2010 NHL Playoff Predictions

Western Conference-

1. San Jose Sharks
8. Colorado Avalanche

The San Jose Sharks have a huge monkey on their backs after last years first round loss to the 8 seed Anaheim Ducks. The Sharks have not been a team that shows up in the playoffs in years past and has never won a Stanley Cup. Its seems like every year we have this same discussion, will the Sharks show up in the playoffs and win games as they do all regular season long. Well the facts are the facts, the Sharks had the most points in the Western Conference, and have a team full of wily veterans such as Big Joe Thornton, Seattle Thunderbirds product Patrick Marleau, Dan Boyle, and Rob Blake to go along with a stud of a goaltender Evgeni Nabokov. The people picking against the Sharks and saying that they didn't improve forget about the acquisition of Dany Heatley, who played every single game of the regular season and recorded exactly a point per game with 82 points. The Sharks are a great team, and they have the makeup to make a deep run for the Cup. For San Jose, it just comes down to big players being big when it matters, if Heatley can make a difference in the playoffs they will be tough to beat.

What an exciting season for the young Colorado Avalanche. Rookies Matt Duchene and Ryan O'Reilly making huge impacts in the league their first year. Goalie Craig Anderson wanted a chance to start, rather than backup, so he chose to go to Colorado, and what a great choice it was. Anderson stormed out of the gates to lead the Avalanche to an amazing start, considering that they were last in the Western Conference last year. Anderson was just average down the stretch though as the Avalanche limped into the playoffs barely holding off the Calgary Flames. Lots of young guys for the Avalanche, with a few veterans like captain Adam Foote and playoff veteran Darcy Tucker. If Anderson can play like he did to get the Avs off to such a hot start then they have a chance with all the young guys.

PREDICTION- Seems like a lot of people are picking against the best team in the Western Conference according to points. Not me. Dont think that the Sharks will forget what an embarrassment it was last year to go out to the 8 seed in the first round, I dont expect it to happen again. The addition of Dany Heatley will help. The Colorado Avalanche of 2010 are not the Anaheim Ducks of 2009. That Ducks team had a lot of injuries during the season and got into the playoffs finally healthy with a team full of veterans. Avalanche are just happy to have made the playoffs but are still a few years away from contending. They are young and energetic and will be a handfull for the Sharks to start the series, but as the series wears on, the more experienced better team will start to control the series. Everybody is cheering for the Avs to do it again to the Sharks, but I think everybody will be disappointed. Ill take the Sharks in this one, it won't be as close as everybody is thinking. Sharks 4-1.

2. Chicago Blackhawks
7. Nashville Predators

The Chicago Blackhawks are chalked full of talent, offensively, defensively, and in between the pipes? Oops, nevermind the in between the pipes part as this team reminds me a lot of the Capitals out East. It looks like the the Blackhawks will go with young Finnish Goaltender Antti Niemi to make their run to the finals. He replaced Cristobal Huet as the number one guy in net midway through the season. But does it really matter? The Blackhawks offense is so good, that all Niemi needs to do is be decent for this round at least. Blackhawks have offensive players like Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Sharp, and Marian Hossa(WHL Product) to go along with good role players like Kris Versteeg(Another WHL Product), and Andrew Ladd. Ohh and by the way, does anybody know who is second behind Kane in points? Defenseman Duncan Kieth. Yep, that's right, the Canadian born D-man used his bomb from the point on the power play to tally the second most points on the roster with 69 points, including 14 goals. If Niemi plays decent, it'll be tough to stop the balanced scoring attack that the Blackhawks can bring to the table. Could make a deep run this year.

The Nashville Predators always seem to be in this exact same spot. Nobody has heard of any of their players, but somehow they seem to do just enough to get into the playoffs. That is a testament to their coaching staff and the philosophy lead by Barry Trotz. But this year their goal is to get out of the first round, but it will be a tough task facing the Blackhawks. It all starts with Pekka Rinne who will get the call over Dan Ellis. So it will be Finnish goalie vs Finnish goalie in this one, and Pekka Rinne will have to absolutely stand on his head for the Preds to win this one. But Rinne has shown this year that he has the ability to do just that. The Predators offense is also a well balanced attack, but they just don't score a lot. They have veteran leadership from 34-year old Jason Arnott, and other vets like Steve Sullivan. Its going to take a monumental task for the Preds to get by the Hawks, but they just may have what it takes if Rinne plays out of his mind.

PREDICTION- The Preds deserve a lot of credit for getting this far, but I just dont see an upset here. The Fans in Chicago will be rocking as the United Center crowd will know that the Hawks have a chance to win this year. The Preds are a nice story getting this far without tons of talent, but the Blackhawks will just be too much for them. I'll give the Predators one game at home in Nashville, but the Blackhawks will be motivated to close it out quick and get some rest as the next round will likely be tougher. Blackhawks take this one 4-1.

3. Vancouver Canucks
6. Los Angeles Kings

The Vancouver Canucks have been a steady team all year long. Winning the division again, and being tough to play against every night. Led by captain, and Gold Medal winning goalie, Roberto Luongo the Canucks cruise into the playoffs comfortably. General Motors Place is one of the toughest building in the league to play in. The Canucks also have Art Ross winner(most points in the league) Henrik Sedin to go along with his brother Daniel and other scorers like Alexandre Burrows and Ryan Kesler. Make no mistake about it, this team can score goals, and that has been a problem in the past. The Canucks scored the second most goals in the league this year, only finishing behind the Washington Capitals. But as for most teams, it will come down to their goalie, Roberto Luongo. He has struggled since the Olympic break but come playoff time he will be the stud that he always has been. The Canucks will again contend this year for the Cup that has forever eluded them.

For the Los Angeles Kings its been a long time coming, but they are finally back in the playoffs after a 7 year absence. The problem for the Kings has always seemed to be goaltending, but it looks like they have finally found the answer to that equation with the arrival of American goalie, Jonathan Quick. Well at least that is what they thought for most of the season, but recently Quick has struggled, and hasn't won a game in his last eight starts to end the regular season. How much does that matter come playoff time, we will see. The Kings can help Quick out by getting some offensive pressure and scoring which they can do with guys like Dustin Brown, Alexander Frolov, Michal Handzus, and mostly Anze Kopitar who recorded 81 points in 82 games played. The Kings are anchored on the back end by emerging star, and Gold Medalist, Drew Doughty to go along with American Defenseman Jack Johnson. Maybe the biggest difference from last years squad is Ryan Smyth, who made a deep run in the playoffs with the 8 seeded Edmonton Oilers a few years back. Smyth is a guy who is gritty and knows how to win in the playoffs, he will be huge for the Kings young guys to follow after as it will be most of their first time in the playoffs. Kings will need to score goals, and I think they will be able to do that and keep this series interesting.

PREDICTION- The Los Angeles Kings are new to this whole playoff thing and will need to get their feet wet early in this series to feel comfortable. This L.A. team is too inexperienced for me to pick them here. Last season, the Canucks were again the 3 seed and took on the up and coming St. Louis Blues. Everybody was saying the the Blues had a shot, just as they are now with the Kings, but the Canucks swept them out of the playoffs. While I don't foresee that result against the Kings, I do think the Canucks will again move on the the second round behind the goaltending of Luongo and steady scoring form the guys up front. I'll take the Canucks in a pretty close series, but they will close in out at the Staples Center in L.A. Canucks take the series 4-2.

4. Phoenix Coyotes
5. Detroit Redwings

This is probably the best story of the season in the NHL, the Phoenix Coyotes shocked everybody by getting to the playoffs and what do they get? A date with two time defending Western Conference Champions the Detroit Redwings. The Coyotes thought for a few days that they were moving to Hamilton Ontario last summer when they battled a bankruptcy problem. The Yotes have not been a part of the playoffs in 7 years and have never won a playoff series since the move from Winnipeg. Seems like tough odds to overcome, especially when you have to face the Redwings, but the Yotes are not scared of them. The Coyotes were led all year long by goalie Ilya Bryzgalov who had the season of his life recording 42 wins with a 2.29 GAA and a .920 SV%. He has been amazing this year, and will have to do that same plus maybe more against the Redwings to advance to the next round. The Yotes can score some goals too, thanks largely to a trade deadline move that was under the radar. The Yotes picked up Lee Stempniak from the Mapleleafs and he has arguably been the best trade deadline pickup in the whole league recording 18 points, 14 of which were goals in just 18 games with the Yotes. If he can continue this scoring streak and get help from guys like Wojtek Wolski who was another trade deadline pickup, Matthew Lombardi, and Radim Vrbata they could get out of the first round. Shane Doan is the only player with the Yotes that played for the organization when they were in Winnipeg, and he is ready and willing to do anything to get a series win for the city of Phoenix.

What do you say about the Detroit Redwings? Who was everybody kidding when they thought the Wings wouldn't get to the playoffs when they were hovering around the 9 seed until the Olympic break. Ohh yah the Wings streaked to the playoffs with a 16-3-2 run after the Olympics to get into the playoffs as a 5 seed. They know what it takes to win games in the playoffs as they won the last two Western Conference Champions. There is a difference though, this year the Redwings have turned to rookie goaltender Jimmy Howard as he took over the job from aging goalie Chris Osgood. If the Wings get good enough goaltending from the rookie then they will always be tough to beat, but it remains to be seen how the rookie will handle the pressure. The Wings have battled injuries all year long, but are now healthy with Tomas Holmstrom and Johan "The Mule" Franzen back in the lineup. Anchored on the back end by perennial Norris Trophy canidate Nicklas Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski the Redwings look like they will be tough to beat again. For me, it all depends on how rookie goaltender Jimmy Howard will handle the pressure of the playoffs. but the Wings will be in the running for the Cup for as long as I live.

PREDICTION- Everybody in the hockey community is picking the Redwings in this one, I've even heard words and terms like "obviously" and "Lets get serious." Well the Yotes are serious this year, it was no fluke that they finished fourth and at one point late in the season was sitting atop the Western Conference. Are they young, well some of them are but Shane Doan and Ed Jovanovski are experienced veterans that will look to lead their squad to the second round and beyond. The Wings are always here, and while I dont think they will underestimate the Coyotes, I do think they are getting old and might be plagued by a rookie goalie in this years playoffs. As good as the Redwings are, and as experienced as they are I am going to pick against the "obvious favorite" here. The Coyotes are ready to get their first series win in the playoffs since the move from Winnipeg and veterans like Doan and Jovanovski will make it happen. Phoenix will have a long awaited "white out" this year for home games, and while they get accused for not having a good fan base, the fans will come out for the playoffs as they have done down the stretch. Jobing.com Arena will be rocking with excitement as the NHL playoffs will be in that building for the first time ever, following the move from their old arena a few years ago. I'm picking the home underdog Coyotes in this one, and not just becasue they are my favorite team. Yotes take it in 7 games.


Well there you have it guys, I hope you all enjoy, and I hope somebody is actually reading this stuff. To recap, in the Western Conference I have:
1. San Jose Sharks
2. Chicago Blackhawks
3. Vancouver Canucks
4. Phoenix Coyotes

2010 NHL Playoff Predictions

Eastern Conference-

1. Washington Capitals
8. Montreal Canadians

The Washington Capitals won the Presidents trophy this year for one reason, OFFENSE!! Obviously the first person you think of when it comes to the Capitals is Alex Ovechkin, the great 8, and rightfully so with 50 goals this year while missing ten games. But the Capitals can throw a lot of offensive talent to the opposing team besides OV. They have 100+ point scorer Nicklas Backstrom to go along with 40 goal scorer Alexander Semin not to mention lots of complimentary scorers like, Tomas Fleischmann, WHL product Eric Fehr, Seattle Thunderbirds product Brooks Laich, and an excellent pick up last summer with Mike Knuble, to go along with the NHL's top scoring defenseman Mike Green. The Capitals had 12 guys that scored more than 10 goals this year, so offense will not be the problem. Can they defend well enough though? The Capitals dont have a goalie, as a matter of fact they just announced today(Tuesday) who will be starting in goal to start the playoffs. Shouldn't it be a given who the goalie is on a team that hopes to contend for the Cup this year? Jose Theodore had a year and a half of brilliant goaltending in Montreal a few years back but has never lived up to the stud he was predicted to be after that year. Who wants a goalie going into that playoffs that has been a three teams in the last six years? Well thats what the Capitals have this year in Theodore. They have a lot of scoring though, will they be able to score enough to make up for a mediocre run-of-the-mill goaltender that they will take into the playoffs? Well see...

The Montreal Canadians on the other hand are not an exciting offensive team. They have a few guys that can score, like, Tomas Plekanic and his sweet turtle neck, Brian Gionta, Scott Gomez(WHL product), and Michael Cammalleri, but all those guys are not nearly as flashy as some of the boys that the Caps can throw at you. The deciding factor in the Canadiens success will be the play of the goaltender, Jaroslov Halak. This guy took over (WHL product) Carey Price's job midway through the season, and has been stellar ever since, even starting for Team Slovakia in the Olympics. No playoff experience though for Halak, and I don't think hell be good enough to hold off the explosive Capitals.

PREDICTION- Canadian played well with what they had this year, but I just don't see this one being close. Even with the Capitals problems in goal, I dont see them losing to the Habs. Matter of fact they will roll em. Canadians take game 3 at home to keep everybody in Montreal interested and hopeful, but the Verizon Center will be rocking come playoff time, and the Capitals will play good enough in goal for now to not have a scare in this round. Capitals win the series 4-1, wrapping it up at Verizon.

2. New Jersey Devils
7. Philadelphia Flyers

The New Jersey Devils are in the playoffs for the 13th year in a row, but....YAWN....Ohh excuse me did I fall asleep? The Devils just bore me, they play great defense and have a great goalie in Marty Brodeur. And that is not very nice of me, they did try to fix this problem when the picked up Ilya Kovalchuk from the Thrashers before the trade deadline, and they do have some scorers like Parise, Zajac, and Elias. Overall though, they are just a grind it out defensive style hockey team that will win games 2-1. But that is what works in the playoffs most of the time, the Devils won the Cup in 2000 and 2003 with that same philosophy so it works. The Devils style will always make them a contender for the Cup.

The Philadelphia Flyers are an interesting story. After last years first round loss to the Penguins, they signed Ray Emery last summer to fix their goaltending problems only to have him get hurt half way through the year. The Flyers were stuck with their backup, Michael Leighton, who also got hurt awhile later. The Flyers are decimated between the pipes so they have to, or get to, turn to another WHL product, Brian Boucher. Brian Boucher started his NHL career with the Flyers back in the 99-00 season, and after playing for five other teams he is back with the Flyers for an unlikely playoff run. The Flyers barely snuck into the playoffs this year with a shootout win against the Rangers to earn their spot. In goal for that game was Brain Boucher who looked excited to prove the critics wrong when he stopped the final shooter to seal a birth. The Flyers compliment Boucher with a pretty good offensive and exciting team up front. Guys like Mike Richards, Danny Briere, Claude Giroux, and recently recovered Jeff Carter could make it tough on the Devils.

PREDICTION- The Devils always make it this far, and I think they may overlook the Flyers a bit, and not realize they are in a battle until its too late. Everybody talks about how bad Brian Boucher is but wait, doesnt he hold the record for longest shutout streak in the modern era for the NHL? Yes he does, it lasted 332:01 and spanned for five games back in his younger years with the Coyotes. I think Boucher has something to prove, and he knows that he can do that after winning the must win 82nd game of the season against the Rangers. If the Devils win, Brodeur is one of the greatest goalies ever, if the Devils lose he still is. I think I'm in the minority here, but I like the Flyers in this one. These two teams played six times in the regular season, being in the same division, and the Flyers won five of those games. The Devils are too used to being here, and the Flyers are elated not to have to play their big brothers from across their state in Pittsburgh. Call me crazy, but I'll take the Flyers in 6 games, clinching it at home in front of a wild Wachovia Center crowd.

3. Buffalo Sabres
6. Boston Bruins

When you think Buffalo Sabres, you think one player, Ryan Miller. After leading The United States to the Gold Medal game in Vancouver, he will try to put his Buffalo Sabres on his back too, and lead them deep into the playoffs. Ryan Miller is second in both Goals against average(GAA)and Save Percentage (SV%)at 2.22 and .929 respectively. He will need to keep that up to beat Boston and ultimately make a deep run into the playoffs. The Sabres can also score some goals though with 20+ goal scorers like Thomas Vanek, Derek Roy, Jason Pominville, and german born Jochen Hecht to go along with a set up man Tim Connolly. The Sabres hope that Raffi Torres can pitch in for their playoff run, as he has done next to nothing since being acquired from Columbus late in the year. If rookie defenseman, 6'8" Tyler Myers can perform as he did in the regular season in his first playoffs then the Sabres will have a great shot to move on.

The Boston Bruins are ranked near the bottom in the league in every offensive category. The loss of Marc Savard to a concussion a month ago won't help at all, as he was their best set up man. The Boston Bruins had one, that's right one, 20 goal scorer this year in Marco Sturm who had a blazing 22 to go along with only 15 assists in 76 games. Frankly, its hard to imagine that they have made it this far with their anemic scoring, but they did. Whats the old cliche? Offense wins games but Defense wins championships right? Well the Bruins can play Defense. Remember when I said that Ryan Miller is second in GAA and SV%, and guesses as to who is first? Not a lot of people would know that the league leader in GAA and SV% is Tuukka Rask with 1.97 and .931 number respectively. Aside from having maybe one of the best first names in hockey in Tuukka, he also has zero experience come playoff time. He had great numbers in the regualr season but whether that adds up to playoff success remains to be seen.

PREDICTION- Everybody is picking the Sabres in this one in a rout, but not so fast. Tuukka, Tuukka, Tuukka(I love saying that name) Rask can is athletic between the pipes for the B's. Against any of the other top seeds I might have predicted the upset, but not against Ryan Miller. I dont see this one being a sweep as some do, because this series will be low scoring and tight which means any team can win on any given night. All things being equal in net, which I'm not sure that they are because of Tuukka, Tuukka, Tuukka's lack of playoff experience, I still like the Sabres offense much better. I'll take the Sabres to close it out in 6 games at the TD Garden in Boston.

4. Pittsburgh Penguins
5. Ottawa Senators

What can you say about the Pens, they have some of the best offensive players in the league with Sid and Malkin to go along with veteran leadership in Billy Guerin-tee, and Sergei Gonchar, not to mention great role players like Matt Cooke and Tyler Kennedy. Sounds like a winning combination huh? Well not so fast. After getting over that hump winning the Cup last year, people expected them to come in and dominate the East this year. That hasn't happened yet, the Pens went 0-6 against the Devils this year, and it cost them the division. But that didn't seem to bother them last year when they won the Cup from the exact same position in the East, the 4 seed. With the talent that the Penguins have up front, as long as Marc-Andre Fluery steps it up come playoff time as he did last year, they will always have a chance.

Ohh yah, the Ottawa Senators are playing in this series too, I forgot. The Senators are maybe the most underrated 5 seed to ever play in the playoffs. All people are talking about is the Penguins, and that this series will be a formality. Not if Ottawa has anything to say about it. The Senators have a pretty good offensive team with guys like Daniel Alfredsson, Jason Spezza, and (recently engaged to one of the most attractive women in the world, Carrie Underwood) Mike Fisher. To have a chance in this series these three guys will have to do just that, score. After signing Pascal Leclaire to tend the pipes in Ottawa, another injury plagued year slowed him down, but not to worry Ottawa fans, Brian Elliott to the rescue. Elliott stepped in nicely midway through the season and ended up with pretty good numbers that give fans in Ottawa a reason to believe. And believe they will if the Sens can get a split in Pittsburgh. Don,t sleep on Elliott and the rest of the Sens, as they can be a problem for anybody in the league.

PREDICTION- Two years ago, the Senators got swept by the Pens in the first round, but I got this feeling that won't happen this time around. The Penguins expect to be here, and they are going to overlook the Sens. I think that if the Senators can go in to Pittsburgh and split the first two games, that will do wonders for their confidence. If that happens, and I think it will, the Senators will come back home to one of the best home records in the league this year and be energetic and ready to play for their fans. I dont know if its because I'm cheering for them or what, but I feel like a shocker is going to happen here. If it goes 7 games, the Penguins will win at home. I'm predicting an upset though, the Senators will win in 6 games in front of a rowdy crowd at Scotiabank.


There you have it. My first round predictions in the Eastern Conference are:
1. Washington Capitals
3. Buffalo Sabres
5. Ottawa Senators
7. Philadelphia Flyers