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Without much news to discuss concerning the Calgary Flames, today’s blog will be short and sweet. As I promised, I have included my Western Conference projections for the first round of the playoffs. Be kind, and enjoy!
About the only news to report, which many or most of you have already discussed in recent blogs, the Calgary Flames farm, the Abbotsford Heat of the AHL, are moving their club after another year of losses, claims the city.
Abbotsford has paid the Flames organization a reported $5M to take their affiliate team, and go. A pretty bold indication that they do not want anything to do with the team anymore after experiencing year after year of losses.
Given that the Flames farm team is near Vancouver, one of their rivals, it stands to reason that there isn’t a large interest in the team. That said, and after reportedly losing $12M dollars, Mayor Bruce Banman says enough is enough.
There are several markets which could possible acquire the Heat such as Saskatoon, but Flames CEO Ken King says Glen Falls NY is a good possibility.
Having your farm team very close is an advantage for the NHL club, as there is less travel time between call ups, and the communication level and or “scouting… is much easier on those from above. Hopefully the organization will do their best to keep limited real estate between the two clubs while also ensuring it can thrive in its new city.
Western Conference Predictions
Anaheim Ducks vs. Dallas Stars As with my Eastern predictions, I had a few match-ups who I felt were going to be a walk in the park. Meet the Ducks vs Stars series…your Western Conference David vs Goliath. Ok I know – the Stars are by no means a weak team and they have a lot to offer in this match-up. They will likely give the Ducks a run for their money during each game, but Anaheim has simply been too strong of a team for them to lose more than…say…one game.
When breaking down the numbers, these two teams are actually somewhat similar, on paper. That said, when I watch the two teams play I can’t help but favor the overall game of the Ducks in direct comparison. The Stars have a nice mix of experienced players but also talented youth which will certainly help them throughout the series, though the overall depth of the Ducks will simply not be matched.
All that said, the Ducks walk through to the second round after five games. Final: Ducks 4 Stars 1
San Jose Sharks vs. Los Angeles Kings I had a tough time deciding between these teams for two reasons; the San Jose Sharks are due for some playoff success, but on the contrary, the Kings have been playing great.
Moreover, when breaking down the play of either team of late, it makes it that much more difficult as they both have similar records in their last ten games meaning neither have a ton of “mojo… coming into the series, so to speak. That said, each team will have certain strengths such as the Sharks power play percentages and the Kings size, vs their weaknesses such as San Jose’s overall depth vs LA’s specialty teams.
Where I feel the difference will ultimately lie, as appears to be the case for most teams, will be the fact that San Jose has not been as strong between the pipes as has been Los Angeles. And while the margins aren’t exactly large in terms of their Sv%, the Kings have better shots against records and also shooting percentage numbers, meaning that their goalie will ultimately need to do less work.
Final: Sharks 4 Kings 3 (gut feeling on this one…sorry guys)
St. Louis Blues vs. Chicago Blackhawks Everyone has a favorite matchup on either side of the conferences, and for me, this is the one.
As most of you know, I’ve always followed and enjoyed watching the St Louis Blues throughout the years and as such, I will be rooting them on. With that established, my prediction for this series is not biased by any means. The Chicago Blackhawks are the clear favorites, so it seems, given that they are the defending Cup champions and the Blues are entering the playoffs on a losing streak.
And while the above would normally sway my decision, what the Blues have to offer is a very strong defensive tandem and team who makes it very difficult to score against. Ranked 5th in the league for SAF%, the Blues will make it tough on the Hawks to get anything going.
Provided that the Hawks are not at 100% in terms of injuries and goaltending, I put my chips on the Blues this series as they are one team who are due for some playoff success. Final: Blues 4 Hawks 3
Colorado Avalanche vs. Minnesota Wild An interested series this one is slotted to be for a few reasons. The Colorado Avalanche have been one hell of a team going into the playoffs, however they have a rather young and inexperienced roster in that regard.
On that note, it appears that Matt Duchene may miss some time for the Avs which would be a bad way to get going. And while that may put a damper on their offensive capabilities, expect to see some strong defensive transition and superb goaltending from the young team.
With respect to Minnesota, they have been playing a very strong puck possession game and if they are able to maintain their numbers from the regular season, it will be pretty tough for the Avalanche to get any offensive cycles or chances going.
Unfortunately for Wild fans, the injuries to Parise and Backstrom will likely be cause for their playoff demise, allowing Colorado to skip through to the second round of the playoffs. Final: Colorado 4 Minnesota 2
Thanks for reading!