NHL 2018 Playoffs

 

This April feels weird. Weirder than it has felt in ten years. No Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup playoffs. It used to not feel weird. From the 1997-98 through 2007-08 (much of the time when I had season tickets and sat in section 332 by myself) the Hawks only made the postseason once. And it did not end well.  But at least our friends 280 miles south in St. Louis still have their Blues to cheer for. Wait, no, the Blues lost their final game of the season to miss the playoffs for the first time after six straight appearances.  But, hey, 260 miles east in Detroit, they are ready for their first post-season at Little Caesar’s Arena. Wait, no, the Wings  finished near the bottom of the Eastern Conference. Wait, what, the Hawks, Blues and Wings are all sitting out the postseason? When was the last time that has happened? NEVER. It has never happened in the 50 years since the Blues joined the NHL.

So, alas, Midwesterners, we can go into the post-season with a clear mind, not worrying about how our home squads do, and simple cheer against the teams we hate.

DETROIT SUCKS!  DETROIT SUCKS!

Sorry, it is a hard habit to break.

As always, my crackpot staff of experts shares their picks with you. Normally, we go up against ESPN’s experts, but they fired most of their hockey people during last season’s playoffs, so they can suck an egg. To make it more fun, I will only use the nicknames of the teams given to me by said crack panel. It might cause you to do more thinking than you want to do, but trust me, it’s worth it. So, without further distraction, may we present the first-round picks. Note: I watched less hockey this year than pretty much any year since 1993 (well, except the locked-out seasons), so I am totally not qualified to make any predictions.

 

Western Conference

Nashville Predators vs Colorado Avalanche

The Preds won the President’s trophy with 117 points. The ‘Lanche clinched the last spot by beating the Blues in game 82 of the regular season. The Preds have Pekka Rinne, probably the best top four defensemen of any team in the league and some forward depth and Carrie Underwood’s husband. The ‘Lanche have Nathan McKinnon and legal weed. Also, people seem to think Preds fans are great fans now, so they have a great home ice advantage. Our experts all picked the Preds.

Preds in Six

 

Winnipeg Jets vs Minnesota Wild

The Peg finished second in the division and second in the NHL to the Preds. Blake Wheeler piled up 91 points, Patrik Laine lit the lamp 44 times and Connor Hellebuyck had a great season in net, going 44-11-9. Plus, come on, Dustin Byfuglien on D. The Wild quietly went on about their work, with Eric Staal having a bounce back season, but -have a big hole with Ryan Suter’s broken ankle keeping him out of the playoffs. The Peg are too good this year and then win both a playoff game and series for the first time since moving from Atlanta. All our experts agree

The Peg in 5

Las Vegas Golden Knights vs Los Angeles Kings

The Las vs the Los. The Knights vs the Kings.  A shitty place to live and also Las Vegas. The playoffs haven’t started, and Vegas already has had the most successful expansion season in any sport ever, and the second most successful team is, well, it doesn’t matter because it isn’t even close. Really, they should just lose so their fans don’t get used to it. For a portion of the season they were leading the entire NHL. WTF!!!!  The Kings are the 7^th seed who had a +36 goal differential on the season, better than nine other playoff teams. Anze Kopitar had a career best season for the Kings, while everyone one Vegas did as well. Our experts were split on this, 2 picking Vegas, 2 choosing the Kings. Since it’s my blog, we get to use my pick.

Kings in 11 (double down), wait, no 7

Anaheim Ducks vs San Jose Sharks

I feel like Les Canards and Los Tiburones play each other every post-season, but their only previous matchup was a quarterfinal win by Les Carnards in 2009. I can’t stay up to watch West coast games, so I didn’t watch these teams much this year (except in person when Los Tiburones spanked the Hawks in March in San Jose). Goaltending will be key. John Gibson was strong all season for Les Canards but was injured the last two weeks of the season. Martin Jones struggled early and lost time to Aaron Dell early in the season for Los Tiburones. Again, our experts were split. Again, it’s my blog, so we go with my pick.

Les Canards in 7

 

Eastern Conference

Tampa Bay Lightning vs New Jersey Devils

What a difference a year makes. The Bolts missed the playoffs last year while the Devils finished in last place in the East. The Bolts piled up the goals, with Nikita Kucherov hitting 100 points while Taylor Hall lead the Devils in scoring. The Bolts also have Steve Stamkos, which is a good thing to have around for the playoffs. No dissent from the experts here. We like the Bolts.

Bolts in 5

 

Boston Bruins vs Toronto Maple Leafs

It’s a shame that only two Original Six teams made the playoffs and that one of them is heading to the golf course after the first round. Even with Brad Marchand seeming suspended every other month, he and the rest of the Massholes finished second in the East. The Maple Laughs are a young, talented team and this should be the first of many playoff runs for them. Which is good. People in Toronto are still recovering from their collapse against the Massholes in 2013. The experts were split on this series, too. I think Toronto wins in, though.

Maple Laughs in 7

 

Washington Capitals vs Columbus Blue Jackets

Hawks fans are pissed to learn the Artemi Panarin lead the Blow Jackets with 82 points while Brandon Saad scored a meager 35. After one year, the Blow Jackets got the best out of that deal. But will the Caps finally put together a strong post season and get Ovi’s name on the cup, now that Stan Mikita, Bobby Hull and Gordie Howe’s names are all coming off of it? Our experts think so, although one person thinks CBJ will pull an upset special.

Caps in 7

 

Pittsburgh Penguins vs Philadelphia Flyers

Okay, these two teams seem to always play in the playoffs, but really, this is only their seventh meeting. But it’s an all Pennsylvania series, so it’s like a big deal to, you know, that one state. Evegeni Malkin, and Sidney Crosby for Los Penguinos (I know, the nicknames are getting ridiculous).  Claude Giroux and that other guy for the Flyers. Seriously, how did the Flyers make the playoff? Oh wait, Shayne Gostisbehere, Sean Couturier and Jakub Voracek (some serious jersey lettering there, people). This series should be fun to watch, especially when Pierre MaGuire is covering the games so he can tell us how great Sidney Crosby is (and he is pretty great). “Hey Edzo, isn’t it great how great Sidney Crosby is?” Maybe we should all do a shot anytime Pierre says “Sidney Crosby.”

Penguins in 7