Time for the NHL playoffs!!!! Go Kings! Go Flyers!

Had this discussion on another board, but thought I'd share my thoughts here as well.

bgast1 wrote:

You really know how to make a Chicago guy feel good. I hate Detroit. By the way, just curious, did they throw an octopus out?

I
guess the question will be though, can anybody beat the Capitals? And
why aren't you rooting for the Devils? and might I add the Kings are
still in 6th place below (friggin?) Chicago?

So there, Mr.
Ultimatum. (who in my book rates 1st place )


Oh and by the way, I couldn't agree with you
more about bye bye Rangers. But Kings are goin down, Flyers are goin
down. Detroit is goin down, and well maybe Blackhawks too.

But
still.....GO BLACKHAWKS!!!!! anyway.

Yes, the Kings are below Chicago. Too bad the Blackhawks couldn't finish it off yesterday and taken the Conference. Instead they let the Redwings win and are in second place behind San Jose. Had the Hawks won in regulation, the Kings would have been in fifth place in front of the wretched Redwings.

I'm just happy that the Kings made the playoffs. First time since 2002. It's also the first time in over a
decade that the Kings have over 100 points. The team also broke a lot of team records, including game winning streaks and the most games won by a King's goalie. This is a very young Kings team that are being molded and formed into a hockey machine. In coming years they will be a force to be reckoned with.

I'm hoping that The Capitals will fall in the first round of the playoffs, as well as the San Jose Sharks.

Philadelphia is going to have a hard time of it. That last game against NY was a nail biter. There is no doubt about it, the Flyers have goalie issues. Their two main goalies are both our on IR. If it wasn't for their defense, I don't think they would even be where they are now. Going into the playoffs with goalie issues is not a good place to be, but it's better than being on the golf course like the Rangers or the Anaheim Sucks, er I mean, Ducks.

I really don't care who wins this year. Of course I'd love to see Philly or LA go all the way! However, as long as it's not Detroit or Pittsburgh, I don't care! If Chicago is in the finals, I will be cheering for them, unless it's against the NJ Devils. NJ is my hometown, so even though I am a Flyers fan, I wouldn't mind seeing NJ take home the cup if Philly isn't up to snuff.

Go Flyers! Go
Kings!

LET'S GO BLACKHAWKS!

C - A - P - S CAPS! CAPS! CAPS!!!!!!


Go Capitals!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is our year!!!!!!!!


BTW - Hoping Cindy Crosby and the penguins lose in the first round!!!!!!


GO CAPS!!!!!!!!!!!!


Ok - I think we all know who I want to win it all!!!!!!

If they get to the finals, I will have to start checking stub hub for tix

thejokeriv wrote:

C - A - P - S CAPS! CAPS! CAPS!!!!!!


Go Capitals!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is our year!!!!!!!!


BTW - Hoping Cindy Crosby and the penguins lose in the first round!!!!!!


GO CAPS!!!!!!!!!!!!


Ok - I think we all know who I want to win it all!!!!!!

If they get to the finals, I will have to start checking stub hub for tix

The Blackhawks will be waiting for you guys in the Stanley Cup Final! Can't wait!

Pens all the way for me ! (although I think the Crapitals will do it this year)

I'd rather see the Caps take it than the friggin' Penguins. I'll be glad to see the darling of the NHL and his Penguins go down in flames.

ultmetal wrote:

I'd rather see the Caps take it that the friggin' Penguins. I'll be glad to see the darling of the NHL and his Penguins go down in flames.

Spoken like a true Flyers fan

lets go flyers! pens suck!!! i am with philly all the way!!! yea,scott,nj flyer fans united!!!!

Blackhawks all the way. I'm glad the Avs made it in and I could get behind the Kings.

TheNazgul wrote:

Blackhawks all the way. I'm glad the Avs made it in and I could get behind the Kings.

Kings are definitely the underdogs.

jerseyultifan+ wrote:

lets go flyers! pens suck!!! i am with philly all the way!!! yea,scott,nj flyer fans united!!!!

x3! The flyers have done well against the devils this year so this series should be entertaining!

Sharks all the way!!!! Now or never for this team.

Joe wrote:

Sharks all the way!!!! Now or never for this team.

Never!

ultmetal wrote:

Joe wrote:

Sharks all the way!!!! Now or never for this team.

Never!

lol, you're probably right. They're world beaters during the regular season, and then shut it down for the playoffs. I thought for sure team USA was going to beat Canada based on the fact that four of the Sharks were on Canada!

scott types "never"!! thats too funny!

Kings baby, Kings!!!

GrandNational wrote:

Kings baby, Kings!!!

Now there's a man with taste and class!

My predictions:

Sharks beat Avalanche
Blackhawks beat Predators
Canucks beat Kings
Red Wings beat Coyotes

Capitals beat Canadiens
Devils beat Flyers
Sabres beat Bruins
Penguins beat Senators

2nd round:

Red Wings beat Sharks
Canucks beat Blackhawks

Penguins beat Capitals
Sabres beat Devils

Conference Finals:

Canucks beat Red Wings
Penguins beat Sabres

and then...

Canucks beat Penguins for the Cup.

Hopefully that won't happen though. I'm a Hawks fan.

Lari wrote:

My predictions:

Sharks beat Avalanche
Blackhawks beat Predators
Canucks beat Kings
Red Wings beat Coyotes

Capitals beat Canadiens
Devils beat Flyers
Sabres beat Bruins
Penguins beat Senators

2nd round:

Red Wings beat Sharks
Canucks beat Blackhawks

Penguins beat Capitals
Sabres beat Devils

Conference Finals:

Canucks beat Red Wings
Penguins beat Sabres

and then...

Canucks beat Penguins for the Cup.

Hopefully that won't happen though. I'm a Hawks fan.

Nah - if the Caps play the penguins this year in the playoffs, they will beat them FINALLY!!!!

PUCK CINDY CROSBY!!!!!!

BTW - all you Devils fans, Capitals fans hate the penguins as much as you do, if not more these days!!!

Crosby has owned Ovechkin when it matters, so I pick the Pens. But if the Devils somehow get past Ryan Miller and the Sabres, they definitely have the Penguins' number.

The Capitals don't really play efficient playoff hockey. When you need to grind one goal wins against tight defensive teams, the Caps aren't my pick. The Devils are extremely efficient against any top team, playing their trap and counterattack game. But their problem is creating offense out of nowhere. That's why they drop games against opponents they should beat easily.

Top four in the East are pretty close though, so anything can happen.

But the best teams are in the west. I only picked the Canucks and the Red Wings because I hate them the most and hopefully this will jinx them. Both teams control the puck and the pace of the game so well. And the Canucks play a very tight defensive system. And if Luongo gets hot, they are tough. God I hate those Sedin sisters.

The Hawks are also a puck control team. Maybe even more than any other team. Hopefully they can make Bobby Lou cry again.

Second round Game Six highlights

That was a great one.

A lot of pressure on the rookie goalie Antti Niemi this year.

Go Sharks....try not to get bounced out of the first round for a change. Gotta go wit' da Charks mon.

I'm picking Pitt and Boston for the Eastern Conf Finals. Buffalo is my darkhorse pick from the East. Caps will never be legitimate contenders until they get a legit goaltender and play a little defense.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Washington Capitals [1] vs. Montréal Canadiens [8]
The Washington Capitals, who finished the regular season with the best record in the NHL, face the Montréal Canadiens in the opening round. This marks the first time the Capitals and Canadiens play each other in the playoffs. The Canadiens and Capitals had the two best power plays in the NHL during the regular season, so both teams would be better off not to take too many penalties.
Prediction: Washington in four games.

New Jersey Devils [2] vs. Philadelphia Flyers [7]
The Philadelphia Flyers, who clinched a playoff spot on the last day of the season, will open the playoffs against New Jersey, who are always in the running as a Cup contender. Despite New Jersey finishing with a much more successful record, the Flyers dominated the season series, winning five of the six meetings between the teams.
Prediction: New Jersey in five games.

Buffalo Sabres [3] vs. Boston Bruins [6]
After finishing with the league's top record in 2006-07 during the regular season, and making it to the Conference Finals during the playoffs that season, Buffalo finished out of the playoffs entirely for two straight seasons. The Bruins finished the 2008-09 season at the top of the Eastern Conference standings, but struggled throughout much of 2009-10, largely due to the loss of Phil Kessel to Toronto. The Bruins won four of the six regular season meetings against Buffalo this season.
Prediction: Buffalo in seven games.

Pittsburgh Penguins [4] vs. Ottawa Senators [5]
The defending Stanley Cup champions, the Pittsburgh Penguins, will face Ottawa in the opening round for the third time in four years. The Penguins have the better team offensively by far, led by Sidney Crosby, who tied with Tampa Bay forward Steven Stamkos for the league lead in goals with 51 this season. Defensively, Ottawa has the better edge. Goaltending wise, Ottawa goaltender Brian Elliott was more consistent than Pittsburgh's starting goalie, Marc-Andre Fleury, but has not played a playoff game to date.
Prediction: Pittsburgh in six games.

WESTERN CONFERENCE

San Jose Sharks [1] vs. Colorado Avalanche [8]
The Colorado Avalanche surprised everybody in 2009-10 by making the playoffs. Chosen by many to finish near, if not at, the bottom of the Western Conference by most at the beginning of the season, the Avalanche got off to a stunning start thanks to excellent goaltending from Craig Anderson and solid offensive play from players such as Paul Stastny, Matt Duchene, Chris Stewart, and Milan Hejduk. The Sharks, who have been one of the top teams in the regular season for many years now, have a history of being a playoff disappointment. Only once have they managed to make it to the Conference Finals thus far.
Prediction: San Jose in six games.

Chicago Blackhawks [2] vs. Nashville Predators [7]
The Chicago Blackhawks have one of the league's top teams offensively, thanks to offensive threats such as Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, and Patrick Sharp. Defensively, however, the top defenseman, Brian Campbell, is injured, and is not expected back until May. The Predators are one of the NHL's top defensive teams, with their top two defensemen, Shea Weber and Ryan Suter, being quite possibly the best one-two defenseman combo the NHL has. Goaltending is a question mark for both teams, as the two leading goalies (Pekka Rinne for Nashville, Antti Niemi for Chicago) have no NHL playoff experience. However, Chicago's backup goalie, Cristobal Huet, has some playoff experience from when he was with Montréal, and Nashville's backup goaltender, Dan Ellis, played all six of Nashville's playoff games in 2008.
Prediction: Chicago in six games.

Vancouver Canucks [3] vs. Los Angeles Kings [6]
The Los Angeles Kings, in the playoffs for the first time since 2002, will be playing the Vancouver Canucks in the opening round. The Canucks are considered Canada's best bet for a Stanley Cup by most (no Canadian team has won a Stanley Cup since Montréal went all the way in 1993). The Canucks have the goaltending edge, thanks to Roberto Luongo, and the offensive edge, with 2009-10 Art Ross winner Henrik Sedin. The Kings, however, have a better defensive team, with Drew Doughty leading the way.
Prediction: Vancouver in seven games.

Phoenix Coyotes [4] vs. Detroit Red Wings [5]
The Detroit Red Wings struggled with injuries for most of the season. For much of the season, it appeared to be a question mark whether or not Detroit would even make the playoffs. But when the injured players, such as Johan Franzen, returned, Detroit became one of the deadliest teams in the NHL. In the first round, they will face Phoenix, who are in their first playoff spot since 2002. The Coyotes have the longest drought of playoff series wins, as they have not advanced beyond the opening round since 1987, when they were the Winnipeg Jets.
Prediction: Detroit in seven games.

Go Kings! May be the underdogs, but they have been all year long and still finished with over 100 points. These young bucks are going to be lethal in the coming years. Would love to see them go all the way. I'm not sure it's possible with some many young guys on the team. I'm just glad they did as well as they did this year and am looking forward to bigger and better things in the years to come.

Go Flyers! I they can get their goaltending situation straightened out, they have the power and skill to take it all the way. If it ended up being the Kings again Philadelphia, well damn, wouldn't that be a pickle for this dual fan! Don't think it will happen.

I'd love to see the Red Wings taken out in the first round! Go Phoenix Coyotes.

I don't like Colorado, but I don't like San Jose even more. Colorado seems to be the underdog, and as usual, I seem to be cheering on the underdog.

I would LOVE to see Ottawa take out the Penguins, though I don't see it happening. Still, I'll be cheering on Ottawa. How great it would be to see the darling of the NHL crying after being knocked out in the first round.

Go Avs all the way!!! If not the Avs then the Pens or Flyers. As long as the Devils or Red Wings don't win it all, can't stand 'em.

Can't stand Ovechkin either.