NHL Playoffs 2007: On to the Conference Finals
Is it just me, or have the NHL playoffs been a bit of a snore-fest this year. No real upsets, few exciting games, goal-scoring at a premium and obstruction and the dreaded ‘trap’ seems to be creeping back into the game….
I’m counting on the Eastern Conference Final to rescue the playoffs for me here, with what should be a great series between Ottawa and Buffalo. Both teams play a fairly up-tempo, quick skating and aggressive game, and can score (and more importantly, play to score goals). Throw in a little bit of bitterness (see Chris Neil’s hit on Chris Drury earlier this season) and all of the ingredients are there for an entertaining series. I’ve been craving a great series with all of the aforementioned elements - the Rangers/Sabres was close, but I think the Sens and Sabres can do better. I hope it goes the distance and whoever wins, it will be dramatic. Either Ottawa will finally exorcise their demons and advance to their first final (I’m not counting their bogus Stanley Cup victories in the early part of the last century), or the Sabres will advance with the hope of netting the first major sports championship in the history of the city of Buffalo.
The Western Conference? Let’s just say I can now catch up on my sleep. Both participants have played a particularly dull brand of hockey to get to this point, and I’m not expecting too much in the way of excitement. Throw in the fact that I don’t really care for either team, so basically I’m banking on one of the Eastern Conference teams to win it all. My worst fear is Detroit or Anaheim winning the cup playing Devilesque hockey, circa 1995. Bye bye “New NHL.”
Okay, the state of the game is a topic for another day. I’ve got all summer to whine and bitch and figure out how to fix it… On to the MiltonSearch.com crystal ball:
Eastern Conference
Buffalo over Ottawa 4-3
I’m soooo hoping this one goes the distance. Please let’s not have a repeat of Ottawa laying a big, fat egg like last year, including giving up the series winner on a shorthanded 1 on 3 in overtime no less. I think this year’s Sens/Sabres matchup should be better - Ottawa was the one team who owned the Sabres this year - one of the few with the quickness to match Buffalo. However, I’m calling for the Sabres to pull this one out in a thrilling game seven in fire city. Much like last year’s Buffalo/Carolina matchup - the regular season will pay off for the Sabres and the home crowd will help lift them to victory. I think they’re the better team and gee, doesn’t it just seem like it’s their year, especially after the events of game 5 vs. the Rangers: a miracle last second tying goal followed by a prompt OT winner. Just like I felt with the ‘Canes last year - I think it may just be Buffalo’s year (I feel so weird typing that). Could Brett Hull’s “in the crease” goal and Scott Norwood’s “wide right” kick be finally forgotten? Maybe. But they have to beat an Ottawa club playing tough, clutch hockey right now (again, weird). This one’s going to be fun!
Western Conference
Anaheim over Detroit 4-2
Okay, by now you know I’m less than enthused with this matchup. The Ducks are impressive, and I’ve picked them from the start to come out of the west. They play a tough, defensive style and get just enough scoring from Selanne and a bunch of good ‘ol Canadian muckers up front. I wondered if J.S. Giguere might be washed up after a poor season last year, but throw S.Niedermayer and C.Pronger out there for 30 minutes apiece every night and suddenly even John David Ballantyne, P. Eng. would look stellar between the pipes. Detroit has made it this far equally as unspectacularly, grinding both the offensively-challenged Flames and the character-challenged Sharks to a standstill. As I mentioned, I’ve noticed a lot of the “old NHL” creeping back into the game lately, and I think this series is where it needs to be snuffed out or else… I’m hoping the refs begin to call penalties the way they did last year and for half of this season. I’ve seen a lot of interference and clutching & grabbing ignored by the zebras so far in this playoff, and these two teams have been among the worst offenders - usually the teams with the least goals against are the most guilty… Anyways, I’m still not impressed by Detroit, and I think Anaheim has a little more overall toughness, especially up front, and should come away with the series victory. Quackedy bleeping quack, quack quack!
Well, that’s what the crystal ball says. Take it to the bank. Now, what do you think?
May 8th, 2007 at 1:57 pm
Capper Kresgin has predicted 3 of the 4 finalists to this point, and if not for some brain cramps by San Jose would have gone 4 for 4. Although the Thornton trade was brutal by Boston, it still shows that he just doesn’t seem to keep healthy enough / carry the team far enough year after year. I did notice that he only played a few shifts in the third period of game 6. Perhaps he just gave up, was hurt, or was so mad at the ‘lovely’ Marleau not bothering to show up for the playoffs this year. Anyways, enough SJ whining…
OTTAWA over BLUFFALO 4-2
My original prediction was an Ottawa Anaheim final so still have to stick with it. The big line for Ottawa might be slowed a bit by Buffalo, but hopefully their depth has a bit more toughness than the Fluffalos. I won $5 at work from a clown who boldly threw a five spot on the table with the Ottawa NJ series tied at 1’s and said Ottawa wouldn’t win another game. He said “one word for ya — Emery” and then Emery promptly shut out the Devils. This kind of karma makes me think it’s their year.
DUCKIES over the OCTAPI 4-2
Detroit is down to 2 defencemen now, and unlike the studs in Pronger/Niedermayer I think the Lidstrom/Chelios combo playing 30 minutes a night will kill them. Look for Penner and Getzlaf to hammer the Detroit defense and hopefully Selanne and MacDonald can wake up and score a few. Is it just me, or is anyone else tired of seeing that mug on Holmstrom smiling after each goal — yikes !!
Capper
May 8th, 2007 at 9:01 pm
Bluffalo? Fluffalos?!?
I hate to say it, but I would have been right there with your co-worker predicting an Ottawa implosion. Trust me, I hate the Devils, but it always seems like their combination of great goaltending and tight ass defensive play gives them the edge in the close-checking NHL post season. I think they may be developing a new identity though - and maybe struggling with it. I think Lamoriello wants them to play the usual Devil way, but they have an impressive offensive attack with some great young, speedy players if he would just let them loose…
Did anyone see TSN’s feature on Ray Emery and his wardrobe? Slick dude - hockey’s answer to Lenny Kravitz. I like him - a bit of a different cat. Probably just the kind of personality the Sens need in that ‘fragile’ dressing room come playoff time.
Also, did anyone see the shark, yes, I said shark, thrown on the ice in San Jose last week in an attempt to mimic the Red Wing Octopi tradition? Wicked! This big, huge, gibbled shark laying across the ice as Joe Rink Rat trots out and carries it away in a bucket for disposal. Classic.
May 10th, 2007 at 7:53 am
Here’s my feeling at this point, I think it’s Ottawa’s year, so with that in mind, here’s my picks:
Ottawa over Buf in 7.
I have found Buffalo to be a little inconsistent in the playoffs this year, so much so that I think Ottawa has this one. I know they played NYR and it was a tough opponent, but no so much more than Ottawa playing NJ. Go Sens!
Anaheim over Detroit in 5.
I want to pick Detroit, but the loss of Schneider may be too much and Anaheim is in cruise control now.
May 10th, 2007 at 9:10 am
Although I picked the Ducks, I have this weird feeling about Detroit - the way and the ease at which they’ve won makes me think they may win. I just can’t see them getting past Anaheim, but Hasek is playing like the old ‘you are never going to score on me in a million years, and I’m in your heads, you know it!’ Hasek from his Gold medal/cup finals run year with Buffalo (1999?)
Same thing with Ottawa - it seems like the stars are aligning for them finally, but Buffalo has it going on too. No way Ottawa wins a game 7 in Buffalo. No freakin’ way. If they want to win the series, it’s going to have to be in 6. Doubtful. Ryan Miller is a stud in net - best goalie in the league in my opinion.
May 10th, 2007 at 12:06 pm
Buffalo will beat Ottawa in a very tight and entertaining 7 game series. Hopefully this one will get good and heated-up with lots of hitting and some dropping of gloves. I have not seen the schedule yet - but hopefully the very Americanized NHL will grace us with Saturday night games in this series as opposed to moronic Saturday or Sunday afternoon games.
QUACK QUACK QUACK - the ducks in 5 games - just because I hate Detroit - not the best logic for making a sound pick, but I think my feathered friends can make my wish come true.
May 10th, 2007 at 12:24 pm
Bro Ess? T-Bone?
May 10th, 2007 at 1:58 pm
Senators over Sabres in 6 games. (Although if you’ve been to Ottawa, you’ll understand me when I say “It’s not in Ontario - it’s clearly in Quebec”.)
Ducks over RedWings in 6 games. (Although if you’ve ever seen Tomas Holmstrom play, you’ll understand why I consider him the most “Canadian Swede in the league”.)
May 10th, 2007 at 2:10 pm
Funny you should say that - as I was choosing players for the Sportsnet.ca pool, I was thinking “hmmm, Ducks/Wings, low-scoring series - the fancy-schmancy guys are probably going to be completely shut down by checkers - who has the ability to fight through and get points?” My conclusion was: Tomas Holmstrom.
Then I wussed out and picked Selanne or Zetterberg….
Watch for Holmstrom in this series. If the Wings have any chance, he’ll have to be draped over Jiggy like a blanket.
May 10th, 2007 at 2:42 pm
Quick and dirty here they are.
Ducks over Wings four games to one.
Can’t believe that the back breaker for JD was the injury to Schnieder, you’d think a decision like that would be reserved for an injury to Lidstrom, not some guy named after a Hot Dog company.
Sens over Sabres 4 games to two.
Keep your head up Drury or Neil is going to Lindros you!
This is Alfredsons year to play in the finals. Can’t wait to see Emery and Peters square off again!
Happy first Smog Advisory of 2007!
May 11th, 2007 at 8:40 am
Big win for the Sens last night. The Sabres played very un-sabre-like, though. 100% chance Buffalo wins the next game.
Ottawa looked good in continuing their mastery over the Sabres this year. It’s funny how Buffalo pretty much toys with every other team except the Sens (this year, anyway) - the normally meek, mild-mannered Ottawa Senators we’ve all come to know and love. The ones normally doing post-mortem interviews from the golf course right now, explaining how they inexplicably lost yet again to the Leafs in the playoffs. I used to live for this time of year, watching Alfie squirm after being asked about ‘character’ and ‘choking’ when he knew damn well his team was head and shoulders better than their provincial rival, but just handed the series to them like they just didn’t care to keep playing anymore. These Sens seem a little different - maybe it’s this whole Ray Emery “I’m the baddest mutha____ in the NHL” thing he’s got going on which has take the pressure off all of the usual suspects, I don’t know. This is hard to get used to, but you gotta think Buffalo ties this thing up Saturday.
Don’t give up on the Sabres yet, even though Ottawa has stolen home ice - Buffalo is a killer road team and Ottawa has a tendency to implode at home in crucial games (I won’t cite years right now, but remember the ‘Gary Roberts show’ for the undermanned Leafs in a game 6 in Ottawa when they had a chance to close out the series as well as Jeff Friesen’s goal in the last minute of game 7 of the Eastern final lifting Jersey to the Stanley Cup finals after Ottawa dominated them all series long). Still, there’s definitely a bizarro-world thing going on here…. Even so, I can’t call the Senators to win this yet - even if they take BOTH games in Buffalo. I need to see them reach the finals to believe it.
May 16th, 2007 at 12:15 pm
Sens up 3-0? Ok, I guess I was a little off with my 100% prediction about game 2, although it seemed like yet another example of the Sabres’ destiny when they tied it up with 5 seconds left after playing like crap for 59 minutes + leading up to that.
My guess is that there are some serious injuries to Buffalo to key players that we’ll hear about after the fact (such as Crosby’s broken foot, and a few years ago when guys like Tucker and Roberts for the Leafs should have been in a body cast). That’s the only way I can explain Buffalo’s performance thus far. Ottawa has been good, don’t get me wrong - but the Sabres have looked disinterested after such an amazing season and postseason run so far. I know Ottawa has played them tough this year, so I think it’s a combination of both - the Sens give them fits and I’m sure there are a few guys so banged up that it’s hard to play through and perform at the level needed.
The way the Sabres inexplicably tied up games late vs. the Rangers and now Ottawa - I still can’t say the Senators will win this thing until it actually happens…. (see, I’m learning from my earlier prediction).
May 16th, 2007 at 12:35 pm
Red Wings up on the Ducks 2-1 after a huge win at the Pond last night.
(It should be noted that at the very start of the season, that would be: October 2006, I predicted a Ducks/Sabres final - close, but it seems unlikely at this point).
Anyhoo, it was fun watching Pronger snap. Kinda reminded me of his St. Louis days (see Blues/Sharks playoff series when things got heated and Pronger and “Mr. Team guy/clutch playoff performer” *sarcasm* Keith Tkachuk squared off in an epic “who can take the most penalty minutes in one playoff series” contest). Gotta love the zebras - Rob Niedermayer takes the 5-minute major and game misconduct as Pronger slams Holmstrom’s face into the glass partition from behind….
The Red Wings reminded me of a plucky Roltek Rhino or Ingersoll Houseleague squad circa 1990-91 (yes, teams I played on, and I understand you might not ‘get’ that reference) by playing smart, sound yet tough hockey, while the Ducks, like the dirty Simcoe/Langton or Mens’ D-League team that should be in B, ran around taking penalty after penalty trying to intentionally mame their opponents.
Memo to the Ducks (or players from Simcoe/Langton and B-League teams coasting so they can win the Mens D-League - you know who you are): The Red Wings weren’t intimidated by the Flames, Sharks or you in the first two games of the series. You can lay off this whole “we’re the second coming of the Broad Street Bullies” mentality…. You’re going to have to skate. Like the aforementioned teams I played on - we were small, but crafty and just tough enough. Sure, we were outclassed physically, and at times, even in talent, but we were quick and smart enough to capitalize on mistakes, and powerplay after powerplay. Having Shayne D. Allison in our lineup didn’t hurt either, but you get the point.
Second memo to the Ducks: you can’t win a game in the penalty box, and giving your opponent maximum powerplay time isn’t going to help wear them down after they just made a cross-country trek across 3 time zones….
With the Sens/Sabres series looking like a quick one, here’s hoping the Ducks can rebound from last night’s debacle. I’m not counting on it though - I was hoping the conference finals could ’save’ this year’s playoffs for me - looks like I’m hoping for a barn burner of a Cup final to do that now.
May 25th, 2007 at 12:58 pm
I can also draw some parallels between the Sabres and Wings’ losses and the success of the Roltek Rhinos. While the efforts of the Rhino forwards has been well-documented and appreciated, what made their success possible was a tough, physical, well-positioned defence-corps (also disciplined, but not too disciplined). Experienced (actually, old) players like Ramsey, and oleMark, played patient defence (no needless pinches, or attempts to carry the puck, and deke out the opposing forwards all the way down the ice), but played like young “studs”, as DBro would call them, or like “animals”, when a scoring chance was to be thwarted. It was very inspiring to see Ramsey “ride” a puck-carrier along the side-boards, into the corner and around the net, as he did on one occasion, or Mark guard a younger, bigger, stronger forward, going down and getting back up, never giving in, spittle flying uncontrollably. The RedWings couldn’t recover from missing 3 of their defencemen, and the Sabres couldn’t finish off the Whalicanes last year, or the keep up to the Sens this year, without Jay McKee. Defensive-defencemen - the key to winning hockey games.