2009 Skating NHL Playoffs Thread

...And on the 189th day, Lord Stanley said, "Let there be a two month long tournament where the winner receives a silver chalice."

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With Anaheim getting two points in a 4-3 shootout win in Dallas, sixteen of The Original 30 qualified for the playoffs. In the final two days of the 2008-09 season, all that remains is seeding and waiting to see how badly the Islanders botch the first overall pick come late June.

But before Gary Bettman utters the following in June, "With the first pick, the New York Kansas City Las Vegas Kitchner-Waterloo Flin Flon Islanders select...are they serious? They are? Christ, Charles Wang makes me long for the days of John Spano. Oh shit, the mic's still on? Fuck. I gotta get through this. Sorry about that ladies and gentlemen. I'm just stunned. Anyway, with the first pick, the New York Kansas City Las Vegas Kitchner-Waterloo Flin Flon Islanders select Alexander Daigle...," there is the matter of the two month long playoffs--the best in sports.

So, who ya got?

I'm picking Carolina to win the Cup. The Whalercanes are hot at the right time. Since re-acquiring Erik Cole, the line combinations have fit together perfectly. Despite one bad game against Buffalo, Cam Ward has been fantastic. They're fairly young but possess playoff experience. That's why I think they win the Cup in June.

Vancouver wins the West. Obviously, Luongo's great. Unlike past years, they're healthy and can score.

As of this posting, here are the matchups. I'll make my series picks here. Once the final seedings come out, I'll make those picks (not much should change) as well.

East:
[1]Boston vs. [8] Montreal: Role reversal from last year's first round series. Difference is that Boston was relatively healthy and playing pretty well going into last year's playoffs. After a long, controversial year, Montreal has nothing left in the tank. Bruins in five.
[2]Washington vs. [7] NY Rangers: Following Thursday's night's 2-1 playoff clinching win against Philadelphia, Rangers fans have been debating whether the Blueshirts should want to play Boston or Washington. Truth is, the impotent-for-much-of-the-season Rangers don't stand a puncher's chance, even with Henrik Lundqvist. Capitals in five.
[3]New Jersey vs. [6] Pittsburgh: Remember when Zach Parise was a Hart candidate? Remember when Marty came back and broke Patrick Roy's record for wins? Remember how good they were? Yeah, well, they've been that bad since. There's something bad going on in Newark and catching the hot Pens in the first round ain't the antibiotic the Devils need. Penguins in six.
[4]Philadelphia vs. [5] Carolina: Martin Biron was named the Flyers goaltender for the playoffs. Philly still needs a No. 1 goaltender. Philly's defense has all the mobility of King Tut. The Flyers have firepower, but I don't trust Carcillo not to do something stupid. Plus, Carolina's my pick to win the Cup. Carolina in five.


West:
[1]San Jose vs. [8] Anaheim: Sharks have played first place hockey all year long. Ducks are playing well right now. Should be a dandy. Sharks in seven.
[2]Detroit vs. [7] St. Louis: The defending Cup Champs have not played well down the stretch. Conversely, St. Louis has been playing playoff games for about a month now. A young team, there should be nothing left in their tank, but I got a feeling about John Davidson's crew. Blues in six.
[3]Vancouver vs. [6] Columbus: Steve Mason and Rick Nash introduction to playoff hockey. The Jackets won't last long, but as far as first tastes go, it'll be wonderful for the people in Ohio. Canucks in six.
[4]Chicago vs. [5] Calgary: Neither team has played lights out down the stretch. Chicago's young and do they have the goaltending? Is Calgary healthy? Whoever wins this series won't last long in the next round. Due to their experience, I'm reluctantly leaning towards...Calgary in seven.

 

Blues and Ducks aren't locked into seeding yet.

 

As usual, he's a little early with this. Regular season isn't over til Sunday.

 

Option 17 for me, danke.

 

I guess this is where I'm supposed to hope HB isn't a jinx.

 

Does anyone know if every NHL playoff game is available to watch on NHL.com's Gamecenter?

 

My team is long gong. But I'm giving the edge to New Jersey, it was them or San Jose. Jersey slumped down the stretch but they had little to play for, not that that should be an excuse but it happens. They have a relatively fresh Brodeur for once and this team is a well rounded as they've been since their last Cup. Oh and I've learned never to count out Brodeur.
San Jose is not the same dominant team they were for the first half of the year. Injuries have started to play a huge role the last little bit and Nabakov -- while they tried to rest him down the stretch -- just hasn't seemed himself of late.
Tough choice, but I gotta go with the Devils.

 

Give me another Bruins/Sharks match-up and I'm happy. Gotta avenge that 5-2 loss.

 

Chicago won all four games against Calgary in the regular season, including three blowouts.

Chicago has home ice, Calgary is banged up.

Khabibulin is fresh.

Hawks in five.

 

Not sure. I think it works the same way as Center Ice, where you get everything that isn't 1: locally broadcast or 2: nationally broadcast.

 

Fixed.

And P.S., I hate polls.

And P.P.S., what are 'skating NHL playoffs'? Is that an attempt to be clever? Or is it an American thing?

 

I believe it's a play on the 'running' threads we have for other sports.