First off, great to see the Pens break some hearts in Ottawa. Another great comeback win, and now a bit of a rest before the next round. Of the remaining field, they can still face anyone but Washington, keeping Gary Bettman's wet dream of a Caps-Pens ECF still alive.
And how about the Flyers losing Carter and Gagne? Right as they deliver the knockout blow to the Devils, they lose their chance of beating anyone in the second round. If you don't think Washington was looking ahead to the Flyers in their last game, you don't know the Caps.
And of course, the Sharks won. Shouldn't be a surprise, but it is. My only regret is that Brandon Yip will not be in the later rounds.
Let's see where we stand:
(1) Washington @ (8) Montreal
Habs are screwed. Neither Canadian team in the East has managed to win a single home game. The Habs have been outscored 11-4 at home thus far. Still, they've played very well in DC. You could say that the fans of both teams have little tolerance for losing, so it puts the home team in the pressure spot. This is why the Caps won't let it come back home.
Prediction: Caps in 6, winning on Monday 5-2
(3) Buffalo @ (6) Boston
Amazing how everyone bashes the Pens for "taking game 5 off" when it still took triple overtime to beat them. Meanwhile, Boston completely shit the bed in their game 5, and then showed that the Sabres were in their head late. Boston hasn't exactly been lights out at home, but this series has been pretty unpredictable thus far. It's almost certain Pittsburgh plays the winner, so I hope they go 7. And I think they will.
Prediction: Bruins in 7, still
(2) Chicago @ (7) Nashville
Ah, Nashville. You've put up an excellent fight thus far. But Rinne is finally looking vulnerable. And we all know Hossa can only lose in the Stanley Cup Finals. It looks like the Preds won't get the chance to break their record of 2 wins in a single postseason. At least the various would-be owners of the team that are now in prison aren't missing much.
Prediction: Hawks win game 6 (still), 3-1
(3) Vancouver @ (6) Los Angeles
My faith in "Kings in 7" is still there, but much shakier. The Kings let their game get away from them the last two matchups. They need to show they can fight for their lives to be much of anything in this season, and if they lose tonight, they wouldn't have had enough to really compete anyway. Guess I'll stay the course.
Prediction: Kings in 7, still
(4) Phoenix @ (5) Detroit
Order has been restored. The Wings should walk all over the Yotes tonight in Joe Louis. The team has far too much experience to be caught sleeping like in game 3. I expect the Coyotes to at least make it a little difficult. And I would hope they can still prevail in 7. However, no.
Prediction: Wings win game 6 (still), 4-2
- Matt
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Sucks to be NJ.
Washington @ Montreal -
Fully agree. Montreal let the series get away last Saturday. They could have been up 2-0. Instead, they handed the series to Washington.
Buffalo @ Boston -
Disagree on the outcome but agree on the length. I think Buffalo has been demonstrably better than Boston this series, they've just taken a few periods off. Get Vanek back on the ice, and score on the power play (law of averages!) and it'll be fine.
Chicago @ Nashville -
Chicago is the better team and closes this one out, but will get smoked by Vancouver next round. Hossa should have gotten a 1-2 game suspension - hooray for the spinning wheel of justice!
Detroit @ Phoenix -
As much as I'd like to see Detroit flop in the first round against a team owned by the league, it's not happening. Detroit moves on.
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