Hockey: Playoff Preview Part 2

Playoff hockey certainly didn’t take long to impress, did it? One game featured an excellent defensive battle between the Wild and the Ducks in which the Ducks prevailed. The other 3 games each had 9 goals scored; but with a unique twist on each one. Ottawa handled the Penguins 6 – 3 and looked very good in doing so. Meanwhile, the game that I thought would take the crown as the game of the night for sure, San Jose and Nashville took a 4 – 4 tie into double overtime, where the Sharks finally got the tally to take game one. Not to be outdone, though, Vancouver and Dallas also took a 4 – 4 tie into OT… except they took FOUR periods to decide theirs when Vancouver netted the game winner and sent the home fans home happy. You don’t have a pulse if you don’t love this stuff.

The main notes I have from today’s action regard Jonathan Cheechoo and Marty Turco. To Cheechoo, I hope the injury he sustained in the knee-to-knee cheap shot isn’t serious; I’m not a Sharks fan by any stretch of the imagination, but you hate to see a series potentially decided by an injury. Look back to last year’s finals when Dwayne Roloson got injured for Edmonton. Losing a key player and than losing a series always leaves the question “what if…?” and I’m hoping that isn’t the case in this series.

Let’s also give credit where it is due; Marty Turco did a hell of a job keeping his team in the game for over 3 shutout periods of hockey. Does this cure his playoff woes? Not necessarily. But guys notorious for being choke-artists in the post season usually don’t make 33 straight saves in overtime. That being said, one of the only things more impressive than 51 saves over 6 and change periods of hockey is 72 saves over that span of time. Wow. You’re the man Roberto… but this doesn’t come as a surprise to anyone.

Lastly, before I get into the rest of my playoff preview, hats off to Comcast for web casting some of the games for free. I brought my laptop to class and was able to watch the third period and both overtimes of the San Jose / Nashville game, and I loved every minute of it. Check that out here: http://www.comcast.net/sports/nhl/hockeylive/

And now; the last 4 series of the 1^st round.

THE EAST

#1 Buffalo Sabres VS. #8 New York Islanders

The Islanders added Ryan Smyth at the trade deadline, which gave them that extra little push they needed to beat the pack for the final playoff spot in the east. The real reason for the Islanders success, though, won’t even be a factor in this series; and that is Rick DiPietro. Playing like a guy worthy of a 15-year contract, DiPietro’s 2.58 GAA and .919 SV% don’t even tell the full story of how many games this guy kept them in. With DiPietro out with a head injury, goaltending duties will be left to Wade Dubielewicz, who has filled in admirably down the stretch. Still, despite the fact that the Islanders certainly have some players that can beat you, Buffalo is just too deep and too talented for this Islanders team. I think with a different first round match-up and with a healthy DiPietro between the pipes, this could have been a decent sleeper pick of a team; but not this year. Buffalo outclasses the competition and cruises into the next round.

BUFFALO IN 4.

#2. New Jersey Devils VS. #7 Tampa Bay Lightning

The 100 point 1 – 2 punch of Lecavlier and St. Louis will strike fear into anyone – even the goaltender that broke Bernie Parent’s record for most wins in a season this year. Arguably (and I’m one of those arguing in favor) the greatest goaltender of all time, Martin Brodeur will look to the lead the Devils on yet another run to the cup. And he’ll definitely get by this round. Not to take anything away from the Lightning, who certainly have a solid team, but goaltending wins championships. The Holmqvist (2.85 GAA, .893 SV%) / Denis (3.19, .883) connection just doesn’t hold a candle to Brodeur, and neither one of them has playoff experience. This Lightning team might make it interesting, but I anticipate the Devils taking care of business.

NEW JERSEY IN 6.

#3 Atlanta Thrashers VS. #6 New York Rangers

I like this Thrashers team a lot, but their special teams makes them a very risky pick. Despite the fact that they’ve got plenty of goal scorers and playmakers on this team, I just can’t ignore the fact that they are 23^rd on the power play and 26^th in penalty killing, compared to the Rangers, who are 8^th on the power play and 12^th on the penalty kill. Those numbers speak for themselves, especially in the playoffs, where special teams become even more pivotal. It wont surprise me at all to see Lehtonen get hot and the Thrashers to win this series; but I’ve got to take the popular upset pick and go with the well-balanced Rangers in this one.

NEW YORK IN 6

THE WEST

#1 Detroit Red Wings VS. #8 Calgary Flames

This game epitomizes just how tough the West is. The Calgary Flames have one of the top 5 goalies in the league in Miikka Kiprusoff, a deceptively solid offense, and one of my favorite defensive corps in the league, including the likes of Dion Phaneuf, Roman Hamrlik, Brad Stuart, and Robin Regehr. And yet, this team is an 8^th seed, and a decided underdog. And rightfully so – the once offensively insane Red Wings (think Yzerman, Shanahan, Federov) can still put pucks in the net; but all of a sudden they play an excellent defensive game, too. And last year’s weakness between the pipes has been taken care of, as the ageless legend that is Dominick Hasek now leads the way. I do like the Red Wings to win this series and end their recent post-season woes; but I think it takes them the maximum amount of games to do it.

DETROIT IN 7