Playoff Prediction Thread

[Psycing]

Didn't catch a thread like this up yet, so figure it'd be a good time to start it.

1. Montreal vs 8. Boston: Montreal in 5

2. Pittsburgh vs 7. Ottawa: Pittsburgh in 4

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Washington in 6

4. New Jersey vs 5. NY Rangers: Rangers in 7

1. Detroit vs 8. Nashville: Detroit in 5

2. San Jose vs 7. Calgary: San Jose in 6

3. Minnesota vs 6. Colorado: Colorado in 6

4. Anaheim vs 5. Dallas: Anaheim in 6

[TheAussiePosse]

I started one, but no-one wanted to post yet

1. Montreal vs 8. Boston: Montreal in 7 - In 1993, we won in 6. In 1986, we won in 7. Our first round is never easy

2. Pittsburgh vs 7. Ottawa: Ottawa in 7 - Alfredsson returns when the Sens are down 0-3, and leads the comeback

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Washington in 6 - Emotionally exhausted, but still cohesive, with good goaltending

4. New Jersey vs 5. NY Rangers: Devils in 7 - Devils at home are rock-solid. Rangers suck away

1. Detroit vs 8. Nashville: Detroit in 5 - Hasek will injure himself, and Osgood will have to take over

2. San Jose vs 7. Calgary: San Jose in 6 - Thornton is due to break out, and Campbell will help him do it

3. Minnesota vs 6. Colorado: Minnesota in 6 - Every game will be won by one goal

4. Anaheim vs 5. Dallas: Anaheim in 5 - I hate the Ducks, but unless they play Morrow-Modano-Richards, no hope

[markierung]

East:

Habs vs. Bruins...........................Habs in 5

Pens vs. Sens.............................Pens in 5

Devils vs. Rangers......................Rangers in 7

Caps vs. Flyers...........................Caps in 6

West

Wings vs. Preds...................Wings in 4

Sharks vs. Flames................Sharks in 6

Ducks vs. Stars....................Ducks in 6

Avs vs. Wild.........................Avs in 7

[nhfarber]

1. Montreal vs 8. Boston: Montreal in 6

2. Pittsburgh vs 7. Ottawa: Pittsburgh in 5

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Philadelphia in 7

4. New Jersey vs 5. NY Rangers: Rangers in 5

1. Detroit vs 8. Nashville: Detroit in 6

2. San Jose vs 7. Calgary: San Jose in 7

3. Minnesota vs 6. Colorado: Colorado in 6

4. Anaheim vs 5. Dallas: Dallas in 7

Edited April 7, 2008 by nhfarber

[markierung]

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Philadelphia in 7

that's a big cahones pick right there

[sakiqc]

Eastern Conference

1st Round

(1) Montreal vs (8) Boston -- Montreal in 4 - Domination continues

(2) Pittsburgh vs (7) Ottawa -- Pittsburgh in 6 - Revenge from last year

(3) Washington vs (6) Philadelphia -- Philadelphia in 6 - Caps made the playoffs, O can get the Hart

(4) New Jersey vs (5) NY Rangers -- NY Rangers in 6 - Team built for the playoffs

2nd Round

Montreal vs Philadelphia -- Montreal in 5 - Domination continues

Pittsburgh vs NY Rangers -- Pittsburgh in 7 - Interesting matchup, Pens prevail

3rd Round

Montreal vs Pittsburgh -- Montreal in 7 - Home Ice advantage pays off in Game 7

Western Conference

(1) Detroit vs (8) Nashville -- Detroit in 4 - Should be an easy sweep

(2) San Jose vs (7) Calgary -- San Jose in 7 - Flames give a good battle

(3) Minnesota vs (6) Colorado -- Colorado in 6

(4) Anaheim vs (5) Dallas -- Anaheim in 6 - Interesting matchup, Ducks experience prevail

2nd Round

Detroit vs Colorado -- Colorado in 6 - Revenge from reg season, this time with Sakic+Foppa+Stastny in lineup

San Jose vs Anaheim -- Anaheim in 6 - Interesting matchup again, Ducks experience prevail

3rd Round

Anaheim vs Colorado -- Colorado in 6 - Theo and the Avs upset the Ducks

Finals

Montreal vs Colorado -- Montreal in 5 - Habs are just too hot

Conn Smythe - Mike Komisarek with a S. Stevens-like performance, plus 1 or 2 important GWG/OTG. (Could easily see it go to Price)

Like in 1993, Habs need the help of other teams doing upsets. They played Islanders instead of Pittsburgh in the conference finals, and then L.A. in the finals (which wasn't the top team)

I don't want the Habs to play Ottawa in the 2nd round. Or neither NYR or NJ. Philadelphia would be the best 2nd round matchup. And Pittsburgh the best matchup 3rd round IMO.

[Jean]

Montréal/Boston : Montréal in 4

Pittsburgh/Ottawa : Pittsburgh in 6

Washington/Philly : Washington in 7

New Jersey /New York : New Jersey in 7

Detroit/Nashville : Detroit in 5

San Jose /Calgary : San Jose in 5

Minesotta/Colorado : Colorado in 7

Anaheim/Dallas : Anaheim in 5

[Captain_Stealth]

I started one, but no-one wanted to post yet

1. Montreal vs 8. Boston: Montreal in 7 - In 1993, we won in 6. In 1986, we won in 7. Our first round is never easy

2. Pittsburgh vs 7. Ottawa: Ottawa in 7 - Alfredsson returns when the Sens are down 0-3, and leads the comeback

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Washington in 6 - Emotionally exhausted, but still cohesive, with good goaltending

4. New Jersey vs 5. NY Rangers: Devils in 7 - Devils at home are rock-solid. Rangers suck away

1. Detroit vs 8. Nashville: Detroit in 5 - Hasek will injure himself, and Osgood will have to take over

2. San Jose vs 7. Calgary: San Jose in 6 - Thornton is due to break out, and Campbell will help him do it

3. Minnesota vs 6. Colorado: Minnesota in 6 - Every game will be won by one goal

4. Anaheim vs 5. Dallas: Anaheim in 5 - I hate the Ducks, but unless they play Morrow-Modano-Richards, no hope

You hurt my feelings.

My predictions:

Boston in 4.

Pittsburgh in 4.

Philadelphia in 4.

New York in 4.

Detroit in 4.

Calgary in 4.

Minnesota in 4.

Dallas in 4.

[Mils]

Rd. 1

1. Montreal vs 8. Boston: Habs in 4

2. Pittsburgh vs 7. Ottawa: Pens in 5

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Washington in 5 Ovechkin takes over.

4. New Jersey vs 5. NY Rangers: Devils in 7 Brodeur wins this battle of the goaltenders

1. Detroit vs 8. Nashville: Nashville in 5 Preds take the physical game to the Wings, and the Red Wings don't adjust.

2. San Jose vs 7. Calgary: San Jose in 7

3. Minnesota vs 6. Colorado: Colorado in 7 At least 2 OT games, and 1 other decided in the last 3:00 of regulation.

4. Anaheim vs 5. Dallas: Dallas in 6

Rd. 2

1. Montreal vs. 4. New Jersey: Habs in 6 Price starts to look like Roy and Giguere.

2. Pittsburgh vs. 3. Washington: Pens in 6 Crosby + Malkin is greater than Kolzig or Huet

2. San Jose vs. 8. Nashville: Sharks in 5 Thornton proves to just be too much.

5. Dallas vs. 6. Colorado: Colorado in 6 The Avs come rolling off of the Lemaire system Wild and have an easier time with Dallas' D.

Rd. 3

1. Montreal vs. 2. Pittsburgh: Pens in 6 The Pittsburgh offense does it all. Fleury gets some lucky breaks.

2. San Jose vs. 6. Colorado: Avs in 7 Forsberg-Sakic-Hejduk proves to be the cure for Evgeni Nabokov.

Finals

2. Pittsburgh vs. 6. Colorado: In an offensive showcase of 20th vs. 21st century, Crosby and Malkin are just too much for Theo and the rest of the Avs' defense. A beaten up Colorado team (probably missing Forsberg, and maybe Foote for at least one of these games) just can't keep pace. One game features 10 or more combined goals as Budaj and Conklin both rack up at least 10 minutes in this series.

Pens in 5.

Conn Smythe: Evgeni Malkin

[KoZed]

In 1986, we won in 7. Our first round is never easy

In 86 we swept Boston in 3 in the first round.

[les_glorieux]

Round 1

1. Montreal vs 8. Boston: Montreal in 6. First rounds have never been easy for this organization, at least recently. Boston will take Game 1 or 2, then win once at home. They have a lot to prove.

2. Pittsburgh vs 7. Ottawa: Pittsburgh in 5. No goaltending. No defense. No confidence. No chance.

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Washington in 6. Ovechkin will rip it up, but Philadelphia plays a gritty team game and has great young guns to go with some quality vets.

4. New Jersey vs 5. NY Rangers: Rangers in 7. Brodeur is good, but so is the other guy. Lundqvist is the stud that will be the difference in this boring, defensive matchup. Also worth mentioning proven playoff guys like Drury, Shanahan, and Straka.

1. Detroit vs 8. Nashville: Detroit in 5. Nashville will steal one in an half-empty Joe Louis Arena. Hockeytown is in Minnesota now, by the way.

2. San Jose vs 7. Calgary: San Jose in 7. This will be a rough and entertaining series to watch, folks. Look for Canadian boys Cheechoo and Marleau to continue their excellent play of late.

3. Minnesota vs 6. Colorado: Colorado in 6. This team was hit hard by injuries and should have finished higher. Sakic, Stastny, Forsberg, Hedjuk, Smyth, Theodore. Yes, Theodore. The man has found his game and he will be the difference in this series.

4. Anaheim vs 5. Dallas: Dallas in 6. I don't think this will actually happen, but I'm calling it anyway. Everyone's counting Dallas out on this one, but I like their goaltending and the veteran presence of guys like Zubov, Lehtinen, and Modano. Oh, and remember Brad Richards? He's pretty good come April. Plus I f*cking hate the Ducks.

Round 2

1. Montreal vs. 5. Rangers: Montreal in 6. The Rangers have played really well against the Canadiens this year, but will be in tough after a draining series against New Jersey. Price takes over and the boys persevere and keep rolling.

2. Pittsburgh vs. 3. Washington: Pittsburgh in 6. As much as I distrust the Penguins' suspect goaltending, patchy defensemen, and unproven playoff players, you can't deny Malkin's maturation into a superstar and how well both goalies have performed in the face of adversity this season.

1. Detroit vs. 5. Dallas: Detroit in 5. Yeah, Detroit's a pretty solid hockey team. Yeah. Understatement much? Dallas just doesn't have the offense to match the team that allowed the fewest goals this year.

2. San Jose vs. 6. Colorado: San Jose in 7. It's Hozay vs. Joezay in this one, as two teams that are built for the playoffs face off. They match up very evenly up front, but San Jose has the edge in goaltending and defense. Sorry Theo, I still love you!

Round 3

1. Montreal vs. 2. Pittsburgh: Montreal in 7. I will cry with happiness if Montreal makes it to this point. They probably won't. Pittsburgh is really good, and if they make it this far, they'll have really good goaltending too, because their D is anything but spectacular. Still, if you look at their path they took to get here, they've played teams that aren't great defensively. Guess who's got the goaltending and the defense corps to handle the Malcroshossgonsyk monster? That's right. Us. Oh, and thanks for first place in the regular season. It kinda helps in these long series.

1. Detroit vs. San Jose: Detroit in 6. Detroit will not be denied reaching the final for the first time since 2001-2002. They are deep and they are stifling. That's a pretty lethal combination, even if you've got Brian Campbell trying to do spin-o-ramas on Nicklas Lidstrom and Joe Thornton trying to intimidate Chris Chelios. Then there's the rubber-kneed one in nets. How is he still playing?

Round 4

1. Montreal vs. 1. Detroit: Detroit in 6. Don't look so shocked. You should be happy if we get this far. Like I said, the Wings haven't won since 2002. They're due. I know it's lame. Sorry.

Edited April 8, 2008 by les_glorieux

[Captain_Stealth]

Pens in 5.

Conn Smythe: Evgeni Malkin

You call yourself an Avs fan.....

AVS ALL THE WAY!!!!!!!!

[KoZed]

ROUND 1

1. Montreal vs 8. Boston: Montreal in 5: Too much depth and hopes for the Habs.

2. Pittsburgh vs 7. Ottawa: Pittsburgh in 6 : Gerber just can't do the job in the playoffs and not having Alfie will hurt.

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Philadelphia in 6 : Ovie can't do it all. Flyers have depth, grit and experience.

4. New Jersey vs 5. NY Rangers: New York in 6 : NJ's defense is too young to hold on.

1. Detroit vs 8. Nashville: Detroit in 6 : Too much to handle for the Preds and young Ellis.

2. San Jose vs 7. Calgary: San Jose in 7 : Keenan's tricks dont work anymore as SJ rolls on.

3. Minnesota vs 6. Colorado: Colorado in 6 : The Avs' old dogs still have a tricks up their sleeves

4. Anaheim vs 5. Dallas: Anaheim in 6 : Giguere wins this one almost alone.

[Mils]

You call yourself an Avs fan.....

AVS ALL THE WAY!!!!!!!!

Avs all the way... even when you picked Minnesota in 4? Intriguing.

[Captain_Stealth]

Avs all the way... even when you picked Minnesota in 4? Intriguing.

You don't understand my methods do you?

Those were not my real predictions.

Guess you weren't around much last year I suppose which would make this understandable.

Edited April 8, 2008 by Captain_Stealth

[Knighted]

Conference Quarter Finals:

1. Montreal vs 8. Boston: Montreal in 4

2. Pittsburgh vs 7. Ottawa: Ottawa in 7

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Philadelphia in 6

4. New Jersey vs 5. NY Rangers: Rangers in 5

1. Detroit vs 8. Nashville: Detroit in 6

2. San Jose vs 7. Calgary: Calgary in 6

3. Minnesota vs 6. Colorado: Colorado in 6

4. Anaheim vs 5. Dallas: Anaheim in 5

Conference Semi Finals:

1. Montreal vs 7. Ottawa: Montreal in 6

5. Rangers vs 6. Philadelphia: Rangers in 6

1. Detroit vs 7. Calgary: Detroit in 5

4. Anaheim vs 6. Colorado: Colorado in 6

Conference Finals:

1. Montreal vs 5. Rangers: Montreal in 5

1. Detroit vs 6. Colorado: Colorado in 7

Stanley Cup Finals:

1. Montreal vs 6. Colorado: Montreal in 6

Conn Smythe: Carey Price

[Habitforming]

Three HW collaborators will be making thier picks for the playoffs shortly and it will be posted on Wednesday for your enjoyment/bashing.

[goalerexpert86]

1. Montreal vs 8. Boston: Montreal in 5

2. Pittsburgh vs 7. Ottawa: Pittsburgh in 6

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Washington in 7

4. New Jersey vs 5. NY Rangers: Rangers in 6

1. Detroit vs 8. Nashville: Detroit in 5

2. San Jose vs 7. Calgary: San Jose in 6

3. Minnesota vs 6. Colorado: Colorado in 7

4. Anaheim vs 5. Dallas: Dallas in 7

[Prime Minister Koivu]

1. Montreal vs 8. Boston: Montreal in 4 - Sweep

2. Pittsburgh vs 7. Ottawa: Ottawa in 7 - Emery in net after Gerber sucks and the Sens turn the series around.

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Washington in 4 - Ovechkin is unstoppable and Huet is good.

4. New Jersey vs 5. NY Rangers: Jersey in 6 - Never underestimate Brodeur.

1. Detroit vs 8. Nashville: Detroit in 5 - Too much power and depth.

2. San Jose vs 7. Calgary: Calgary in 7 - I just feel it.

3. Minnesota vs 6. Colorado: Colorado in 6 - The 1990's Avs will win the first series.

4. Anaheim vs 5. Dallas: Anaheim in 5 - Turco sucks again and Riberio can't take the punishment that the Ducks big defensmen hand out.

[sakiqc]

People seem to underestimate the Flyers here. The Caps already won their championship by making the playoffs. It's like the Phillies last year.. made an unbelievable run to make the playoffs. Just to lose in 4 games in the first round.. As much as Huet and Ovechkin are awesome, they won't get past the Flyers.

[Dalhabs]

Im scared. When we eliminated the bruins 2002 and 2004 they owned us all season, this time we owned them all season. I hope they dont do what we did to them.

[les_glorieux]

Im scared. When we eliminated the bruins 2002 and 2004 they owned us all season, this time we owned them all season. I hope they dont do what we did to them.

2003-04

L 0 - 2

W 1 - 0

T 1 - 1

L 0 - 1

W 3 -2

L 2 - 3

Record: 2-3-1

2001-2002

L 3 - 5

W 3 - 2

L 0 - 5

L 3 - 4

W 5 - 3

Record: 2-3

I don't know if I would call that owning in the same way that we owned them this season...

[BTH]

I don't care so much about games so I'll just give my tree.

First round:

East:

Montreal, New York, Philadelphia, Ottawa

(Habs vs Sens, Rags vs Flyers)

West:

Detroit, San Jose, Anaheim, Colorado

(Wings vs Avs, Sharks vs Ducks)

Second round:

East:

Montreal, Philadelphia

West:

Detroit, San Jose

Third round:

East:

Montreal

West:

Detroit

Fourth round:

Detroit

(hardest decisions for me were picking a winner for NYR-PHI and SJ-ANA)

[Peter Puck]

1. Montreal vs 8. Boston: Montreal in 5

2. Pittsburgh vs 7. Ottawa: Pittsburgh in 5

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Philadelphia in 6

4. New Jersey vs 5. NY Rangers: Rangers in 6

1. Detroit vs 8. Nashville: Detroit in 4

2. San Jose vs 7. Calgary: San Jose in 5

3. Minnesota vs 6. Colorado: Colorado in 6

4. Anaheim vs 5. Dallas: Dallas in 7

[Captain_Stealth]

1. Montreal vs 8. Boston: Montreal in 5

2. Pittsburgh vs 7. Ottawa: Pittsburgh in 5

3. Washington vs 6. Philadelphia: Philadelphia in 6

4. New Jersey vs 5. NY Rangers: Rangers in 7

1. Detroit vs 8. Nashville: Detroit in 5

2. San Jose vs 7. Calgary: San Jose in 7

3. Minnesota vs 6. Colorado: Colorado in 6

4. Anaheim vs 5. Dallas: Anaheim in 6

My real predictions I guess.

However, MINNY IN FOUR!!!!