Eastern Conference:
1 Penguins vs. 8 Islanders: Islanders in 7
- Okay, this is probably the loftiest prediction I'll be making in the first round. There are plenty of reasons why the Penguins are expected to beat New York, but there are a few (but crucial) reasons why New York can pull the upset: For one, the Penguins could be overconfident. We saw the same thing last year: Penguins had an 11 game winning streak around playoff time, only to enter a contest with the Flyers on who could play worse defense. As we all know: Pittsburgh won that one. On top of that, the Islanders have young, talented, and underrated forwards that can wreak havoc on their defense. John Tavares, the potential Hart winner, Matt Moulson, his goal scoring partner in crime, and Michael Grabner, who could blaze by anyone in the league with his break-neck speed. As long as Tavares and goalie Evgeni Nabakov play on top of their game, the Isles can steal this series. Since picking the Isles is crazy enough, I'll say that it'll take them 7 games to do it.
- Both teams have pretty compelling stories behind them. The Canadiens not only bounced back from last season's finish in the basement of the Eastern Conference, but they won the Northeast Division and grabbed the second seed. Ottawa, meanwhile, lost their star defenseman, Erik Karlsson, top center Jason Spezza, forward Milan Michalek, and goalie Craig Anderson. What did they do then? They went on a tear and nearly brought themselves to the upper half of the Eastern Conference. That being said, it's important to know that Spezza is still out for the Senators, which will certainly hamper their offense. Kyle Turris and Mika Zibanejad, two forwards who stepped up when Karlsson went down, slowed down significantly at the end of the season. Conversely, rookie star Alex Galchenyuk has points in 4 of his last 5 games, Lars Eller has been phenomenal as of late, and defensemen such as Andrei Markov and PK Subban have been playing good two way hockey. With Anderson just coming off an injury, I give the goaltending edge to Carey Price, and the overall advantage to the Habs.
- No matter who wins this one, this will surely go to 7 games. Just look at the matchups in '09, '11, and '12, with 2 of the 3 series going to 7 games, and this should be no different. The Capitals have returned to their offensive ways with their new coach, Adam Oates. Ovechkin has also returned to form by winning the Rocket for a historic third time, and Backstrom along with Ribeiro have provided more offense of their own. The Rangers, meanwhile, seem to have all of the pieces they had last year to beat the Capitals, and that is their back end. Their defense is as good as ever, and Lundqvist is no different. It appears to be yet again a battle of offense vs. defense, but there is one x-factor that I think will cause the Rangers to win: their deadline deal. While Gaborik is out, the Rangers still have Nash and Richards, the latter with playoff experience. Now add in two gritty forwards Derek Brassard and Ryane Clowe, and the Rangers have some better scoring depth. John Moore has further reinforced the Blue-shirts blue-line, and Darroll Powe has contributed greatly to the Rangers penalty kill, which will come in handy when dealing with Ovechkin. The Rangers have a more even team than the Caps, but just barely, which is why it'll take 7 games for this one to pay out.
- If my Penguins-Islanders prediction wasn't crazy enough, here's another shot-out-of-the-dark prediction. The Bruins have yet-again cruised to the upper half of the Eastern Conference despite their cup-winning goalie, Tim Thomas going AWOL. Tukka Rask is getting looks for the Vezina, while the team sports a formidable offense with Seguin, Bergeron, and Jagr, and the hulk...I mean Chara is keeping the defense strong. So what about the Leafs? Well, Nazem Kadri has blossomed into a star. Now that he is getting more playing time, he has lead the offense along with other potent scorers such as Phil Kessel, a now-healthy Joffery Lupul, and the New Jersey native James Van Riemsdyk. Their defense includes Dion Phaneuf, newly acquired Ryan O'Byrne, and Mark Fraser, who has an impressive +/- of 18, which is 14th in the league. As for goalies, Rask has the slight edge in playoff experience, but James Reimer has held his own for the Leafs. While Boston looks much better on paper, the Leafs have enough talent on their team to steal one from the 2011 Stanley Cup Champs.
1 Blackhawks vs. 8 Wild: Hawks in 5
- The Minnesota Wild made the big offseason splash last year by acquiring Zach Parise and Ryan Sutter. Everything seemed to be going well until Josh Harding, their starting goalie, was diagnosed with MS. Backstrom, however, has answered the call, and the big pickups from the offseason, as well as the deadline acquisition Jason Pominville from Buffalo, have been contributing well. Despite all of this, they are up against an incredibly talented Blackhawks. Chicago didn't even have to play 20 games for everyone to realize that they are the real deal. They're streak of 24 games without a regulation loss is the longest one to start a season in the history of the league. They have all of the pieces from their cup run in 2010, with Jonathan Toews, the two Patricks, Kane and Sharp, Duncan Keith (with a fresh new set of teeth), and coach Joel Quenneville. Some new pieces include rookie forward Brandon Saad, and instead of Antti Niemi, their starter is now Corey Crawford, who will try to lead the Hawks to their second cup in 4 years. If this does not end in 4 games, it will most certainly end in 5.
- This is the only sweep I'll be predicting in the first round. The Red Wings, despite losing their legendary defenseman, Nicklas Lidstrom, have extended their playoff streak to 22 seasons...but barely. They still have Datsyuk and Zetterberg, along with other forwards such as Franzen, Bertuzzi, but then they have some inexperienced rookies. The Ducks, on the other hand, have Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf, who have had played exceptional together, Bobby Ryan, another star forward, and the ageless wonders Saku Koivu and Teemu Selanne. For defense, the Wings have the Stevens-esque Kronwall, and Jonathan Ericsson, while the Ducks have Francois Beauchemin who is quite possibly a Norris finalist. Cam Fowler, one of the younger but skilled defenseman, is finding his groove now after coming back from an injury. The Ducks also have Sheldon Souray, Bryan Allen, and Toni Lydman for some experience on the blue-line. As for goaltending, the Wings have Jimmy Howard, while the Ducks have two starting caliber goalies in Jonas Hiller and Viktor Fasth. With Bruce Boudreau's no holds bar offense, they should easily overwhelm Mike Babcock and his aging Wings with a four game sweep.
- This seems like an underrated series between two strong Western Conference teams. Both teams have been dominant in their respective divisions over the past several seasons, and both sides have some marquee names in their lineups. The Canucks have the Sedin Twins, Ryan Kessler, and the new but capable starter Corey Schneider. The Sharks, meanwhile, have Joe Thornton, Joe Pavelski, Patrick Marleau, and Brent Burns, whose shift from defense to offense has worked wonders. On the back end, the Canucks have a slightly better defense scoring wise, but San Jose's defense gets their job done. If Schneider does start for Vancouver, his experience will be dwarfed by Niemi, who guided the Hawks to their 2010 cup run. When the Sharks do win the series, expect the riot police to be out in the streets of Vancouver.
- While the Kings are the reigning champions, this is not their year. Their team looks quite familiar to last years team, with a slight improvement in their offense, thanks to a big season by Jeff Carter. However, Jonathan Quick was not playing like the Vezina Finalist he was last year. Brian Elliot, meanwhile, had a terrific April for the Blues, giving up only 16 goals in his last 13 games. Other than that, the Blues have a rather evenly distributed team, with forwards like Chris Stewart and David Backes playing well on both sides of the ice. TJ Oshie could provide some offense for the Blues since he will be returning from an injury. Despite the seemingly even matchup, one reason why this series could end in 4 or 5 games is because of their playoff history. All three previous series have ended in a four game sweep. The Blues are 15-8-1 at home, while the Kings are 8-12-4 on the road. While the Kings had the historic run last year, I do not believe that they can repeat that for a second straight year.
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