Meanwhile, All Was Quiet On The Western Front. Well, almost.
Dallas Will Win If: They play like they did in the regular season. But how many times have we seen the first place team fall flat in the postseason? A note of warning not only to Dallas but also to Washington. The Wild, however, are battling through some injuries, and also finished the season playing win one, lose one hockey. That's not the level they need to beat the Stars.
Minnesota Will Win If: They can overcome two key injuries. No one is saying for sure how long Zack Parise and Thomas Vanek. The good news is, they are starting on the road, so game one isn't a priority. The even better knews is Mikko Koivu is healthy and ready. What Minny needs to do is find a way to stick around. This is going to be a series where the longer it goes, the better the Wild will play. While he's lacking in experience, I actually expect Devan Dubnyk to have his first great playoff series in goal. However, it will probably not be enough.
My Pick: Dallas in six games
St. Louis Will Win If: They can battle through the Chicago mystic. This is a simply a matter of home ice disadvantage for them. They might need both the first two at home. Winning in Chicago isn't going to be easy. St. Louis lacks a few key components to compete with Chicago. They do not have the league's top scorer. Chicago does. They do not have the league's best two-way player. Chicago does. They do not have a surprising rookie. Chicago does.
Chicago Will Win If: They stay with St. Louis. The Blues do not have the playoff success that the Blackhawks have had in recent years, which is all the more reason Chicago should actually be the favourite here. How about I put the rest in simpler terms. If everyone does what they are capable of doing on Chicago, things will all fall in place for them.
My Pick: Chicago in six games. I like the Hawks to get to the conference finals, too.
Anaheim Will Win If: The Ducks get the goaltending from Gibson in the regular season. Also, Anaheim has been playing like it's playoff hockey for the past several weeks, bringing their game to the next level. They need to continue with that. Now is not the time for a drop in play. The Ducks are dealing with some injuries. The most significant, to me, is Kevin Bieksa. He's what I like to call a playoff vagabond. He may be 34, but he's been to a final back in 2011, so Anaheim did the smart thing in signing him. While not know for his offence, the blueliner is known to bring it in the postseason. Between the 2009 and 2011 postseason, all Kevin did was record 23 points in 37 games. If he's slowed by anything however, that could be a problem for Anaheim.
Nashville Will Win If: They can steal some games on the road. An encouraging sign was the Preds' record of 11-5-2 away from home to finish the season. They must steal games one or two. Pekka Rinne will be called upon to make some big stops. He's capable. But here, you have to give the big edge to Anaheim
My Pick: Anaheim in five games
Central Division
Dallas Stars (1) VS. Minnesota Wild (WC2)
Dallas Will Win If: They play like they did in the regular season. But how many times have we seen the first place team fall flat in the postseason? A note of warning not only to Dallas but also to Washington. The Wild, however, are battling through some injuries, and also finished the season playing win one, lose one hockey. That's not the level they need to beat the Stars.
Minnesota Will Win If: They can overcome two key injuries. No one is saying for sure how long Zack Parise and Thomas Vanek. The good news is, they are starting on the road, so game one isn't a priority. The even better knews is Mikko Koivu is healthy and ready. What Minny needs to do is find a way to stick around. This is going to be a series where the longer it goes, the better the Wild will play. While he's lacking in experience, I actually expect Devan Dubnyk to have his first great playoff series in goal. However, it will probably not be enough.
My Pick: Dallas in six games
St. Louis Blues (2) VS. Chicago Blackhawks (3)
St. Louis Will Win If: They can battle through the Chicago mystic. This is a simply a matter of home ice disadvantage for them. They might need both the first two at home. Winning in Chicago isn't going to be easy. St. Louis lacks a few key components to compete with Chicago. They do not have the league's top scorer. Chicago does. They do not have the league's best two-way player. Chicago does. They do not have a surprising rookie. Chicago does.
Chicago Will Win If: They stay with St. Louis. The Blues do not have the playoff success that the Blackhawks have had in recent years, which is all the more reason Chicago should actually be the favourite here. How about I put the rest in simpler terms. If everyone does what they are capable of doing on Chicago, things will all fall in place for them.
My Pick: Chicago in six games. I like the Hawks to get to the conference finals, too.
Pacific Division
Anaheim Ducks (1) VS. Nashville Predators (WC1)
Anaheim Will Win If: The Ducks get the goaltending from Gibson in the regular season. Also, Anaheim has been playing like it's playoff hockey for the past several weeks, bringing their game to the next level. They need to continue with that. Now is not the time for a drop in play. The Ducks are dealing with some injuries. The most significant, to me, is Kevin Bieksa. He's what I like to call a playoff vagabond. He may be 34, but he's been to a final back in 2011, so Anaheim did the smart thing in signing him. While not know for his offence, the blueliner is known to bring it in the postseason. Between the 2009 and 2011 postseason, all Kevin did was record 23 points in 37 games. If he's slowed by anything however, that could be a problem for Anaheim.
Nashville Will Win If: They can steal some games on the road. An encouraging sign was the Preds' record of 11-5-2 away from home to finish the season. They must steal games one or two. Pekka Rinne will be called upon to make some big stops. He's capable. But here, you have to give the big edge to Anaheim
My Pick: Anaheim in five games
Los Angeles Kings (2) VS. San Jose Sharks (3)
Los Angeles Will Win If: Copy and paste what I said about Chicago here. Only be sure to delete the part about opening on the road. The Kings are back and hungrier than ever, having added Milan Lucic in the offseason for some grit. Needless to say, he has brought that and then some. Los Angeles has it all: Talent, character, depth, goaltending, swagger, you name it!
But without getting too carried away with all that, I don't see the Kings as a team that is just happy to be back in the playoffs. They've won it all in 2012 and 2014. In between, they made the conference finals. Jonathan Quick was nothing short of sensational those three years, and there's nothing to make me believe he's not going to have his "A" game here. Again, everyone only needs to do what they are capable of doing.
San Jose Will Win If: They can somehow match up with Los Angeles big guns. San Jose did manage to ice a healthy team this season, if it matters. And veteran Joe Thornton must play up to his capabilities. He struggled the last time these two teams met. No repeats of that are allowed. The other Joe (Pavelski) was second on the Sharks in scoring. The fact that they have two great centres helps. Also, San Jose got James Reimer in a late-season trade. It's gonna be Martin Jones in game one, but if he falters, Reimer will be raring for his first postseason experience in three years.
My Pick: Los Angeles in six games.
References
"Official Site of the National Hockey League" | NHL.com. National Hockey League. Web. 14 Apr. 2016. <https://www.nhl.com>
References
"Official Site of the National Hockey League" | NHL.com. National Hockey League. Web. 14 Apr. 2016. <
Sports Reference LLC. Hockey-Reference.com - Hockey
Statistics and History. Web. http://www.hockey-reference.com/. Web. 14 Apr. 2016.
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