8 posts tagged “san jose sharks”

First, we'll go over my 1st round predictions. Surprisingly, I got all of the right teams correct except for one. And that's the one I am most happy to be wrong about.

Eastern Conference:
Boston Bruins (1 seed) vs. Montreal Canadiens (8 seed)

My pick: Boston sweeps in 4 games.
Reality: Boston sweeps in 4 games.

This was pretty straight-forward. Boston was way too much for the Canadiens to handle.

Washington Capitals (2 seed) vs. New York Rangers (7 seed)

My pick: Washington Capitals in 5 games.
Reality: Washington Capitals in 7 games.

Because I loathe the Rangers so much, I was extremely happy that Washington came back from a 3-1 series deficit to win this. One wonders if John Tortorella hadn't lost his mind during game 5 by throwing water on fans behind the Rangers' bench who were apparently verbally harassing him and the team, something that goes on at Madison Square Garden every single game by Ranger fans, if the Rangers may have still been able to win the series instead of fall apart.

Tortorella got suspended for Game 6, and the Rangers got wrecked 5-3 to the point that "King Henrik" was replaced late in the game. Game 7 from what I've seen, was a much tougher contest that the Capitals simply came out the victors. And that's a great thing. Fuck the Rangers.

New Jersey Devils (3 seed) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (6 seed)

My Pick: Carolina in 6 games.
Reality: Carolina in 7 games.

This was perhaps a bigger loss for New Jersey than it was a win for Carolina. The Devils were up 3-2 in Game 7 with less than 2 mins to go. And all of a sudden, the Hurricanes scored a tying goal with 90 seconds left. And one minute later, the game-winner with around 30 seconds left. This was all done on Jersey's home ice in Newark, and had to be one of the, if not the worst playoff loss in Devils' history.

You simply don't expect that Martin Brodeur, or his defense for that matter, would allow an entire series to slip away in such a fashion, but so is the greatness of the game of hockey. Only magnified in a game 7.

Pittsburgh Penguins (4 seed) vs. Philadelphia Flyers (5 seed)

My Pick: Pittsburgh in 6 games.
Reality: Pittsburgh in 6 games.

I didn't get to see any of this series, but the end result is obviously of no surprise to me.

Western Conference:
San Jose Sharks (1 seed) vs. Anaheim Ducks (8 seed)

My Pick: San Jose in 6 games.
Reality: Anaheim in 6 games.

SOOOOO happy to have picked the wrong team here. Hiller is an extremely hot goaltender, and despite the Sharks outshooting the Ducks the entire series, the Ducks still won despite the home ice advantage that San Jose had.

Detroit Red Wings (2 seed) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (7 seed)

My Pick: Detroit in 5 games.
Reality: Detroit in 4 games.

I figured that the Jackets might at least win one in this series but Detroit was just a ridiculous juggernaut in this sweep. The Red Wings scored 18 goals in 4 games, compared to the 7 by Columbus, and 5 of those 7 goals were scored in the game 4 loss.

Vancouver Canucks (3 seed) vs. St. Louis Blues (6 seed)

My Pick: Vancouver Canucks in 5 games.
Reality: Vancouver Canucks in 4 games.

I didn't get to see any of these games either, but from what I gather, Roberto Luongo was the goaltender Vancouver needed. He recorded a 3-0 shutout in Game 2. The Blues didn't even make this into a series.

Chicago Blackhawks (4 seed) vs. Calgary Flames (5 seed)

My Pick: Chicago Blackhawks in 7 games.
Reality: Chicago Blackhawks in 6 games.

Khabibulin was back in 2003 form, and the youth of the Blackhawks was too much for the Flames.

So I go 7-1 in overall team predictions, with two of the predictions being correct on both team and number of games. Not too bad considering I've been awful at this in years past.

Moving onto Round 2, the predictions for the conference semifinals:

Eastern Conference Semi-Finals:
Boston Bruins (1 seed) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (6 seed)

I know that people keep expecting the Hurricanes to continue to play tough hockey, and that goalie Cam Ward is going to make a huge impact. I don't see that happening. Boston is on another level this season and I just don't see anyone in the East beating them. Certainly not Carolina unless somehow half of the Bruins go down with injury.

My prediction: Boston Bruins in 5 games.

Washington Capitals (2 seed) vs. PIttsburgh Penguins (4 seed)

This is the "Dream matchup" that the NHL wanted. Ovechkin and Semin vs Malkin and Crosby. Varlamov vs. Fleury.
The Capitals fought a tough 7-game series against the Rangers, and rallied from being down 3-1 in the series.

But that's the problem. The Capitals should never have been in that position in the first place, and the Penguins are a better team than the Rangers.

So, I gotta give the edge to Pittsburgh here unless Ovechkin can somehow carry the club. I don't see that happening here.

My prediction: Pittsburgh in 5 games

Western Conference Semi-Finals:
Detroit Red Wings (2 seed) vs. Anaheim Ducks (8 seed)

Wow. This is going to be a tough one. Just like the Ducks-Sharks series, this SHOULD be dominated by Detroit with ease. But San Jose couldn't get past Ducks goaltender Jonas Hiller too much.

Plus, as good a team as San Jose was during the regular season, they are known for failing in the playoffs consistently. Detroit, not so much.

Is this Ducks team as good as the 2007 club? I don't believe so, but if Hiller stays hot, one never knows what can happen. Surely if the Ducks ARE able to get past Detroit, I would imagine they'd be a lock to beat either Vancouver or Chicago in the Conference Finals.

But... Osgood in goal for Detroit in the postseason is a different man. Detroit is a juggernaut, and they have home ice advantage. Maybe picking Detroit will help Anaheim win? But I really believe that the Ducks aren't getting past them though I hope to be wrong again...

My prediction: Detroit in 6 games

Vancouver Canucks (3 seed) vs. Chicago Blackhawks (4 seed)

This is going to be an interesting battle of goaltenders and really rough physical hockey. I see the edge going to Luongo in goal, and the Canucks have greater depth on the club. But this will probably be the most exciting series to actually watch, even if I really could give a shit who wins.

My prediction: Vancouver Canucks in 7 games.

What a sports-intensive weekend. Unlike a lot of American men, I don't spend my Sundays worshipping the TV when it's time for the NFL season. I prefer college football, but even then, I can only watch so many college football games on a Saturday before my brain fries.

But April is a great month for sports, which would be a lot better if the NBA wasn't part of it. Basketball is truly the most...boring...sport....ever. Yes, I'd rather watch toddler bowling.

However, we got baseball, and we got hockey playoffs galore. And then there's always a plethora of MMA to be found.

I won't get into too much detail about all of the games, considering a lot of it is old news at the point I'm writing this, so a brief summary should suffice.

So, this weekend began on:

Friday, April 24:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim vs. Seattle Mariners at Angel Stadium

Shane Loux took the mound for the pitching-decimated Angels against Mariners ace Erik Bedard.

Loux pitched pretty well for 4 innings, only getting stung by a Russell Branyan solo blast in the 2nd inning.
Then the 5th inning came, and Loux just died. Ichiro led off with a single. Endy Chavez, single. Griffey, single. Beltre just missed a grand slam with a double off the left-centerfield wall, scoring Ichiro and Chavez. Russell Branyan then walked to load the bases. Jose Lopez hit a chopper towards 3rd for a single, scoring another run.

By this point, it was 5-0, there were no outs, and Loux had come apart. Manager Mike Scioscia went to the bullpen, but another 2 runs scored before the Angels could get out of the inning.

Erik Bedard pitched fantastic for Seattle, only giving up 1 hit in the first 4 innings, a double to Erick Aybar which was also the Angels' sole baserunner. He gave up a dinger to Mike Napoli in the 5th, and the Angels scored twice more in the frame to bring the score to 7-3, but Bedard still had a healthy lead and pitched into the 7th inning before Shawn Kelley finished out the game for the Mariners.

So the Angels lost by a score of 8-3, and here are some photos from my less-than-good seats in the rightfield loge.

AngelsvsMariners042409_1

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AngelsvsMariners042409_4

AngelsvsMariners042409_fireworks1

What was supposed to be a pitchers duel was anything but. But what a wild exciting game. The Yankees sent AJ Burnett to face Boston's Josh Beckett, and this was one of those games you figured would be a low-scoring affair. If only.

The Yankees went up 6-0 on Boston by the time the 4th inning was over, and there was no reason to think that the fairly solid AJ Burnett would surrender this lead. Then Boston began their comeback, scoring 5 runs in the bottom 4, with 4 of those runs coming off a Jason Varitek GRAND SALAMI.

But this game was only getting started. In the 6th, Boston scored 3 runs going up 8-6 on the Skanks.

Then in the next inning, Johnny Damon hit a 2-run homer to tie the game at 8.

Boston then goes ahead 9-8 in the bottom of the 6th.

And then the lead switched AGAIN in the top of the 7th when the Yankees went up 10-9.

With all the back and forth in this ballgame, it was just super fun to watch. Mind you, I love a pitcher's duel more than anything. The best games are the 0-0 games that go into extra innings, but when both teams score a bunch of runs back and forth in every inning, that's pretty damn exciting as well.

When it was all said and done with, Boston outslugged the Yankees by a final of 16-11. There were 28 hits in the game, 6 of them home runs (3 for each team).

NHL Playoffs:
Game 5: Anaheim Ducks vs. San Jose Sharks

With the Ducks already possessing a 3-1 lead in this best of 7 series, every game was now a "must-win" for the Sharks, and with their backs to the wall at home in the HP Pavilion (aka: Shark Tank), the Sharks put up the early 1-0 goal at 7:25 in the 1st from Co-Captain Joe Thornton. The Sharks went up 2-0 in the 2nd.

But hold on, the Ducks came back with 2 of their own in the 3rd period thanks to Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, and the game went into OT.

The Sharks stayed alive in the series when Co-Captain Patrick Marleau jabbed in a goal past Anaheim goaltender phenom Jonas Hiller at 6:02 of the first OT period to win the game 3-2.  Even still, the winning goal was ultimately pushed past the goal line by the leg/skate of Hiller. Unfortunate, but so it goes.

This was another great game in what has been a thrilling series, thanks to the unlikely 8th seed Ducks taking it to the team that had the best record in the NHL regular season.

Sunday, April 26th, 2009
NHL Playoffs:
Game 6: New York Rangers vs. Washington Capitals

With the Rangers up 3-1 in this series, they didn't have Coach John Tortorella on the bench because he was serving a one-game suspension for losing his mind and throwing water at Capitals fans behind the Rangers bench.

What followed from Rangers' GM Glen Sather was one of the most laughable reactions in the history of the sport. Sather complained that Washington Capitals security should be disciplined. Why? Because Washington Capitals fans were verbally harassing/abusing the Rangers bench from their seats, and CHILDREN were able to hear this.

Apparently Sather has never been to one of his own team's games, or at least never sitting in the MSG seats, where this kind of behavior, and FAR worse, occurs every single game. The Rangers proved themselves to be a classless organization from top to bottom. A coach who benches Sean Avery (the scummiest player in all the league) because he wanted to set an example about keeping your emotions in check during the game, loses his cool because of the verbal taunts from Capitals fans. Sean Avery may be a giant piece of shit, but he can be pretty effective when he's able to taunt and agitate the opposition into taking stupid penalties, so as long as Avery doesn't take them himself. In Game 4, he did. But for Tortorella to go after Caps fans, who never threw any objects at the Rangers bench or did anything PHYSICAL to provoke Torts, proves he's as big of a dick as Avery. And then Sather's letter, hoo hee! Whattalaff!!!!

I hope the Capital fans rip the Rangers bench (verbally, of course) even moreso during Game 7 so they can make Tortorella's head literally explode.

The Rangers got destroyed on MSG ice this game by a final of 5-3, and while the final score sounds close, it's misleading. The Capitals made Ranger goalie Henrik Lundqvist look very very mortal, going up 3-1 in the first. 5-1 in the 2nd, and held on to a 5-2 lead until a 3rd Rangers goal scored with 6 seconds remaining in the game.

I can't wait until Game 7, even if I won't be able to actually watch it. The Capitals will have home ice, and they're not losing to this joke of a Rangers team, who should never have won 3 games in this series to begin with.

New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox

This ESPN Night game was actually the pitcher's duel that we were supposed to get on Saturday between Beckett and Burnett. This time it was Andy Pettite against Justin Masterson. Masterson, normally a reliever for the Red Sox, pitched a second start for Boston in place of Daisuke Matsuzaka. And he pitched brilliantly.

Masterson scattered 6 hits over 5.1 IP, walking 1, striking out 4, and giving up 1 earned run off a Hideki Matsui sac fly.
Boston's bullpen of Hunter Jones, Michael Bowden and Takashi Saito (pitching in place of closer Jonathan Papelbon, who needed some rest) stymied the Yankees for the rest of the game.

But the real story of this game?
Jacoby Ellsbury STOLE HOME! I would put the video up here but MLB will just yank it off YouTube, so... you should be able to find it quite easily in other places. :-)

In any case, with a 2-1 score in the bottom of the 5th, Andy Pettite pitching to J.D. Drew with a 1-0 count and bases loaded, Ellsbury stole home in what has to be one of the craziest plays in this early season. But Ellsbury is so fast, Pettite is a lefty pitching from the stretch, third-baseman Angel Berroa wasn't holding Ellsbury on, and the Yankees were caught completely off-guard. Posada made the tag on Ellsbury just after he had touched the plate, and the Red Sox went up 3-1.

J.D. Drew then doubled to rightfield, scoring David Ortiz, and that was all the offense the Sox needed to SAHHHHWEEEP the New York Yankees in 3 games.

With the Rangers and Yankees losing, Sunday was a very very very good day.

And finally, to top it off:
Monday, April 27, 2009
NHL Playoffs:
Game 6: Anaheim Ducks vs. San Jose Sharks

Hiller if ya hear me!! The Ducks won by a final score of 4-1, taking the series from the NHL-best San Jose Sharks in 6 games, and most importantly, doing it on home ice in front of a rabid crowd at the Honda Center (aka: The Pond).

You knew this was going to be a helluva physical game when 2 seconds into the game, immediately after the puck was dropped, centers Ryan Getzlaf and Joe Thornton went at each other in a fight. Thornton may have won that fight, but he did not win the war.

The Sharks took the 1-0 lead in the middle of the 1st period, making one wonder if Hiller was going to be ok this game. Luckily, that was the only goal that Jonas Hiller let in. Hiller outclassed San Jose goalie Evgeni Nabokov during the entire series. In this game, he stopped 36 of 37 shots. While Hiller has emerged as the top goalie on the Ducks team, with J.S. Giguere now serving as his backup, Nabokov still had far superior statistics with the Sharks during the regular season.

But finally with this 1st round series of the postseason, Jonas Hiller proved that a hot goaltender with a defense that has never looked better (Pronger, Niedermayer, Whitney, Beauchemin, Wisniewski), is going to be able to stop a high-powered offense that outshot Anaheim the entire series by a ridiculous amount.

Despite all that, Jonas Hiller posted two shutouts during the 6 game series.

A fantastic series, a huge upset, and perhaps a sign of things to come. Still, the Ducks have a tough road ahead of them as they'll face the Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference semis. The Red Wings are well-rested, having easily swept the Columbus Blue Jackets in 4 straight games. But the Ducks could just be the Cinderella team once again.

I've never been a big fan of a playoff system that allows more than half of the teams in any league to make the playoffs. 16 out of 30 teams to be exact. But, more games = more revenues for the NHL. Even though it is really kinda ridiculous.

It really SHOULD be limited to the top 4 teams in the East and West, which would eliminate 1 round from the NHL playoffs. I blame the NBA for setting this silly precedent.

Regardless, here are my predictions for the 1st round of the NHL playoffs...

Eastern Conference:
Boston Bruins (1 seed) vs. Montreal Canadiens (8 seed)

8 seeds rarely do well in th NHL playoffs, because you know, they're not nearly as good as the top team in the conference? This matchup will be no different. Plus with Bruins goalie Tim Thomas possessing the best goalie save percentage and GAA numbers in the league this season, Montreal is going to have a helluva time scoring goals against Boston.

My pick: Boston sweeps in 4 games.

Washington Capitals (2 seed) vs. New York Rangers (7 seed)
The Rangers only have one hope of winning this series. And his name is Hendrik Lundqvist. Lundqvist has been a fantastic goalie for the Rangers this season, even though his team has struggled mightily on offense most of the season. Players like Markus Naslund and Chris Drury have failed to produce at top-tier levels. But you know who has?
That Alexander Ovechkin fella.

Speaking of Ovechkin, I love this:
Ovechkin said following the Caps' practice Tuesday to the NY Daily News: "I like playing over there. Sometimes the ice is no good over there because (of) lots of concerts, lots of dog shows, something like that coming over there. It kind of smells no good over there sometimes."

The truth is, it's the stank of Ranger fans.

My pick: Washington Capitals in 5 games.

New Jersey Devils (3 seed) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (6 seed)

This is actually one of the more intriguing matchups of the 1st round, as it's not as cut and dry an end result as the aforementioned series.  The Devils are not as strong as they have been in recent years, and the Hurricanes have had a very strong finish to the regular season going 13-3-2 over the final 18. Goalie Cam Ward has been extremely solid for Carolina in goal. When New Jersey dominates the regular season, they're a strong favorite to win it all. But the Devils weren't the best team in the East this year, even though they won the Atlantic division.

I'm leaning towards the upset here, so...
My Pick: Carolina in 6 games.

Pittsburgh Penguins (4 seed) vs. Philadelphia Flyers (5 seed)

Malkin, Crosby, Bylsma, Fleury. The Flyers? Uhhhh, Carter? Yeah, the battle for Pennsylvania is going to Pittsburgh, again. Philly will put up a fight and make it interesting, but a series win is not in their future.

My Pick: Pittsburgh in 6 games.

Western Conference:
San Jose Sharks (1 seed) vs. Anaheim Ducks (8 seed)

Full disclosure: I'm an Anaheim Ducks fan.

The knock against San Jose is that despite them making the playoffs every year for a decade now, they can't get to the Cup Finals and only once got to the Western Conference finals in 2003-2004 when they lost to Calgary.

But in goal, Evgeni Nabokov is far more dependable this season than either Jonas Hiller, and certainly better than the shaky J.S. Giguere, who hasn't been himself this season at all. While Giguere has the postseason experience and may start a game or two, the Ducks have to depend on Hiller this time out. The Sharks were a little shaky towards the end of the season, and the Ducks finished strong enough to just squeak into the 8th seed.

Ultimately though, San Jose was the best team in the NHL winning the Presidents' trophy, and they're not losing in the 1st round. Much as it pains me...

My Pick: San Jose in 6 games.

Detroit Red Wings (2 seed) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (7 seed)

Congratulations to the Blue Jackets for making the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. A big part of that success is due to outstanding rookie goaltender Steve Mason, who recorded 10 shutouts this season to lead the NHL, along with the 2nd best GAA numbers in the league behind Boston's Tim Thomas.

But Detroit has Osgood and Conklin, both very good goaltenders in their own right. Heck, Osgood is one of the best goaltenders of all-time and has a ton of postseason experience, even if Ozzie's regular season numbers were terrible.

The bottom line is that no matter how strong Steve Mason has been this season, Detroit's offense (Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Hossa) is a big red machine of huge proportions.

While this may be the NHL's equivalent of Michigan vs. Ohio State, Columbus is at a huge disadvantage this time around. Even though they split the season series 3-3, the Red Wings are too dominant not to heavily favor.

My Pick:
Detroit in 5 games.

Vancouver Canucks (3 seed) vs. St. Louis Blues (6 seed)

Two Western Conference teams that had excellent second halves. Vancouver gets home ice, and they have Roberto Luongo healthy. The Blues still have too many of their better players injured and they won't be playing in the series.

My Pick: Vancouver Canucks in 5 games.

Chicago Blackhawks (4 seed) vs. Calgary Flames (5 seed)

Blackhawks goalie Nikolai Khabibulin has a  career record of 22-5-2 against Calgary. That's pure pwnage.
And Chicago won all 4 games this season from Calgary. The Flames should however, put up a tough fight, but the youth of Chicago combined with the resurgence of the Bulin Wall, should get Chicago past the 1st round.

My Pick: Chicago Blackhawks in 7 games.

Last night, from the third period onward, I watched the Dallas Stars vs San Jose Sharks Game 6 of the Western Conference Semifinals.

The score at the end of 3 regulation periods, was 1-1. If the San Jose Sharks won, they'd force a game 7, having come back from a 3-0 game deficit. This would also return the series to San Jose for the finale.

Only two times in NHL playoff history has a team come back down 3-0 to win a game 7.

Instead, we got 4 OVERTIME periods of phenomenal saves, exciting plays, momentum turns, and superb drama. Not to mention one of the most insane (and legal) hits you'll ever see with Dallas' Brenden Morrow leveling Shark Milan Michalek.

Michalek was gone for the rest of the game with what was likely a concussion, as well as some sort of arm injury.

But even this amazing hit soon became old news watching both goaltenders Marty Turco and Evgeni Nabokov make superhuman saves to keep their team in the game.

I've actually not had a lot of time to watch the games except for Sabres-Rangers Game 6 on the weekend, but here are my 2nd round predictions, and how they turned out.

Eastern Conference
Buffalo Sabres (1) vs New York Rangers (6)
Original Prediction: Buffalo Sabres in 6.
Reality: Buffalo Sabres in 6.

The Rangers made it interesting, as it was a home team series until Game 6 came around, and the Sabres wouldn't allow this to go back to Buffalo for Game 7.

Ottawa Senators (4) vs New Jersey Devils (2)
Original Prediction: Ottawa Senators in 7
Reality: Ottawa Senators in 5

Martin Brodeur didn't look to be the best goalie in the game during the series against Tampa, and Ottawa is a superior team to the Lightning. Therein lies the result of this series.

Western Conference
Anaheim Ducks (2) vs Vancouver Canucks (3)
Original Prediction: Anaheim Ducks in 5
Reality: Anaheim Ducks in 5

I saw bits and pieces of some of the games since it's in my local market and they're both Pacific Time teams. Anaheim is just REALLY good.

Detroit Red Wings (1) vs San Jose Sharks (5)
Original Prediction: San Jose in 6
Reality: Detroit Red Wings in 6

The only prediction I got wrong. I don't even know how Detroit won or San Jose lost as I don't think I saw any of these games, but I guess I should've given the #1 team in the Western Conference a little more of a shot.

So we move onto the conference semifinals.

Eastern Conference Finals:
Buffalo Sabres (1) vs Ottawa Senators (4)

As I write this, Ottawa already won Game 1, by a large margin I might add, 5-2. I'm still sticking to my belief that the Sabres are not getting stopped by anyone, yet.

Buffalo in 7 games.

Western Conference Finals:
Detroit Red Wings (1) vs Anaheim Ducks (2)

I'm still sticking with Anaheim as the favorite to win the Cup, but I do expect Detroit to be the toughest test they have had so far. With defenseman Mathieu Schneider out for the playoffs due to the broken arm suffered during the San Jose series, that's a huge blow to the team.  But even if he was around, I think Anaheim would beat them either way.

Anaheim in 6 games.

I'm hoping to watch the Anaheim-Detroit series.

So my first round predictions were hit and miss, but that's no surprise. Let's review, shall we?

Eastern Conference
New York Islanders (8) vs Buffalo Sabres (1)
Original Prediction: Sabres in 4
Reality: Sabres in 5

To their credit, the Islanders played a more competitive series than most people would have expected. Certainly the return of Rick DiPietro helped, but while the games were fun to watch because the Isles kept the games close, they still lost in the 1st round, again.

Tampa Bay Lightning (7) vs New Jersey Devils (2)
Original Prediction: Devils in 6
Reality: Devils in 6

I think this is the only prediction I got right on the nose. From the highlights I saw, the Devils looked to be in trouble a little too much, and Brodeur didn't have a dominating series as he usually does. But that just makes me think he's saving one of those golden performances for another round.

New York Rangers (6) vs Atlanta Thrashers (3)
Original Prediction: Atlanta in 7 games
Reality: Rangers in 4

Well, I knew the Rangers would make it a tough series, but I also expected the Thrashers to show up. They got destroyed. The Rangers became a stronger team in March and have been pretty good since. I don't know if they are THAT good, or the Thrashers just choked in their virgin playoff appearance.

Pittsburgh Penguins (5) vs Ottawa Senators (4)
Original Prediction: Penguins in 6
Reality: Senators in 5

This is where I thought there would a surge from Pittsburgh and an upset in the 1st round. It didn't happen. Ottawa completely outplayed the Penguins. As bad as the NHL wants Sidney Crosby to be the next Gretzky (NBC was making constant comparisons on their telecasts), it's not happening, yet.

Western Conference

Detroit Red Wings (1) vs Calgary Flames (8)
Original Prediction: Red Wings in 5
Reality: Red Wings in 6

If you saw this series, it was basically all home ice advantage, until Detroit decided to win game 6 in Calgary in 2 OT. Game 5 in Detroit saw the Red Wings kill the Flames by a score of 5-1. The Flames became a bunch of goons, with the coup de gras being this incident involving backup goaltender Jamie McClennan. McClennan had just come on the ice 17 seconds prior.

McLennan was suspended for five games, not that it mattered since they lost the next game. Huge fines were levied to both the Calgary coach and organization. But most of all, Calgary embarrassed themselves and all of Alberta.

Minnesota Wild (7) vs Anaheim Ducks (2)
Original Prediction: Ducks in 5
Reality: Ducks in 5

Oh wow, I got two predictions on the money. The Ducks are the best team in the West.

Dallas Stars (6) vs Vancouver Canucks (3)
Original Prediction: Stars in 7
Reality: Canucks in 7

Seems like I just got the wrong team. The only one of the 1st round series to go 7 games, and I didn't even get to watch the game 7, though I saw some of the other games, 3 of which went into OT. Game 1 went into 4 OT. This was some good hockey and phenomenal goaltending.

San Jose Sharks (5) vs Nashville Predators (4)
Original Prediction: Sharks in 6
Reality: Sharks in 5

Well, I gave the Predators an extra game of chance, but they couldn't run with it. Same matchup as last year, same result, Sharks in 5. I guess if it happens again next year, I know what my prediction will be.

Overall, 2 predictions on the money (right team, right number of games), 3 predictions on the right team, and 3 incorrect predictions, with the Rangers-Thrashers series being WAYYYYYY off. I hate the fucking Rangers.

So now that that's wrapped up, lets run down the 2nd round (Conference Semifinals) matchups and predictions:

Eastern Conference

Buffalo Sabres (1) vs New York Rangers (6)

The Sabres didn't murder the Isles but they beat them handily. The Rangers just murdered Atlanta. This should be a pretty darn good series, but I still think the Sabres are the team to beat. And the Rangers won't be beating them unless Ryan Miller dies of AIDS this week.

Buffalo Sabres in 6.

Ottawa Senators (4) vs New Jersey Devils (2)

This series is going to depend upon the Devils being the team they should be, instead of the team that had trouble with Tampa Bay. The Lightning had great offense to be sure, but they Devils should've been able to shut them down easily. If Brodeur becomes supergoalie as he has in the past, Devils win. If not...

Ottawa Senators in 7.

Western Conference

Anaheim Ducks (2) vs Vancouver Canucks (3)

The Canucks just got through a long tough series with the Dallas Stars, and now they have to face the best team in the West.

Anaheim Ducks in 5 games.

Detroit Red Wings (1) vs San Jose Sharks (5)

Detroit may have home ice, but San Jose doesn't need it to win. They're a great team and they're going to make this an interesting series.

San Jose in 6 games.

If I get the opportunity to watch more of the games, I'll try and blog my thoughts. We'll see if I'm successful on that front.

Well, it's a little late as I write this, as some of the games have already taken place, but none of the results affect my original predictions.

Actually, as I'm typing this, the Dallas Stars and Vancouver Canucks just ended their THIRD OT period, and will be entering the 4th OT in about 15 minutes. They've been tied 4-4 for awhile now.

In any case, here goes...

Eastern Conference:
New York Islanders (8) vs Buffalo Sabres (1)

Even though the Islanders are my team, they barely squeaked their way into the playoffs. They don't have their top goaltender Rick DiPietro as he's still recovering from the affects of two concussions sustained in March, and it's questionable if he'll be available for the 1st round at all.

The Isles did make it without him, as Wade Dubielewicz (a name which I'm going to need to see a couple of more times before I spell it correctly without help) has been solid in goal for the Isles, but honestly, they're simply not a good enough team to do much of anything in the playoffs, and even less so against the best team in the NHL.

Sabres are gonna sweep the Isles in 4 games. If the Islanders win ANY game in the series, it will be a moral victory.

Tampa Bay Lightning (7) vs New Jersey Devils (2)

The Devils have Brodeur, the best goaltender in modern times, if not all time. The Devils also have a potent offense with guys like Patrick Elias, Jamie Langenbruner, Scott Gomez, Zach Parise. Not to sell the Lightning short, as they have Martin St. Louis, Vincent Lecavalier, Brad Richards. But defensively, this is not the same team that won the Stanley Cup in 2003. As such, New Jersey should dispatch of them easily, but Tampa might win one or two in the series.

New Jersey in 6 games.

New York Rangers (6) vs Atlanta Thrashers (3)

This is an intriguing series. The Rangers have been hot down the stretch, but Atlanta has a solid team for once. This is a fairly even matchup, and I think home ice will be the deciding factor. So that being said...

Atlanta in 7 games.

Pittsburgh Penguins (5) vs Ottawa Senators (4)

As I write this, Ottawa has already won the first game of the series, but Pittsburgh is just too talented to lose in the 1st round, although I don't think they're talented enough to go much further. It'll be a good series either way.

Pittsburgh in 6 games.

Western Conference:
Detroit Red Wings (1) vs Calgary Flames (8)

Detroit is always in the playoffs and they always (?) get past the 1st round. This year will be no different. Detroit isn't going to go down to Calgary, despite the solid goaltending of Mikka Kiprusoff.

Detroit in 5 games.

Minnesota Wild (7) vs Anaheim Ducks (2)

Anaheim not only has two amazing goaltenders in J.S. Giguere and Ilya Bryzgalov, but probably the most well-balanced team in the NHL, including Buffalo. There's no reason that Minnesota should pose much of a threat to the far superior, Ducks, who also happen to be my 2nd favorite team behind the New York Islanders. Obviously, the difference is that one of them has a chance of winning the Stanley Cup.

Anaheim Ducks in 5 games.

Dallas Stars (6) vs Vancouver Canucks (3)

As I watch this game enter its 4th OT period, you have to give credit to two of the league's best goaltenders in Marty Turco and Roberto Luongo, who after years of playing with the subpar Florida Panthers, is finally on a strong team. Still, I think Dallas is the stronger team when it comes to playoff hockey. But everyone is going to be tired for Game 2, especially if this game goes even longer than the 4 OTs its already gone.

Dallas Stars in 7 games.

San Jose Sharks (5) vs Nashville Predators (4)

San Jose, despite the lower seed, is a superior team, but Nashville is fielding the best team they've had in their short history. This is a rematch of last season's playoffs in which San Jose beat them in 5 games. No reason the same shouldn't happen, except in one more game.

San Jose in 6 games.

One thing that disappoints me greatly about the NHL's TV deals, is that when it comes to the many playoff games that are occurring, they're only going to be televised on either your local channels (FSN in most cases), VS. or NBC (weekend games). VS. can only carry so many games, which means a lot of the games won't be available to many people, and that sucks.

I do get to see all of the Ducks games since they're local market, and whatever airs on VS. when I am home, but that is going to mean I miss a lot of the games I want to see, whether that's due to the time the game is played, or it's simply not available. The NHL needs to do something to rectify that issue going forward.

First game was on the VS. network, pitting the Boston Bruins against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Of course, I could give a shit about either team, but it was still a great game.

Down 4-2 in the 3rd period, the Blue Jackets' David Vyborny scores a sweet backhand goal off of Bruins goalie Tim Thomas to make it 4-3.

Then with a 6-on-3 advantage (which always helps) since the Bruins had accrued penalties, and the Blue Jacket pulled their goalie, Sergei Federov fires in the tying goal with only 22 seconds left in the game in front of a raucous home crowd.

We jump to OT, and in one of those moments you just wonder how it ever happens at the NHL level, the Bruins change lines at the most ridiculously inopportune time, allowing David Vyborny to breakaway all alone, as if it was a penalty shot, and scores the game-winner. Very exciting finish. Tim Thomas broke his goalie stick on the post immediately after the goal, as he was WAYYY pissed, and who could blame him?

Next game, Anaheim Ducks vs San Jose Sharks.

I didn't follow this one as closely, but Ducks goaltender J.S. Giguere somehow twisted/hurt his knee when the Sharks scored a goal. Mike Wall (apt name for a goalie) replaced him for the remainder of the game, as the Ducks held on for the win 4-3.

The Ducks are the best team in the NHL right now, and are on pace to be one of the best teams in NHL history.  They're THAT good. I have to get my ass down to Anaheim for a game soon.

The one thing the Ducks can't do though, is lose Giguere for too long.

I then switched to watch the Los Angeles Kings vs Phoenix Coyotes.

This game is now on and in OT while I type this, as the teams are tied 3-3. The game ends tied, and now it's time for a shootout.

The announcers say tonight's game at Staples is sold out, but as usual, I see plenty of empty seats, although it's nothing like the "sellouts" at Dodger games, which are even more ludicrous. Apparently this is the 4th sellout of the season so far.

In any case, the Kings win the shootout as Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown put goals in on Phoenix. Kings goalie Barry Brust stopped two shots during the shootout for the win.

And in the best hockey news of all today, the New York Islanders shut out the New York Rangers 2-0 at Nassau Coliseum, putting the Isles up on the Rangers three games to none so far this season.

Fuck the Rangers.