The 2008 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Guide

The Eastern Conference

Pittsburgh PenguinsScary how much offensive talent is on this team. Sidney Crosby, Evgeni
Malkin, Marian Hossa, Ryan Malone and Petr Sykora each scored 20 or more
goals in the regular season. Defensively they’re decent with Sergei
Gonchar, Ryan Whitney and Brooks Orpik. Pens are solid between the
pipes with Marc-Andre Fleury and Ty Conklin. Their D doesn’t have to be
perfect because the high-powered offense can score 5 or 6
goals a game. Plus Fleury’s a very good netminder. If he gets hurt Conklin is more than reliable. Malkin’s had an unbelievable year. With Crosby out, he carried the team. Bank on the Penguins to go deep, all the way to the Eastern Finals. Series prediction: Pittsburgh 4, Ottawa 0

Canadiens De Montreal
Habs General Manager Bob Gainey took a lot of heat for trading All-Star netminder Cristobal Huet to the Capitals at the trade deadline for a second round pick. So now the Habs have youngsters Carey Price and Jaroslav Halak in goal. They’re good but have no playoff experience. The Habs are hoping Price is the next Patrick Roy. So far so good. The Canadiens have balanced scoring and experience on offense, led by Alex Kovalev. Defensively they’re solid and also experienced. The key is how 20-year-old Price will handle all the pressure. Last year he lead Hamilton to the Calder title in the American Hockey League. All signs indicate he can play under pressure. Series prediction: Montreal 4, Boston 2

Washington Capitals
The Capitals, dead last in the league on Thanksgiving day, could be the sleeper team in the playoffs. They will always be a threat with likely MVP Alexander Ovechkin who won the Ross and Richard trophy. Newcomers Cristobal Huet, Sergei Fedorov and Matt Cooke have energized the Caps. The goaltending situation is now solid with Huet. The defense is young and decent but banged up. Mike Green reminds many of Paul Coffey with his smooth skating. Caps won’t win if ailing blueliners Shaone Morrisonn and Jeff Schultz can’t play. This team can shock the league (they’ve already done that by making the playoffs) and make the Eastern finals if captain Chris Clark and D-man Brian Pothier return to the lineup. Series prediction: Washington 4, Philadelphia 2

New York Rangers
Under the reign of Commissioner Bettman, the NHL lost an entire season due to a player’s strike. A salary cap was added and this would “help” the league as future free agents wouldn’t sign with the big market teams such as the Rangers. Two of the top free agents last season were Chris Drury and Scott Gomez. Guess who signed them? Yes the NYR. But they haven’t jelled with the rest of the team. The Rags got rid of Jaromir Jagr’s center Michael Nylander and Jagr has not been the same. They’re a middle of the pack team: Decent on offense and defense. Goaltender Henrik Lundqvist is a stellar netminder. Their veterans, such as Brendan Shanahan, are starting to slow down. The NYR should squeeze by the Devs in the first round. One series win then done. Series prediction: N.Y. Rangers 4, New Jersey 3

New Jersey Devils
The most boring team is hockey is back in the playoffs as usual. Get off my back, they are the most boring team in the league. Do you actually enjoy watching their games with typical scores such as 2-0, the second goal usually an empty netter? That’s Devils hockey, clog the neutral zone, play the trap to perfection, capitalize and score on odd-man rushes. The heart and soul of this team again is goaltender Martin Brodeur. The future Hall-of-Famer is still a great netminder. The Devs’ D is always good, but not as great as in the past. They’ve never been known for their offense. The Devils work hard and will knock in those loose rebounds.

Philadelphia Flyers
The Broad Street Bullies are back in the playoffs. Bullies they definitely are: Several of their players were suspended throughout the year. They’ve got a pretty good offense with Mike Richards, Danny Briere and Vaclav Prospal. Briere is day-to-day with a knee injury. The defense is steady with Kimmo Timonen, Braydon Coburn and captain Jason Smith. Netminder Martin Biron has been an above-average NHL goaltender. He’ll be making his first playoff start against the Caps. Is he the guy who can frustrate elite forwards such as Ovechkin, Malkin or Crosby? Probably not. Translation: They’ll need a money goaltender to make a serious Cup run. Philly, horrendous last season, should be commended for righting its ship quickly.

Boston Bruins
The good news for the Bruins is that forward Patrice Bergeron, out for most of the season, has been cleared for full contact practice. The talented youngster won’t be playing Game 1 against the Habs but should see action in the series. Boston obviously needs him if they’re thinking upset. Doesn’t help that their top scorer Marc Savard is also ailing with a back injury. Expect him to be in the lineup at some point during the series. Like Montreal’s Price, Tim Thomas also has zero playoff starts between the pipes. Bruins’ D is solid thanks to Zdeno Chara, one of the league’s best. Montreal has won the last 11 games against Boston. The domination should continue.

Ottawa Senators
After a record-setting start, the Sens sputtered and are lucky to be in the playoffs. They’ll likely be swept by the Penguins in the first round. Sens captain Daniel Alfredsson will probably miss the series with a knee injury. They’ll need Dany Heatley and Jason Spezza to pick up the slack. Goaltending is a mess. Ray Emery has been a headache for management. Martin Gerber had a good regular season but in the playoffs he’s primarily a backup. The Sens have a good corps of defensemen led by Wade Redden. They also added reliable Mike Commodore at the trade deadline. Unfortunately for Ottawa, all signs point to an early playoff exit.

The Western Conference

Anaheim Ducks
Mighty is no longer part of the nickname, but the team is very much that. Scary that they haven’t had their full lineup this season. It should happen in the playoffs and that doesn’t bode well for the rest of the NHL. Teemu Selanne and Scott Niedermayer returned in the second half of the season. Captain Chris Pronger got suspended only eight games for viciously stomping on a player with his skate. These guys will be fresh. (Note: Chris Simon got 30 games for the same crime; Pronger isn’t exactly clean, this is his 8th suspension). Ducks have one of the top young players in Ryan Getzlaf. Their D is great and they’re excellent in goal with J.S. Giguere. They could repeat as champs. Series prediction: Anaheim 4, Dallas 1

San Jose Sharks
Defense wins championships. The Sharks are a bona fide Cup team with the addition of defenseman Brian Campbell. Goaltender Evgeni Nabokov had a spectacular season, leading the league with 46 wins. On offense, Joe Thornton is one of the elite forwards in the league. Jonathan Cheechoo’s goal totals have declined since he netted 50 two seasons ago. For the Sharks to make it to the finals, certain players will have to step up, namely Patrick Marleau. An area of concern: Nabokov played in so many games in the regular season. Will he be fresh in the playoffs and can he continue his hot play? If he goes down, there’s no reliable backup. Series prediction: San Jose 4, Calgary 2

Detroit Red Wings
The Red Wings finished with the best record in the regular season to earn the President’s Trophy. However, that doesn’t mean that they’re the best team in hockey. They’re very good but are in a conference that has great teams such as Anaheim and San Jose. The Wings rack up a lot of wins because they play in a weak division. In net, veterans Dominik Hasek and Chris Osgood have been superb. Hasek will likely be the starter. The offense is led by the dynamic duo of Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg. The Wings have the best defenseman in Nicklas Lidstrom. Brian Rafalski also had a great season. They’ll get by the Predators in the first round. Cup finals for the Wings only if Hasek dominates. Series prediction: Detroit 4, Nashville 1

Minnesota Wild
The Wild aren’t loaded with talent but they have a mix of good young players and veterans who work hard. That can take a team far: Calgary reached the Finals three seasons ago with hard work and timely goals. Marian Gaborik, the leader of this team, is a terrific player. Pierre-Marc Bouchard is also one of their young, rising stars. Veterans Brian Rolston and Pavol Demitra chip in offensively. Young Brent Burns could blossom into one of the elite blueliners. He and fellow d-man Kurtis Foster are both 6-5. They’re solid on defense with Kim Johnsson and Nick Schultz. Niklas Backstrom is a top goalie. They have one of the best coaches in Jacques Lemaire. They should get by the Avalanche but a long playoff run doesn’t seem likely. Series prediction: Minnesota 4, Colorado 2

Calgary Flames
You don’t see Jarome Iginla doing Nike commercials in the USA. He should be because he’s one of the best players in the league. The Flames have another stud and his name is Dion Phaneuf. But these guys play in Calgary so they don’t get much press in the states. If the puck bounces the right way for this team – as in they stay healthy and other teams in the West get hurt – they could surprise the league. The Flames will always be in the game thanks to netminder Mikka Kiprusoff. If Calgary played in the Eastern Conference, they’d be one of the top teams. Unfortunately, they get the Sharks in the first round which means an early exit.

Dallas Stars
Believe. That word is across a graphic of the Stanley Cup when you go to the Stars’ website. Whale believes Dallas won’t make it out of the first round. Whale believes that overall, they’re average on offense, defense and between the pipes. They are however very good on the penalty kill. Marty Turco is a decent netminder during the regular season but in the playoffs he’s 11-18. Johan Holmqvist will get a look if Turco struggles. The team traded for Brad Richards to bolster the offense. He’s still adjusting to the system. On defense, Sergei Zubov and Philippe Boucher missed most of the year with injuries. Getting them back will help. Believe? One fan picked a better word: Pray. No chance against the Ducks.

Colorado Avalanche
Look who’s back with the Avs: Peter Forsberg. Not a bad idea bringing him back since the dynamic Swede was an unrestricted free agent and it didn’t cost the team any picks to obtain him. Colorado then traded for Adam Foote for a conditional first and fourth round pick. Say what, a first rounder for a 36-year-old blueliner? The trade doesn’t make sense because the Avs need many more pieces to be a legit Cup team. One thing that’s missing is great goaltending. Jose Theodore may have better hair than Patrick Roy thanks to Propecia, but he’s not the guy who is going to take this team to the Cup or even Western Finals. Minnesota took the regular season series 5-3.

Nashville Predators
Veterans Jason Arnott and J.P. Dumont lead the Predators on offense. Youngster Alexander Radulov continues to improve and should be a great player for Nashville for many years. Dan Ellis’ first full season in the NHL was a success going 23-10. Marek Zidlicky, Ryan Suter and Dan Hamhuis anchor the defensive corps. It’s unlikely that the Preds will upset the Wings even though the regular season series was close; Detroit prevailed 5-3 with two OT wins. Preds are missing a couple key players in Steve Sullivan and Martin Gelinas. What’s important for Nashville is to get playoff experience for youngsters such as Radulov, Suter and Hamhuis, the future studs of this team.