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Playoff Prediction Time!

April 15, 2014, 3:03 PM ET [20 Comments]
Jason Lewis
Los Angeles Kings Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
The playoffs officially start tomorrow, and there are some tremendous series on the docket.

What good playoff season would be complete though without some terrible and awful predictions? Hopefully I can fill the void of that right now as I go series by series and predict what I think might happen in the first round. Of course my goal in this is to not be terrible, but ya know,it happens.

Anyways, we will make it short and sweet. I would also love to hear what my readers have in terms of predictions for the first round. Hit up the comment section and let me know.

Here are my predictions for the 2013-14 first round.

Western Conference

Colorado (1) v. Minnesota (4)

Colorado wins the series 4-0

Yea, this is my bold prediction so I might as well knock it out of the way first. I think Colorado will be the one and only sweep of the playoffs. The Avalanche have been on an absolute tear heading in, and I don't see any way they will be stopped. Also, if you think Patrick Roy was jacked for the regular season...just wait til he is behind the bench and in the locker room for a post-season game. OH MAN. I expect he will have the Avs running through a wall in these games. I like Minnesota, don't get me wrong. They are a blue collar team, but I just don't see them having the weapons, the depth, or the goaltending to take a game off the Avs. The latter of the three is my biggest concern. Best case scenario it goes five and Minny wins one at home, but I am going to go bold and say it's a sweep.

St. Louis (2) v. Chicago (3)

Chicago wins the series 4-2

I think I said Chicago in seven on twitter last night, but St. Louis is just too battered and beat up to me. Chicago has been terrible to close out the year but the Blues are going to be icing a skeleton crew, if not an injured crew to take on the Stanley Cup champs. Morrow, Backes, Oshie, Tarasenko, Berglund...they are all injured and/or have been nursing some form of an injury in recent weeks. I don't care how bad the Blackhawks have been playing, when you have the lineup they do and the experience they do...you'll wake up when the games matter. Historic rivals? First round exit on the line? I don't see Chicago not waking up for this one.

Anaheim (1) v. Dallas (4)

Anaheim wins the series 4-2

Don't sleep on Dallas. That being said, they just don't have the depth in my eyes to take on the Ducks in a seven game series. The Ducks got a great draw here by winning the division, and they avoided what could have been a California massacre with the Kings or the Sharks. However they will have to contain Benn, Seguin, and Nichushkin, who have been one of the best lines in the NHL at times this season. Eakin, Cole, and Chiasson have also been quite strong this year so it's not as if they are a one line team. I like the Ducks matching up defensively though. With Lindholm, Beauchemin, Lovejoy, Fowler, and Robidas on the blue line, the Ducks should be able to limit the damage to some degree. They play a wide open style though and the Stars have some speed as well, so we could see some high scoring games. Dallas knows what they are in for here and they have nothing to lose, so the Ducks best play up to the moment or this one could be a potential shocker first-round upset.

San Jose (2) v. Los Angeles (3)

Los Angeles wins the series 4-3

It might be 6, it might be 7. But it is going to be a long series. A tiresome series. The games they have played this season have been a toss up, and I don't expect that to change. I think the difference makers in this series are A) the goaltending and B) the mental advantage. The Kings HAVE TO...and I mean HAVE TO see Jonathan Quick outplay Antti Niemi. If that happens then this series should fall in favor of them. As far as the mental advantage though, the Kings have last year's post season hanging over the Sharks. Whether or not the Sharks can fight off the demons of 2012-13 remains to be seen. It isn't as big a determining factor as the goaltending battle, but it's the only other separation these two teams have. This one will be a battle.

Eastern Conference

Boston (1) v. Detroit (4)

Boston wins the series 4-1

I like Detroit. They got into the playoffs when they probably shouldn't have. They have had so many injuries and so much bad luck that it's incredible to me that they are even here. I commend them for that. Their reward? Here, you get the hottest and arguably the best team in hockey. I don't discount the sixth man though here, and I think Detroit will take at least one game in the Joe. The Red Wings have been playing for their lives for the last month and a half, while the Bruins have been pretty assured of their fate. Still, Boston just overmatches the Red Wings.

Tampa Bay (2) v. Montreal (3)

Tampa Bay wins the series 4-2

I probably won't make any friends with that prediction, but I believe in the youth of Tampa Bay. I also believe in Ben Bishop...if he's healthy to go. A lower body injury suffered a week ago by the Lightning stand out has put a little bit of doubt in the mind of critics that TB can win this series. However, they have dealt with setbacks this season already when they lost leading scorer Steven Stamkos for an extended amount of time and had their leader Marty St. Louis dealt away. Tampa has seemingly been able to rise to the occasion in the face of adversity. I'm feeling it here. Montreal has the sixth man working for them in a crazy and rabid Bell Centre, but I think the Lightning can steal one there and close out the series in six. Mind you, Tampa Bay did not lose a game in regulation throughout the season series against Montreal going 3-0-1.

Pittsburgh (1) v. Columbus (4)

Pittsburgh wins the series 4-1

This is my other potential sweep, but I feel that Columbus will be able to swipe at least a game from the Pens. I like the youth of Johansen, Jenner, Atkinson, and the numerous other up and comers that Columbus has, but in a similar fashion to the Boston/Detroit series...they are just overmatched. We can get a glimpse of the next wave for the Blue Jackets though, which should be fun. Pittsburgh shouldn't take them lightly, but this has the makings of a pretty straightforward series for the Pens.

New York Rangers (2) v. Philadelphia (3)

New York wins the series 4-3

I probably won't make friends with that pick either. I just have to go with my better instincts on this though. It will be either six or seven. I like the way the Rangers match up. I like Lundqvist vs. Mason, but more importantly I like the Rangers D against the Flyers forwards more than the Flyers D against the Rangers forwards. The Rangers D corp of Girardi, McDonagh, Staal, Klein, Stralman and now Diaz have been quietly effective and shutting down opponents all year. They will however have their hands full with Giroux and company. Another huge factor is road play. Neither team dropped a game at home so this could be a replay of the Kings Sharks series last year where the home-ice team won out. Unfortunately for Philly...that's the Rangers. This should be, outside of the Sharks Kings, the best first round series to watch. These teams hate each other, and everything is on the line in a best of seven series. God I love playoff hockey like this.


Alright, I gave you mine, now let's hear yours! Or if you want to just tell me how stupid my predictions are we can do that also! Have at it.

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