Eastern Conference Seeds:
1. Washington Capitals
2. Boston Bruins
3. Philadelphia Flyers
4. Pittsburgh Penguins
5. Buffalo Sabres
6. Tampa Bay Lighning
7. New York Rangers
8. Montreal Canadiens
Quarterfinals
(1) Washington over (8) Montreal
The reloaded Capitals will easily roll over an exhausted Montreal in 4 games.
(2) Boston over (7) New York
The defending champion Bruins get their repeat quest started right and dispose of the Rangers in 5 games
(6) Tampa Bay over (3) Philadelphia
The upstart Lightning's high power offense will overwhelm the Flyers in 7 games.
(4) Pittsburgh over (5) Buffalo
The Penguins will over power the Sabres in 5 games.
Semifinals
(1) Washington over (6) Tampa Bay
The Capitals are a different team this year and they will prove it by running by division rival Tampa Bay in 6 games.
(4) Pittsburgh over (2) Boston
The Penguins, led by their stars, will beat the defending champion Bruins in an epic series that goes all 7.
Eastern Conference Finals
(1) Washington versus (4) Pittsburgh
In the matchup we all want to see, Ovechkin and the Capitals take on Crosby and the Penguins. Both stars will put on a display and this series will go down as one of the greatest in recent memory. Capitals in 7.
Western Conference Seeds:
1. San Jose Sharks
2. Vancouver Canucks
3. Detroit Red Wings
4. Los Angeles Kings
5. Nashville Predators
6. Anaheim Ducks
7. Chicago Blackhawks
8. Calgary Flames
Quarterfinals
(1) Sharks over (8) Flames
The Sharks offense is too powerful for the Flames to handle. The Sharks extinguish the flames in 4
(2) Canucks over (7) Blackhawks
The Sedin twins and the rest of the Vancouver squad are hungry to get back to the Stanley Cup Finals and the Blackhawks will be no match for them. Canucks in 4.
(3) Red Wings over (6) Ducks
The Red Wings will benefit from a deeper team and the Ducks long regular season will hinder them in the later games. Red Wings in 7.
(4) Kings over (5) Predators
The Kings are the dark horse of the entire conference and have exceptionally high potential. The Predators will not be able to keep up. Kings in 5.
Semifinals
(4) Kings over (1) Sharks
The Sharks make their trademark playoff swoon and the Kings enter the series on fire. Kings in 6.
(2) Canucks over (3) Red Wings
Vancouver bests the Red Wings in the most entertaining matchup in the conference. Canucks in 7.
Western Conference Finals:
(2) Canucks versus (4) Kings
The reigning Western Conference champions are pitted against the upstart Kings. The series is high powered with a lot of scoring, but eventually the Canucks superior talent wins out. Canucks in 7.
Stanley Cup Finals
Washington Capitals versus Vancouver Canucks
In a battle of East Coast versus West Coast, the Capitals and Canucks will look to remedy disappointments from years past. Both teams boast offensive stars (Ovechkin, Semin, Backstrom for the Capitals against the Sedin twins and Ryan Kesler for Vancouver) and a strong defense, but the Capitals have been revamped solely for the long grind of the playoffs and their off-season moves will pay off. Capitals in 6.
Award Watch
MVP: Alex Ovechkin, LW, Washington Capitals. The Capitals captain is expected to embrace an even more central role in the Capitals offense and with a stronger team behind him, expect Ovechkin to have a career year.
Veniza (top goaltender): Johnathan Quick, Los Angeles Kings. Quick posted great numbers last year (2.24 GAA, .918 save %) and is still young, only 25, and has nowhere to go but up.
Norris (top defenseman): Duncan Keith, Chicago Blackhawks. Keith leads a stout defense that only allowed 2.68 goals per game last season and he is just entering into the prime of his career.
Selke (top defensive forward): Pavel Datsyuk, C, Detroit Red Wings. Datsyuk has won the award three times and looks to capture the trophy for a fourth time. Datsyuk is always clutch in late game situations and his defense has saved the Red Wings on more than a few occasions.
Coach: Dan Bylsma, Pittsburgh Penguins. The Penguins coach must guide the Penguins through the first month or so without star Sidney Crosby. The Penguins division is one of the toughest in the league so the task will not be easy, but Bylsma will prove up that he is up to the challenge.
Ove is under to much pressure to win the MVP. He knows that every night he has to get 3 points and burn a goalie. I would say Stamkos is my early MVP front runner. 41 goals last year and he is coupled with St. Louis so he will get a lot of shots.
ReplyDeleteI think Stamkos' production will drop off. I really think Ovi will have a career year
ReplyDelete