Picks for conference semifinals
It's cliché, but any team that reaches the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs feels like it can skate the Cup.
And what we have here for the conference semifinals is a defending Cup champ, two defending conference titlists, and four of the six regular-season division champs.
Six higher seeds – Boston, Washington and Pittsburgh in the East along with Detroit, Vancouver and Chicago out West – survived the opening round while two lower seeds – Anaheim and Carolina – managed upsets in impressive fashion.
The Ducks, just two years removed from a Stanley Cup of their own, took down the Presidents' Trophy-winning and division rival Sharks. And the late-charging Hurricanes went into New Jersey for a Game 7 and scored twice in a 48-second span of the final two minutes of regulation to oust
and the Atlantic Division champion Devils.
With the seeds reshuffled now, here's a look at the second-round matchups.
Hurricanes-Bruins
It's not the East series that has the glitz and glamour, but it could be every bit as entertaining as the Penguins-Capitals star fest.
The Bruins rolled over the Canadiens in four games in almost too-easy fashion. Meanwhile, the Hurricanes rallied not only from a 3-2 series deficit, but to score twice in the final 1:40 of Game 7 on the road to turn a likely season-ending loss into an improbable victory.
Is this matchup a toss-up? The theory that the Hurricanes are mentally spent at the outset of this series is offset by the fact the Bruins could be rusty considering they will not have played in nine nights.
What is a bit ominous is the fact that Boston swept the four-game season series, outscoring Carolina 18-6 in the process. The teams last met on Feb. 17. Boston won the first two meetings, just seven days apart in late December, by 4-2 scores. And it captured the two later meetings, separated by five weeks, by identical 5-1 counts.
The Bruins received offensive balance against the Hurricanes as
and
scored three goals apiece. And eight different Bruins scored in the season series.
Key player for Bruins:
The goalie has had a great season, but he's not going to intimidate the Hurricanes, not after they solved future Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur. This is uncharted territory for Thomas, and the expectations in Boston have heightened after that easy win over Montreal. Thomas will have to be as strong mentally as physically.
Key player for Hurricanes:
The 25-year-old defenseman might seem like an odd choice here, but he leads a no-name blue line that has to be on top of its game to keep a balanced and potent Bruins attack in check. Pitkanen played about 26 minutes per game against the Devils.
Prediction: Bruins in five.
Penguins-Capitals
And here it is, for the first time since Pittsburgh's
and Washington's
established themselves as superstars in the league, the two teams finally meet in a playoff series. And it's all thanks to the Carolina Hurricanes, who made the matchup possible with their comeback win against New Jersey. If the Devils held on, the Pens would be playing the Bruins and the Caps would be hosting New Jersey.
Then again, had the Capitals won Game 7 on home ice in the first round last year – a game they lost to Philadelphia in overtime – Pittsburgh and Washington would have had this matchup last spring, too.
Of course, with all the attention that will be paid to the team's headliners, this is the kind of series where a
from the Penguins or Brooks Laich from the Capitals will emerge as hero.
The Capitals won the first three meetings during the regular season when no fewer than a combined seven goals were scored by the teams. The Penguins salvaged the final game of the four with a 4-3 victory after a shootout on March 8. The series figures to be high scoring, regardless of how Washington rookie goalie
and Pittsburgh's
perform. There is too much firepower on both sides to envision low-scoring games.
and Varlamov were Washington's best players during a seven-game opening-round win over the Rangers, who dropped a 3-1 series lead for the first time in their playoff history. Semin scored five goals and eight points in about 20 minutes a game. Varlamov stepped in for
and was splendid, posting two shutouts along with a 1.17 goals-against average and .952 save percentage.
The Pens were balanced during their six-game win over the Flyers. Malkin and Crosby scored four goals apiece and combined for 17 points. Defenseman
displayed he's recovered from a near season-long shoulder injury. He averaged 26:33 of ice time.
Key player for Penguins:
The hard-hitting defenseman is going to have to deliver physical challenges to Washington's forwards, the earlier in games and in the series the better. Pittsburgh clamped down defensively for long stretches in the playoffs last year. And even if new coach Dan Bylsma's style favors more up-tempo skating, the team that plays with a physical edge could emerge victorious.
Key player for Capitals: Simeon Varlamov. There was no pressure on the rookie goalie, who turned 21 on Monday, when he relieved Jose Theodore after Game 1 against the Rangers. But there will be pressure in this series because Varlamov will be facing a much more dynamic attack in Pittsburgh.
Prediction: Penguins in seven.
Ducks-Red Wings
The league's two more successful playoff teams in recent seasons square off in an intriguing second-round matchup. The Red Wings and Ducks have won the last two Stanley Cups. Anaheim's 10 series wins is the most since 2003. Detroit has eight over that span, second most in the league, and is the top seed remaining in the West.
In addition, since the end of the lockout, the Ducks and Red Wings have participated in seven playoff series each with Detroit winning 32 of 50 games and Anaheim close behind at 31-18.
During the regular season the Red Wings lost the first meeting in overtime, then won the next three in regulation. Detroit has been idle since sweeping their first-round series against Columbus on April 21. Anaheim needed six games to surprise San Jose in a series that ended Monday night.
Anaheim finished the season strong and a lot of credit has to go toward a rejuvenated defense corps that welcomed back
from major knee surgery and the addition of traded-deadline acquisitions
and
The added depth means coach Randy Carlyle doesn't have to employ
and
more than 25 minutes a night, and both Norris Trophy-caliber vets are better when their minutes don't approach 30 per game these days.
The Red Wings are astute and probably will have success in consistently getting close to the Anaheim goal, a critical shortcoming by San Jose in the previous round. Detroit also has a more potent power play, as much team speed as the Sharks and more poise.
The challenge for Anaheim is as great as any team in the first two rounds – go from beating the Presidents' Trophy winners to the defending Cup champs.
Key player for Ducks:
Yes, he saw a lot of shots against San Jose – 230 of them that he actually had to attempt to stop – but that was the key, he saw the shots. The Red Wings will throw pucks on net, too, but they'll do a better job of working in the scoring areas and in front.
Key player for Red Wings:
The big Swede will have to walk that fine line of screening Hiller and avoid interfering with the netminder. Holmstrom can plant the seed of doubt with his distracting play, which will help teammate
do similar things in the crease.
Prediction: Red Wings in five.
Blackhawks-Canucks
Considering both teams missed the playoffs last season and now one is assured of a conference finals berth, there's a lot on the line for two very excited cities.
There isn't much playoff history between the two clubs, and certainly none recently. The Canucks and Blackhawks have met only twice in the playoffs, each winning a series. Chicago swept Vancouver in the 1995 conference semifinals 13 years after the Canucks needed five games to oust the Blackhawks in the conference finals.
After Chicago won the first two games of the season series early, Vancouver took the last two meetings in one-sided fashion – 7-3 on Feb. 7 at home and 4-0 in Chicago on March 29.
The series could turn into a goaltending duel between
of the Canucks and
of the Blackhawks. Luongo was nearly impenetrable during a four-game sweep of the Blues. He stopped all but five of 131 shots (.962) and featured a 1.16 goals-against average. Khabibulin was less spectacular (2.52 GAA and .916 save percentage), but was dependable and gave his young first-time playoff performers confidence to attack during a six-game triumph over Calgary.
Chicago, in fact, hardly looked new to the postseason pressure. Rookie
(team-high seven points),
and
were all effective. Defensemen
and
were outstanding as well.
The Canucks received offensive production from the Sedin twins, defenseman
and emerging star
The numbers were modest, however, as St. Louis was stingy. This series, however, may have more of an open feel to it.
Key player for Blackhawks:
The slick-skating defenseman can pose as a fourth forward when the opportunity presents itself. Vancouver's defense is solid, but Campbell can create confusion in the Canucks' zone if he drifts in from the blue line. Getting Luongo to move from side-to-side with quick puck movement is key.
Key player for Canucks:
The marquee free-agent signing appeared in only two games in the first-round series and, aside from contributing a goal, was pretty quiet. The Canucks don't have a lot of offense, and he's going to be expected to be a difference-maker.
Prediction: Blackhawks in six.
