We looked at the East yesterday… now it’s time to look at the West…
(1) Calgary vs (WC2) Colorado – The Calgary Flames are the under-appreciated darling of this playoff season. 107 points, Pacific Division champs, western conference champs… and they still aren’t getting a lot of love for their achievements. To ma, if they develop that into a chip on their shoulder it could mean real trouble for the rest of the West. Colorado put on a nice push to beat out Arizona for the last playoff spot and is getting healthier. The Av’s experience in round one last season may be something to draw on. I believe that Calgary should win this series as they have very good defense, are loaded offensively and have enough goaltending… My call? Calgary in six.
(2) San Jose vs. (3) Vegas – I have been licking my chops at the prospect of this series. San Jose has a revenge factor, Vegas has real weight of expectations after their magical run to the Cup Final last season. San Jose is a bit banged up and their goaltender has put in a season to forget, Vegas has their top goalie back in the lineup and is loaded with talent. The Sharks have experience and solid veteran leadership that could really help in this type of series… players like Joe Thorton and Joe Pavelski… the big question for the Sharks revolve around the defense… which really hasn’t been as good as their talent suggests. For Vegas, how do they react to the expectations heaped on this team… last season was a fun run… this season has been more of a marathon. No matter what happens, this series will be one to lose sleep for. My call? San Jose in seven.
(1) Nashville vs. (WC1) Dallas – Detailed preview tomorrow
(2) Winnipeg vs (3) St. Louis – Speaking of appointment viewing… this unexpected Central showdown should be a war. Two physical teams beating the snot our of each other… WOOHOO! Winnipeg was trading the Central Division lead with Nashville fr most of the season and really had control of the top slot in early March, then they hit an unexpected slide, finishing the season 4-5-1, good for second in the division. The St. Louis Blues could be one of the most dangerous teams in the playoffs. They went from the bottom of the conference to a chance to win the division in a single season and finished the season on an 8-1-1 run. You could go on and an about their rookie goaltender Jordin Binnington, the season that Ryan O’Reilly had, the resurgence of Vladimir Tarasenko. This is going to be a great series and whichever one survives will be softened up slightly for the next round. My call? St. Louis in seven.
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ICYMI - Last night's SlapShot Radio...
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The
Playoff Status section
The Eastern Conference
(1) Tampa Bay vs (WC2) Columbus – Game 1, Wednesday
(2) Boston vs. (3) Toronto – Game 1, Thursday
(1) Washington vs. (WC1) Carolina – Game 1, Thursday
(2) NY Islanders vs (3) Pittsburgh – Game 1 - Wednesday
The Western Conference
(1) Calgary vs (WC2) Colorado – Game 1 - Thursday
(2) San Jose vs (3) Vegas – Game 1 - Wednesday
(1) Nashville vs. (WC1) Dallas – Game 1 - Wednesday
(2) Winnipeg vs. (3) St. Louis – Game 1 - Wednesday
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Random Notes
- Milwaukee Update – The Ad’s put their 8 game win streak on the line tonight as they host Rockford.
- Media Avail – David Poile and Peter Laviolette met with the media on Sunday and both mentioned the adversity the team faced as something to draw on and could benefit the Preds in the playoffs.
- Coaching Shuffle – The coaching shuffle continues as Joel Quinneville was officially announced as the Florida Panthers head coach… a 6 year deal for an eye-popping $30 million!
- McLellan – Todd McLellan was being mentioned in connection to LA … but now it appears he is headed to Buffalo.
- Kesler Surgery – Ryan Kesler is facing career-ending hip surgery… and that surgery would be a hip replacement. He is seeing specialists to see if he can avoid it, but the 34 year old forward’s playing days may be done.
- NHL.com Predictions – NHL.com has their picks on the site… of the 15 writers predicting, 10 chose Tampa to win it all, Boston was picked by three writers, Calgary and Nashville got one vote each.
- Predictions II – In those predictions, 12 of the 15 writers chose Nashville to take their first round series with Dallas… four writers picked the Preds to get to the Stanley Cup Final.
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