April 15th: NHL Stanley Cup Playoff Preview

There is no better post-season in all of professional sports than the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs. All 16 teams think they have a legitimate shot at the title, and momentum will be the key factor. A goalie gets hot for a series, and the championship favorite gets sent home early. A team’s offense starts to click, and the whole picture goes up in flames. This year will be no different.

What will transpire in the next two months? The ZP: Left Fielder can only guess!

Western Conference Round 1 -

St. Louis Blues vs. Minnesota Wild

Winner: Wild

The central division has been monstrous this year, and these two have been the cream of the crop. The Wild are on a tear, while the Blues are, for the first time in a long time, the favorite. Watch out for a physical Wild team to surprise the Blues for their second straight exit at the hands of a rival.

Nashville Predators vs. Chicago Blackhawks

Winner: Blackhawks

Both ended the regular season on sour notes, but both are put together for a big playoff run. The key to this series will be twofold: goalie play and experience. Pekka Renne is a beast when he’s hot, but Corey Crawford is a playoff machine. The Blackhawks take this series behind their experience and a fresh Patrick Kane.

Anaheim Ducks vs. Winnipeg Jets

Winner: Ducks

The Ducks haven’t had great luck at deep playoff runs. Meanwhile, the Jets are a big, physical team, that makes their opponent fight for every inch. This is going to be a surprisingly tough series, but the Ducks’ depth will see them through to the next round.

Vancouver Canucks vs. Calgary Flames

Winner: Canucks

Frankly, this is the least exciting series of the first round. The teams are fairly evenly matched, which means it will be fun to watch, but neither strike me as real threats in the West. That being said, Ryan Miller playing in Vancouver could be huge against a Flames team that may be a little burned out from the fight for the playoffs.

Eastern Conference Round 1 -

Montreal Canadiens vs. Ottowa Senators

Winner: Canadiens

The popular pick for first round upset is the Senators, who are on an absolute tear. That being said, Carey Price is one of the best goalies in the game (if not THE best), and the Canadiens have the experience to send the young Senators home early.

Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Detroit Red Wings

Winner: Lightning

Detroit has sat Jimmy Howard to start the series, not a good start for a team fighting against the pre-season favorite to come out of the East. The Lightning look built for a big run, and Ben Bishop and Steven Stamkos will be fun to watch.

New York Rangers vs. Pittsburgh Penguins

Winner: Rangers

The Penguins dodged a bullet by sneaking into the playoffs on the last day of the season. Meanwhile, the Rangers blew everyone else out of the water, despite missing Henrik Lundqvist for a good chunk of the season. Now that he’s back, the Rangers will treat the Penguins as a kickstart for their pursuit of a return to the Cup Finals.

New York Islanders vs. Washington Capitals

Winner: Capitals

Many believed that the Capitals’ window for success had closed, yet here they are, looking like strong candidates in the East. The Islanders were fun to watch at the start of the season, although everyone was waiting for their inevitable (we thought) fall. Prediction: they will have their fall from grace this week, as the Capitals step up in a big way.

Western Conference Round 2 -

Wild vs. Blackhawks

Winner: Blackhawks

The Blackhawks have dispatched the Wild from the playoffs two years in a row, and are now looking to do it again. With a healthy Patrick Kane and a deep, deep offense, the Hawks will be a force to be reckoned with. The Wild thought they were one piece away from offing Chicago, but they’re not there yet.

Ducks vs. Canucks

Winner: Ducks

A western matchup that features two teams trying to take the Kings’ spot in the Western Conference finals, the Ducks and Canucks will have a lot to prove. This prediction depends on how the first round goes, but the Ducks look to be the favorite, assuming they can keep the momentum from having the most points in the West.

Eastern Conference Round 2 -

Canadiens vs. Lightning

Winner: Lightning

This is a goalie matchup for the ages. Carey Price is one of the finest in the world, while Ben Bishop’s size makes him a terrifying obstacle for opponents. This is going to be all about momentum, even more than most series, and the Lightning are poised to make their stab at the cup.

Rangers vs. Capitals

Winner: Rangers

The Rangers and Capitals have a long history together, and the sparks always fly when the two square off. This year, the Rangers are hungry and want to get back, while the Capitals will find themselves overwhelmed by a goalie that just can’t wait to be King.

Western Conference Finals -

Blackhawks vs. Ducks

Winner: Blackhawks

The Blackhawks are used to traveling to southern California to stake their claim on the Western Conference. This year, the Ducks will give Blackhawks a far easier challenge than the Kings last year. This will be a letdown of a series, compared with the fireworks of the earlier rounds. Owning all the momentum, the Blackhawks fly past the Ducks.

Eastern Conference Finals -

Lightning vs. Rangers

Winner: Rangers

This is going to be an absolutely epic series. The Lightning were the pre-season favorite to win it all, while the Rangers have turned themselves into post-season favorites. Who moves on? Once again, it comes down to Henrik, who is fresh, healthy, and ready to put together another champion-caliber performance.

Stanley Cup Finals:

Blackhawks vs. Rangers

Winner: Blackhawks

The West really is best. To get here, the Blackhawks will have to show an expert combination of grit, determination, and experience at handling the lime-light. If any team can do that, it’s this one. The Rangers will take it to six games, but the Hawks will hoist the Cup come June.

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March 3rd: Black-eyed Blackhawks

On February 25th, the day after Patrick Kane went down with an injury, many wanted to declare the Blackhawks out of Stanley Cup contention. Sure, the pre-season Western Conference favorite had probably built up enough steam to limp into the playoffs, but without their top goal scorer, it would be an early exit for sure.

That is, of course, until you look at the rest of the Chicago lineup. With Jonathan Toews, Patrick Sharp, Marrian Hossa, Brad Richards, Brandon Saad, and so many more studs on this team, there is plenty of firepower to keep the Hawks competitive. Plus, the trade deadline left even more room to patch up the fill the hole left by “Showtime”.

Antoine Vermette was the big catch for the Blackhawks at
the Trade Deadline.

The acquisitions of Antoine Vermette from the Coyotes and Kimmo Timonen from the Flyers fill two of the biggest needs left on the Chicago roster: a center who has a high face-off percentage and a veteran defender who has fresh legs. This works to add depth to a team already known for wave upon wave of skilled players.

What, during the offseason had been a terrible void has turned into a dominant strength, as the Blackhawks have strong talent on all four lines at center. With Toews, Vermette, Richards, and Kruger, there is a good chance Chicago will start every faceoff with the puck.

While this by no means makes the Blackhawks the unwavering favorites to win the Cup, it does keep them in contention long enough to potentially get Kane back for the second or third round of the playoffs. A team that includes all that talent, PLUS a fresh Patrick Kane should most certainly catch everyone’s attention.

Rather than attempting to find a single player to score the points left by Patrick Kane, the Blackhawks would benefit most by seeing a slight uptick in performance from all of their stars. That smallball philosophy (to share a term from baseball) is absolutely possible for a team who hasn’t gotten their money’s worth from Patrick Sharp in recent weeks, and who have the opportunity to increase scoring opportunities for their centerpiece, captain Jonathan Toews.

In their first game after the trade deadline, the Blackhawks did just that. A five goal flurry, led by three points by The Captain showed just how badly the Blackhawks want to stay competitive. With goals from four different Hawks, the team shared the star power and contributed big, making a statement for all of those who thought their dominance was over for the year.

For the remainder of the season, the Blackhawks will play 10 of their 18 games against teams outside of the playoff picture. That bodes well for a team trying to fight their way into the second seed in their division. Lucky for them, the Blues have also seen a flurry of defensive challenges, most recently a streak in which opponents have scored four or more goals in four of the last seven games.

More than any other skill, though, the Blackhawks have been there before. After coming a single shot away from the Stanley Cup Final last season, the Hawks core remains from not one, but two championship runs since 2010. You just can’t bet against a team that has the track record of the Blackhawks the last half decade.