This has been a pretty big topic of conversation ever since the Rangers inched their ticket to the Stanley Cup Finals: who would you rather face there, Chicago or Los Angeles. Let me state up front and right away, I don't care. The exultation of being there is enough for right now and trying to figure out which is the better match up, to me, is an exercise in futility. But I pose the question to all of you later on.
Rooting for a particular team to win or lose has in the past proven to be flawed. Just because on paper it looks like one team is a better match up, more often than not, ends up blowing up in your face. Yes, I know the Yankees did it at time hoping to face the Rangers or Twins in the playoffs, and it's worked, but I remember in '88 everyone saying how the Mets should want to face the Dodgers they swept them during the season, and we all know how that turned out.
Each team has their strengths and weaknesses. The West this year has been loaded, which is why most prognosticators believe that whoever came out of their conference, which today means they win tonight, is a major favorite to take the Cup. This can be seen in the result's of Ek's poll, where as of this writing, the winner tonight is being viewed as the Cup Champ 70% of the time.
You can to see out regular season records for the most part. But I use the term for the most part because in the case of the Blackhawks, New York went on a major run after winning at the United Center on January 8. To me, that game was a springboard forward for the team while the second game came after the Olympics with Cam Talbot between the pipes. The Los Angeles games were the second of the season and in mid-November when New York was struggling. In the latter case, it was Ben Scrivens stoning New York throughout.
I will get more into the match ups once the Western Conference winner is determined, but here is a quick briefing.
For Chicago, they have top-end talent in Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, each of whom are big-time, money players in the playoffs. They are buffeted by Marian Hossa and Brandon Saad, each of whom have 14 points in 18 games. Normally Patrick Sharp is major-weapon, but he has had a slow post-season with just nine points in 18 games, while Bryan Bickell has seamlessly moved onto the top line. notching 10 points so far. Beyond that, the biggest name, and someone who I like a lot is Andrew Shaw, but he has had an injury-plagued playoffs. Up front, the remainder of the bottom-six doesn't scare you as weapons, which is the biggest weakness for the Blackhawks.
We all know how good their blue line, and if we didn't, Chicago fans have been telling us right and left. Duncan Keith is one of the best on the league while Brent Seabrook is not that far behind and having a fantastic post-season. Niklas Hjalmarsson is the third best member of that blueline, which is no insult, and Johnny Oduya, Michael Roszival (who has fit in nicely in the Windy City and someone, we Rangers fans know well) and Nick Leddy fits out a solid 1-6 blueline.
Between the pipes, for all the criticism Corey Crawford takes, he just wins. He has one Stanley Cup to his resume, and whether you believe it was because or in spite of him, he still has a ring. This post-season, Crawford was phenomenal the first two rounds. This round, he has struggled against Los Angeles, allowing 23 goals in the six games, including some soft ones, but give the Kings some credit.
On to Los Angeles. Anze Kopitar, to me, is one of the best two-way centers in the world. The Kings needed a win-man for him, and got one, all but stealing Marian Gaborik from Columbus at the trade deadline. Gabby has scored 11 goals and 18 points in 20 games, acting as the Robin to Kopitar's Batman. The Kings have used Dustin Brown on that line, giving them some grit to go with the flash of Gabby. Their second line, known as the 7s line, has been almost, if not more impressive. Tanner Pearson didn't have a big regular season and Tyler Toffoli showed signs of the sniper he was in the minors, but since those two were paired with Jeff Carter, that line has exploded. Mike Richards is more in a checking role but Justin Williams has been brilliant these playoffs and they are joined by Dwight King. The fourth line of Clifford-Stoll-Lewis just grind down opponents. So if comparing the forwards to Chicago, the Blackhawks have more talent in the top lines while LA has more depth.
The blueline is also impressive in LA. Drew Doughty steps up when the lights are brightest and his pairing mate, Jake Muzzin, has had several big goals these playoffs. We all know about Slava Voynov but Alec Martinez is the one who along with Muzzin has really made a name for himself this postseason. Willie Mitchell, a steadying defensive force, is paired with Voynov while Martinez is paired with Matt Greene, who provides a physical presence on the Kings' blueline. Bewteen the two, it's close. Chicago has the names, but LA's depth is fairly apparent. Chicago has more overall speed as Mitchell and Greene drag down LA's total blueline speed, but both groups are solid.
We know how good Quick is between the pipes, but he has had an uneven post-season. Down 3-0 to San Jose, he stoned them the next four games. Down 3-2 to Anaheim, he did the same. This series, he has allowed 19 goals in six goals while facing a top-flight offense. Like Crawford, he has a Stanley Cup ring to his resume, and if you ask most, he is pretty close to at par with Lundqvist and he is a notch above Crawford.