Monthly Archives: May 2012
#1 New York Rangers vs. #6 New Jersey Devils
While I was 2 for 2 in the Western Conference in the second round of the playoffs, I was 0 for 2 in the Eastern Conference.
If you watched the Capitals vs. Rangers series, I wasn’t too far off. I knew that the series would be long and I knew that it would be close. In my opinion, the Capitals outplayed the Rangers more than the Rangers outplayed the Capitals, but that doesn’t matter at the end of the series. The only thing that matters is who comes out victorious four times and that was the Rangers. They took advantage of bad plays by the Capitals (Hello, Joel Ward) and they had their star players play like star players.
Henrik Lundqvist played like a king. He stole games and he kept his team reeling in the series. Their defenders, Girardi, McDonagh and Staal played their roles perfectly, shutting down Ovechkin, Semin and Backstrom, while also contributing offensively. Then they even got a little bit of offensive help from other defenders like Anton Stralman, but that’s not the story for me. Yes, the defense is filling the void that most of their offense has neglected, you know, goal scoring, but there are still two key forwards that are very much awake and alive.
To me, those forwards are Brad Richards and Chris Kreider. I will be the first to admit that I wasn’t sure how much Brad Richards had left in the tank, especially after that concussion scare at the end of last year. I mean, you just never known in hockey and when players are out for months at a time, it never looks good. When I saw Richards sign for an astronomical figure in the offseason, I couldn’t help but see flashes of Ranger’s past (mostly Chris Drury and Scott Gomez), because let’s face it, the Rangers like to spend money. And sometimes, I don’t think that they understand the fact that just because you have a boat load of money, doesn’t mean that you should unload it onto every “superstar” free agent that looks at your franchise.
Well, I will give it to the Rangers this time, because that was money well spent, at least this year, because Richards has had an answer for every thing this post season. He is scoring big goals, blocking big shots and making big passes. He is everything that this team needed and with Chris Kreider stepping in the way that he has, the Rangers are showing some signs of life, because with Dubinsky out (not that he was a factor this year, at all), Gaborik’s sporadic Houdini act and the only other real goal scorer showing up being Anisimov, it’s something that they need desperately.
The Devils on the other hand are firing on all cylinders. I mean, there is a similar story in New Jersey. Their star players are playing like star players. Parise is playing like a complete beast. Zajac is doing everything right down the center and contributing offensively. Henrique and Clarkson are waking up. Brodeur is playing above average and the defense is EVERYWHERE.
The part that I am enjoying the most about this Devils run is that people are starting to give Kovalchuk the credit that he deserves. I love Kovy. I think that he is a great player that is completely underrated. I know, how can a player that has a $100 million contract be underrated, but he is. I’ve heard countless people and analysts alike criticize both the Devils and him as a player for signing that contract, saying that he’s a good player, but is he worth it? Is he a playoff player? Can he do more than score goals? If you have watched these playoffs at all, I think that you can see that the answer to that question is an overwhelming, yes.
At the end of the Panther‘s series and at the beginning of the Flyer’s series, Kovy looked a little bit out of sorts. He looked like he was struggling with his reach and his shots were a little bit off target. Everyone asked if he was injured and in true playoff hockey fashion, he denied it. He said that he wasn’t hurt, but after another rough game, he took a game against Philly off. The Devils won without him and then he returned the following game, looking like a new player. I don’t know what happened in those few days that he was off, but whatever it was, it was big and beating the Flyers in five games was undoubtedly huge, because that just meant that he had time for his injuries to heal. And in my opinion, that’s bad news for New York.
During the regular season, the Rangers “won” the series going 3-2-1 again the Devils, but again, this is the playoffs. The Rangers struggled through Ottawa and then struggled through a heavy hitting series in Washington. The Devils didn’t exactly have a walk in the park with Florida, but they survived and then strutted right on through Philadelphia, outplaying them in every facet of the game. I think that the break that the Devils had might slow them down in game one, but I think that after that, they are going to remain as hot as they have been this post season. Their penalty killing has been relatively decent and that’s all you need against a team like New York, whose power play has looked rather mediocre thus far (not Kings/Coyotes mediocre, but mediocre nonetheless).
I think that this is another close series. The Devils play a similar system to Ottawa and Washington, a system that has been causing all sorts of fits for Torts and the Rangers, but the Devils do it better than the Sens or the Caps and I think that makes all of the difference in this series. I think that New York will play well. Better than their mediocre performance thus far, because of what’s at stake and because they have a great coach, but I’m not sure that they can put the Devils off edge. I think that unless the Rangers can get their power play going at a significantly higher rate, that the Devils are going to eat them up.
I’m expecting an episode of “star wars” in this series. For me, the focus is on Kovy/Parise vs. Gabby/Richards. Yes, there will be focus on the Hank/Brodeur battle, but to me, the superstar duo that outperforms the other, will be the ones that are competing for the cup.
Prediction: Devils in 6
#3 Phoenix Coyotes vs. #8 Los Angeles Kings
If you asked a thousand people at the start of the playoffs who they thought would be in the Western Conference Finals, I can guarantee that not many would have chosen this match up. In fact, I would argue that I would be able to count those Nostradami (clearly, the pluralization of Nostradamus) on one hand, because let’s face it, no one saw this coming. Sure, some people picked Phoenix to get through the Blackhawks. It was a long shot, but there are upsets in every round of the playoffs, right? Right. So, why not.
Then they were matched up against for many, the Western Conference favorites, the Nashville Predators. There wasn’t an analyst out there that even put Phoenix in contention for this series. Everyone said that Nashville was the better team. They said that the Preds played a similar game to the Coyotes, but Nashville had better offensive talent, a bigger defense and their goaltending was just as good, if not better. Everyone said it would be over quick. Well, they were partially right. The Coyotes took the Predators by storm and closed the series out in five games. They played the same game that they played against the Hawks, but they tightened things up. They were better on the forecheck and they continued to capitalize when it mattered.
Phoenix is a confident team. I can’t state that enough and that’s a dangerous thing for the opposition. I’m not saying that LA isn’t, I’ll get to that, but Phoenix is playing with a level of confidence that is rarely seen in hockey. What do I mean by that? I mean, that every single player is contributing every single night. Sure, no one has their best game every night (besides Mike Smith), but the weight is divided among the forwards and the defenders. If Shane Doan isn’t going to get it done one night, Boedker will. If Boedker won’t, Brule will, etc. You get the point. The team’s depth shows up every single night. There was a lot of worry in game five that they might falter without their trusty defensemen Rusty Klesla, but David Schlemko picked up the minutes and fulfilled his role pretty well.
I guess what I am saying is that this team knows that everyone is pulling their weight. They know that that everyone is giving 110% every shift, every game and they know that everyone is in this for the long run. That’s where it gets scary, because they are playing like champions. You know, when I first moved out here and we started watching the Coyotes, we joked around a lot. We kept saying that it was going to be a Phoenix Coyotes vs. Philadelphia Flyers Stanley Cup. It was a nice thought, but let’s face it, it was unlikely. I remember thinking that yeah, it was probable that we would see the Flyers in there, but not the Coyotes.
Not yet.
Not with the ownership situation. Not with the possibility of being in another city next year. Not with so much uncertainty there. I mean, it has to affect them mentally. I think that we saw that a lot last year when they played the Red Wings, but this year is different. Very different. They’re confident and they know that they can do this. I know that I keep saying that., that they’re playing with confidence, but there’s not another word that I have to describe it. Watch them play and you’ll see exactly what I’m talking about.
Despite the fact that the Coyotes are the number three seed and have taken out the Chicago Blackhawks and the Nashville Predators, they are once again being acknowledged as the underdogs, and to be honest, I can see why. The Los Angeles Kings are firing on ALL cylinders. Yes, it’s so serious that I capitalized all. They took down the Canucks with relative ease and then they swept the St. Louis Blues. I have to say that I didn’t see that coming. I had the Kings taking the Blues down, but not in four games. I don’t know. Maybe it’s just me, but no team should be swept. Not at this stage in the game, but the Kings had an answer for everything that the Blues had up their sleeves. Personally, I think that the absence of Halak made all of the difference in the world. Again, I think that a lot of Elliot’s struggles were mental. He played a great series, but I think that he would have put up those surreal numbers that he put up in the regular season if the mental pressure wasn’t there.
That’s hockey though, especially playoff hockey. It is about pressure and how you react to it and this Kings team is pushing all of the right buttons. They are getting some scoring help from their bottom 6, but really, this team is all about their big players being the big players. Dustin Brown, Anze Kopitar, Mike Richards and even Dustin Penner are playing incredible hockey. I know, I didn’t believe that Mr. Pancake himself had it in him, but it’s true. This team is playing like the team that everyone predicted that they would be. If they can keep that tempo going and if Jeff Carter can put the puck in the back of the net, then this team is going to be very scary and very difficult to beat.
Especially with the physical presence of Mike Richards and Dustin Brown. Both players are playing perfect two-way hockey and every chance that they get, they are making someone feel it. They are landing big, clean hits and pulling all of the momentum in their favor. In my opinion, these are the two players that the Coyotes are going to have to watch out for. Sure, you have to look out for Kopitar. You have to look out for Stoll and Williams. You even have to look out for Carter and Penner, but Richards and Brown are the game changers. They are the guys that are going to go out there and make something happen. If the Coyotes want to take this series, they are going to have to hit just as hard and they are going to have to keep the momentum in check.
The regular season was split 3-3. There was a lot of physicality and for the most part the games were tight. I feel like this series will be split right down the middle. I feel like we are going to see some of the most defensive, stubborn hockey that we’ve seen yet in the playoffs and while that doesn’t sound exciting, it means that the goals that do go in are going to be big.
Real big.
I know that on paper the LA Kings match up better. They have better top end talent. They have a solid defensive core and Jonathon Quick is playing just as well, if not better than Mike Smith, but I still can’t count the Coyotes out. Sure, I’d like them to win because I have tickets to the Stanley Cup Finals if they make it, but this isn’t just about hometown allegiance. This is having faith in a team that I’ve seen play their hearts out. This is having faith in a team that I’ve seen play with confidence and that trusts every single player on the ice at all times. This is about having faith in a team that wants to win.
Either way, the one thing that I can guarantee is that this series will be long. It’s going to be all about bounces, about actions and reactions and in the end, one team is going to pull through and make life very, very difficult for the New York Rangers or the New Jersey Devils.
Prediction: Coyotes in 7
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