Carey Price. Price had his best season in the NHL last year and almost single handedly took his team to the postseason. If not for Tim Thomas being unbeatable last year Price might have possession of the Vezina Trophy this summer. As you can imagine he will be back between the pipes for the Habs when the season starts. After finding out that Alex Auld is not a suitable back up in the NHL, General Manager Pierre Gauthier went and found what he hopes to be his backup for the next two seasons in former Avalanche Peter Budaj.

On defense the Habs look for a healthy Andrei Markov to pick up where he left off two seasons ago before he was lost for the postseason in 2009-2010 and then all but 5 games last season after a brief comeback from an ACL tear. Challenging Markov for the #1 spot on the depth chart is young P.K. Subban. This kid is dynamite. When I first watched him play against the Amerks as a member of the Hamilton Bulldogs (MTL’s AHL affiliate) I thought he was vastly overrated and a bit of a hot dog. But as I took of the Amerk colored glasses I realized how special he is. He has a quick first step, a very quick release on a heavy and accurate shot, to go along with a bit of an edge that you don’t usually see in offensive defensemen. It’s too bad that Mike Richards was traded from Philly to LA because he and Subban had a bit of a grudge with each other. Anyhow, after Subban and Markov is a solid group that includes Hal Gill, Josh Georges and Jaroslav Spacek. The 6^th spot could go to one of many prospects, Russian prospect Alexi Yemelin, Brendon Nash, or Raphael Diaz.

On the attack the Canadaiens have a bunch of nice players but no one who really grabs your eye during the game. Mike Cammalleri, Thomas Plekanec, Scott Gomez Andrei Kostitsyn, and Brian Gionta (Rochester Native!) along with free agent signee Erik Cole fill out the top six. Gomez is in the midst of what might be considered the worst contract of all time. He has done almost nothing while getting paid like a top 15 player in the league. Plekanec is a nice player but is better suited to be a 2^nd line center not a #1. Gionta and Cammalleri can be big time goal scorers and bring a good two way game but they don’t have anyone to get them the puck…. except Gomez (fail). (4th in NE 11^th in EC)

Ottawa: This season will be ugly Sens fans. Think Edmonton of the East. There is hope for the future with a core that just won the Calder Cup with AHL affiliate Binghamton but the future isn’t this year. GM Bryan Murray hasn’t done much to help his two stars in Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredson. In fact since he took over as GM the Senators have not been close to matching the success he had as their coach. Gone are stars such as Zedeno Chara, Wade Redden, and Dany Heatley and in are Nikta Filatov, Zenon Konopka and an aging Sergei Gonchar. Yikes! After Spezza and Alfie there isn’t much the work with. Newcomer Filatov will be given a shot on the top line based on his “potential” and believe me folks I’ve seen him play multiple times as a member of the Syracuse Crunch and he just doesn’t get it. He’s lazy and avoids contact almost at all cost. Beyond him it’s a bunch of young kids and 4^th liners like Chris Neil and Konopka.

Gonchar and lifetime Senator Chris Phillips lead a defense that also has young puck mover Erik Karlsson, tough stay at homer Matt Carkner, followed by fringe NHL players in Filip Kuba and Brian Lee. This group is unimpressive.

The lone bright spot might be in the crease. Murray made a slick move at last years deadline acquiring goaltender Craig Anderson (former Amerk) from Colorado. Anderson had a breakout season in 2009-2010 for the Avalanche who took the league by surprise. He can be and is a #1 goalie in my opinion. Last season was a lost year due to injuries including one that occurred during warm ups on a night he was going to be the back up. If he is back to 100% health he will steal some games for the Sens but it won’t be enough to get them to the post season. (5^th in NE and 15^th in EC)

That's it for now, I'll be back soon with the Atlantic Division preview.

Dan

Stanley Cup finals and round by round pick winner

Mine: 0-1, 9-6, (7)
JR: 0-1, 9-6 (7)
JB: 0-1, 3-4 (12)
DP: 0-1, 7-8 (11)
JG: 0-1, 2-5 (12)
TS: 1-0, 5-2 (8)
GV: 0-1, 2-5


Congratulations to Todd on being the only one to pick the cup winner. He finishes with the best winning percentage while Joey and and I both finished with the same record and the same number of games missed.

Conference finals results and picks for the finals

Current Standings(this round, overall (tiebreak):
Mine: 1-1, 9-5, (7)
JR: 1-1, 9-5 (6)
JB: 1-1, 3-3 (10)
DP: 1-1, 7-7 (11)
JG: 1-1, 2-4 (11)
TS: 1-1, 4-2 (8)
GV: 0-2, 2-4


Conference finals results:
#3 Boston vs #5 Tampa Bay
Goaltending, goaltending, goaltending....wait, what? I dont think anyone expected 42 goals to be scored in the series, i think 42 would have been a better prediction for the entire round in terms of goals scored. Even if you said now you expected a high scoring battle, I probably wouldn't believe you. But indeed that is what we got, a game with 11 goals ending in a Boston win, then two more with 8 and 9 respectivly both ending in Tampa Bay wins. Of course there were a couple good goaltending battles in there as well, the 2-0 and 3-1 wins by Boston. Surprisingly Roloson was not the starter in the 3-1 loss for the lightning. Mike Smith was given his chance after performing very well in relief of Roloson earlier in the round. The best goaltending performance of course occurred in game 7. The teams combined for 62 shots on goal but only one went in the net. The 1-0 win for the Bruins marked the first loss for Roloson in an elimination game, he was previously 7-0. The series win comes despite the fact that Boston still has not found their powerplay. They scored only three powerplay goals in this series, 2 of them coming in their 6 goal game 2. The Bruins will need some more offense to get by the Canucks but since it is the NHL playoffs, who knows what will happen.
Oh and by the way if your a NBA fan and reading this saying the basketball playoffs are better, show me a player with more toughness and desire than Steven Stamkos. The guy blocked a shot with his face, breaks his nose, he gets patched up, throws on a cage and returns to the ice, all in under 10 mins. Yeah something about a separated shoulder or a sprained thumb or ankle just doesn't sound all that tough any more.
The Picks:  
Mine: Bruins in 7
TS: Bruins in 6
JB: Bruins in 5
DP: Lightning in 6
JR: Lightning in 6
GV: Lightning
JG: Lightning in 6

#1 Vancouver vs #2 San Jose
When the end came near, the Canucks star players shined brighter than the Sharks stars, and a little lucky bounce never hurt anyone either. The Canucks continue to look stronger as the playoffs move forward, despite the goaltending of Luongo. I give credit where credit is due, he is stopping the pucks that he needs to. His method is so sloppy though, ending up flat on his stomach after almost every save, naturally to a roar of louuuus from the Vancouver crowd. In four of the five games in the series, the Sharks held the lead at least once in the game, failing to hold on and get the win in all but the third game. In the two losses Vancouver scored the game winning goal in the third period, something the Sharks struggled to do for the most part. The series clinching goal was one of the most obscure goals I have seen in a while, all the credit in the world to Bieska for being the only person (referees included) on the ice to know where the puck was and to hit the net with the shot. If the Canucks scorers continue to score clutch goals like they did in this series, they will be a tough match up for either team from the East in the finals.
The picks:
Mine: Sharks in 7
TS: Sharks in 6
JB: Sharks in 6
DP: Canucks in 7
JR: Canucks in 7
GV: Sharks
JG: Canucks in 5


Stanley Cup Finals:
#1 Vancouver vs #3 Boston (Vancouver is the "home team")
This series has the potential to match the intensity of some of the first round series that we saw this year. Both teams have a physical style with big players to back it up. By the numbers both teams have fantastic goaltending, Thomas for the Bruins and Luongo for the Canucks. I think the advantage goes to Thomas and the Bruins here though, he has been too strong throughout the entire year to pick against him now. In front of the goalies there are a whole bunch of large defenseman on both teams. I think the Bruins also get the advantage here, they have been a major part of Thomas' success throughout the season and will continue to be throughout the finals. The defense is more important for Vancouver though, they need to keep shots to the outside and control the play in front of their goalie, if they can shut down the scorers for Boston, they should have no trouble. The offense category by all means goes to the Canucks. Their stars have continued to shine through the third round and are ready to lead the team to their first Stanley Cup Championship. The key for me for the series will the the powerplay and penalty kill units for both teams. Tampa Bay was supposed to have a potent powerplay but Boston shut them down other than a 3-4 effort in game 6. Vancouver will need to keep Bostons off the board as well, they have struggled throughout the playoffs, registering only 4 goals on the man advantage. However, if the Bruins can find their powerplay their chances will increase greatly. I've picked Boston over the course of the playoffs because of their home ice advantage, now they do not have it. The advantage is now with the Canucks, ill take them in 7 games.
The Picks:
JR: Canucks in 6
TS: Bruins in 7
JB: Canucks in 5
JG: Canucks in 6
GV: Canucks
DP: Canucks in 7

Conference finals matchups and post second round standings

I'll start by posting the results for the second round of playoff picks, as well as the overall results for those who picked both rounds so far. Second round results are listed first, the total for the first and second round is next followed by the over under for the number of games in the second round in the parenthesis.
Mine: 3-1, 8-4, (5)
JR: 2-2, 8-4, (3)
JB: 2-2 (7)
DP: 1-3, 6-6, (8)
JG: 1-3 (8)
TS: 3-1 (7)
GV: 2-2 (4)
Poll: 2-1, 7-4

Here are my predictions for the Conference Finals of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Eastern Conference
#3 Boston vs #5 Tampa Bay
 I believe that this will be one of the most intense match ups we have seen so far in the playoffs. Although the teams lack the rivalry that some of the series may have had so far, it doesn't matter much when you get this far into the playoffs. Their styles are offsetting a bit, Boston is focused on defense around Tim Thomas and Chara. Tampa Bay sports a much higher powered offense with the likes of St Louis and Lecavalier up front but have found a veteran in net that has carried them on thus far. Originally my thought process was to pick the bolts because of their powerplay and the ability to stop others. Then I realized that Boston has gotten this far without having a powerplay. Tim Thomas was the best goalie in the regular season and will continue to be in this series. The high powered offense of the Lightning will get a few wins, especially playing at home if their crowd decides to come to life. However, the combination of Thomas, along with just enough well timed offense the Bruins will make it into the finals with a game seven victory.
TS: Bruins in 6
JB: Bruins in 5
DP: Lightning in 6
JR: Lightning in 6
GV: Lightning
JG: Lightning in 6

Western Conference
#1 Vancouver vs #2 San Jose 
#1 vs #2, hockey fans couldn't have asked for anything better. Vancouver looked much more relaxed in the second round despite losing a very important game five on home ice. They played close games throughout the second round, getting much better goaltending from Roberto Luongo and playing a team game. They took advantage of special teams much more than they did against the Blackhawks in the opening round. The Sharks took the path that the Canucks took in the first round, getting up three games but using the four remaining games to close it out. At times the Sharks have looked brilliant, dominating a very skilled, though injured, Detroit team for long periods of time. If their defensive game is able to keep Kessler in check the will fair well in this round. These teams look almost identical on paper, having styles that are only slightly different from one another. Both teams have excellent goalies when they are on, Niemi has answered any questions that I had about his skills. Both have excellent defensive cores and both have players fully capable of making the other team pay, both physically on the scoreboard. I will be very surprised if this series goes any less than 6 games but ill take the Sharks in 7.
TS: Sharks in 6
JB: Sharks in 6
DP: Canucks in 7
JR: Canucks in 7
GV: Sharks
JG: Canucks in 5

2nd round results vs the picks

Here is a recap of the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Along with how all of those of us who made picks did. Some clearly much better than others.

#1 Washington vs #5 Tampa Bay
I thought going into this series that offense was going to be the key, I also thought that Washington's new found defensive style was going to help them out battle the Bolts. Turns out I couldn't have been off by more.  Goaltending turned out to be the key to the series after all. Roloson continued his fantastic play, allowing an average of 2.5 goals a game but more importantly making key stops at key times. On the other end Neuvirth lacked the killer instinct that Roloson has been showing. He averaged just under four goals against per game, conceding untimely goals such as the dagger by St Louis to make it 5-2 with only three minutes to go in the third. The Bolts got timely scoring from their stars and some from those who may have not been expected to contribute on the score sheet. Defensively the Bolts managed to shut down Ovechkin and Semin in a similar way to how Montreal did so in their comeback last year. Washington seemed to lack depth in the series when it came to scoring goals. The Caps scored three goals or less in each game of the series, only tallying two on two separate occasions. The Bolts had enough to make it through each game, including one in overtime, to sweep the Caps out of the playoffs in the minimum of four games. Todd was the only one to make the pick correctly but even he thought it would take longer than it did, picking the Bolts in six games.
Mine - Capitals in 6
JR - Capitals in 5
JB - Capitals in 7
DP - Capitals in 7
JG - Capitals in 7 
TS - Lightning in 6 
GV - Capitals in 6
Poll - by a vote of 6-2

#2 Philadelphia vs #3 Boston
The Flyers made it out of the first round despite the marry go round in goal. In the second round weak goaltending and a lack of offensive power came back to haunt them. Game two was the only one that was close in the entire series. Tim Thomas saved 52 shots in that game while the Bruins won another overtime games in the playoffs. In the other three games in the series the Bruins won by four goals. Totaling 17 goals to the five of the Flyers. On a not so hot side still, it took the Bruins till the final game of the series to finally get a power play goal in the playoffs. It came on a 5 on 3 with a minute to go while the game was already well in hand. Luckily for them it still counts as one and should help take some pressure off of their power play.
The win sets up a match up against the Lightning for the Bruins in the Eastern Conference finals.
The picks:
Mine - Bruins in 6
JR - Bruins in 6
JB - Flyers in 6
DP - Flyers in 7
JG - Flyers in 7
TS - Bruins in 6 
GV - Bruins in 6
Poll - Bruins by a vote of 5-3

#1 Vancouver vs #5 Nashville
With the help of their special teams Vancouver was able to wrap up a series a game shorter than in round one but still much closer than they would have liked. The Canucks claimed three wins in the city of Nashville as well as adding four power play goals on the road on only ten attempts. The win in game six marked the 13th game in 26 games for the overtime, and pressure, tested Canucks. Ryan Kesler registered at least a point in all but game one of the series, seeming to take the Canucks on his back as they were able to out power the Predators in the end. The series was by no means a blowout as I had thought it may be. Only one of the six games was decided by more than one goal, the odd game out being the two goal win, which included an empty net goal, for the Canucks in game four. The Canucks looked far better in their series than they did in the opening round, something they will need to continue with no matter who they face in the next round. In the mean time they will enjoy their two days off and hope that Detroit forces a game seven in the other Western Conference match up.
 Mine - Canucks in 5
JR - Canucks in 6
JB - Canucks in 5 
DP - Canucks in 5
JG - Canucks in 5
TS - Canucks in 4 
GV - Canucks in 6
Poll - Canucks by a vote of 7-1

#2 San Jose vs #3 Detroit
I had started to write up a series summary after game 3, the Wings were looking broken, history tells you that it wont be done. Yet after game 6 I deleted what I had planned to post after a Sharks series win. The Sharks showed many different faces over the course of this series. The first three games they were powerful and resilient to a point. Two overtime wins over one of the perennial powers in the West. Game four showed a few faces all in one game, falling behind 3-0, overcoming that deficit, then losing late in the third. Then the Sharks of the last few years showed up. A solid third period lead was lost in game 5, the doubt began to set in from observers about how the sharks were going to take the pressure. JJR took it the furthest calling Marleau guttless, but we all know about that story already. Another loss in game six set up the ultimate winner take all in sports, Game 7. Normally when a game gets as hyped as this game 7 did, it fails to live up to its expectations. The only thing better this game could have done was go to overtime. A hard fought battle that saw both teams have their share of chances to take control of the game. It took until the final buzzer for the Sharks to wrap up the series with a 3-2 win.  
Mine - Sharks in 7
JR - Red Wings in 7
JB - Sharks in 6 
DP - Red Wings in 6
JG - Red Wings in 6
TS - Red Wings in 6 
GV - Sharks in 7
Poll - vote of 4-4

2nd round results and the picks

The second round results will be posted as they come in, possibly even game by game this round. Also posted are the picks of those who sent them to me so we can either gaze in amazement or laugh at them.
Good luck!

Western Conference
#1 Vancouver vs #5 Nashville
Game 1: 1-0 Canucks
Game 2: 2-1 Predators (2 OT)
Game 3: 3-2 Canucks (OT)
Game 4: 4-2 Canucks
Game 5: 4-3 Predators
Game 6: 2-1 Canucks
The picks:
Mine - Canucks in 5
JR - Canucks in 6
JB - Canucks in 5 
DP - Canucks in 5
JG - Canucks in 5
TS - Canucks in 4 
GV - Canucks in 6
Poll - Canucks by a vote of 7-1

#2 San Jose vs #3 Detroit
Game 1: 2-1 Sharks (OT)
Game 2: 2-1 Sharks
Game 3: 4-3 Sharks (OT)
Game 4: 4-3 Red Wings
Game 5: 4-3 Red Wings
Game 6: 3-1 Red Wings
Game 7: 3-2 Sharks
The picks:
Mine - Sharks in 7
JR - Red Wings in 7
JB - Sharks in 6 
DP - Red Wings in 6
JG - Red Wings in 6
TS - Red Wings in 6 
GV - Sharks in 7
Poll - vote of 4-4


Eastern Conference
#1 Washington vs #5 Tampa Bay
Game 1: 4-2 Lightning
Game 2: 3-2 Lightning(OT)
Game 3: 4-3 Lightning
Game 4: 5-3 Lightning

The picks:
Mine - Capitals in 6
JR - Capitals in 5
JB - Capitals in 7
DP - Capitals in 7
JG - Capitals in 7 
TS - Lightning in 6 
GV - Capitals in 6
Poll - Capitals by a vote of 6-2

#2 Philadelphia vs #3 Boston
Game 1: Bruins 7-3
Game 2: Bruins 3-2 (OT)
Game 3: Bruins 5-1
Game 4: Bruins 5-1
The picks:
Mine - Bruins in 6
JR - Bruins in 6
JB - Flyers in 6
DP - Flyers in 7
JG - Flyers in 6(7) 
TS - Bruins in 6 
GV - Bruins in 6
Poll - Bruins by a vote of 5-3