2015 NHL Playoffs Predictions Thread.

[tripolie atche]

My Quarterfinal Predictions.

2015 NHL Quarterfinals Predictions


West:
(P1) ANA vs. (W2) WPG - This should be a great series that will end in an upset. Both teams’ starting goalies (Andersen & Pavelec) will probably be streaky & I wouldn’t be surprised if both backups (Gibson & Hutchinson) have to make starts. I would give the goalie edge to ANA in this series. While ANAs offense in Getzlaf, Perry, & Kesler should carry the Ducks to a couple of wins in the series, I expect WPGs defense, namely Dustin Byfuglien, to wear ANA down the longer this series goes (This assuming the Jets can minimize going into the penalty box lol). If WPG can successfully do this, then there’s a good chance this will translate into a successful series for Wheeler, Ladd, & Little. I can’t wait to see how crazy the Jets’ fans will be in Game 3 when they host their first playoff game in nearly twenty years….& how even more crazy it’ll be when they clinch the series at home in Game 6. Jets in 6.

(P2) VAN vs. (P3) CGY - I want to say VAN’s experience will prevail in this series, but there’s just something about this CGY team which continues to defy expectations. Everyone, myself included, has been waiting for CGY to stumble & thought they would after Giordano’s injury or in a do-or-die game against the defending champions nearly a week ago. Yet, they continue to prove the naysayers wrong, which is why I’m picking the Flames to win this series. I expect CGY to stay out of the penalty box, minimizing VAN’s PP opportunities (one of VAN’s strengths), while CGYs first-line (Hudler, Monahan, & Gaudreau) will outplay VANs (Sedin twins & Vrbata). Also, the Canucks just haven’t been the same in the postseason since losing in the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals to BOS, & while this series will be a lot closer then VANs previous two playoff series, the Flames will go on to Round 2. Flames in 7.

(C1) STL vs. (W1) MIN - I think the deciding factor in this series will be the Blues’ goaltending situation, which has been overmatched to say the least in their last three playoff series (all losses). Jake Allen will get the first shot at goalie for the Blues, which was the right decision made by Hitchcock as Allen has been playing great the past month or so. If he can carry that momentum into this series then that won’t be good news for Parise, Pominville, etc. On offense, STL is pretty healthy compared to last year going into their first round series against the Blackhawks, so there will be no excuses this time around for Tarasenko, Schwartz, Steen, etc. I expect this series to go the distance & while Dubnyk has been the main reason MIN made the postseason, I think Jake Allen will outplay him while having home-ice will lead STL into Round 2. Blues in 7.

(C2) NSH vs. (C3) CHI - I probably still would’ve went with CHI if Kane weren’t healthy enough to play in the series, but since he’s set to play in Game 1, I’m not hesitating to pick them to defeat the defensive-minded Predators. While the Preds have one of the best defensive units in the NHL, I think CHIs depth on offense, experience, plus the return of Kane will be too much for NSH to overcome. Blackhawks in 6.




East:
(M1) NYR vs. (W2) PIT - While the Penguins have played like shit down the stretch, clinching the last remaining playoff spot in the East on the last day of the regular season, this could be a trap series for the Rangers if they overlook this PIT team. Playing the Rangers in the first round may not be the worst thing in the world as they rarely have been underdogs in a playoffs series during the Crosby-Malkin-Fleury Era, & if they choose to embrace it, could be beneficial to PIT as they play with a little less pressure. Could they upset the Rangers? Maybe. Will they? Hell no lol. This Rangers team has been firing on all cylinders all season long. They didn’t miss a beat when Lundqvist was injured for nearly two months as Talbot filled in remarkably at goalie during that time & they haven’t missed a beat since Lundqvist returned. While Crosby & Malkin may help PIT win a game or two in this series, they will be without Letang while Fleury has had played like shit in recent postseasons. Not to mention, the Rangers have the edge in depth, speed, & size. If the Rangers don’t get too cocky, they’ll be fine. Rangers in 6.

(M2) WAS vs. (M3) NYI - The Isles have not played well during the second half of the season, going 15-14-6. While the Caps have the slight edge on offense in Ovechkin, Backstrom, Carlson, etc.; edge in playoff experience; goaltending; not to mention NYIs woeful penalty-kill unit; I’m still going with the Isles to advance. I’ve seen this story before with WAS in the postseason since Ovechkin entered the league & expect the Caps to get KO’ed in the first round in seven games yet again. The Isles’ moving to Brooklyn will be mentioned oh about a couple of thousand times throughout this series, which will be a motivator for this young team. I expect this series to be high-scoring as both Holtby & Halak will struggle, but Tavares, the experience of both Leddy & Boychuk, & the youngins': Ryan Strome, Anders Lee, Brock Nelson, will prevail in seven to set up The Battle of New York City in the next round. Islanders in 7.

(A1) MON vs. (W1) OTT - The Sens have been on fire since Hammond became their goalie & I expect his momentum to help carry OTT in this series & onto Round 2. On offense, the Sens have a balanced attack & more scoring depth (Karlsson, Turris, Stone, Hoffman, Zibanejad, etc.) than a Canadiens team that’ll be without Pacioretty for at least Game 1. That very well maybe enough for the Sens to steal a game in Montreal & grab the home-ice advantage from them. While the Habs do have the Vezina & Hart Trophy favorite in Carey Price plus more depth on defense, the Sens will knock them out for the second time in three years in the postseason. Senators in 6.

(A2) TB vs. (A3) DET - Mrazek or Jimmy Howard? It won't matter who’s at goalie for the Red Wings because he won’t be the answer against the NHL’s #1 offensive team. If Stamkos, Callahan, Tyler Johnson, & Co. will do plenty of damage while Ben Bishop, who wasn’t available for the Lightning in last year’s postseason due to injury (TB was swept by MON in the first round), will continue his strong play from the regular season into the postseason. Lightning in 5.


So, these would be my second round matchups: (P3) Calgary vs. (W2) Winnipeg, (C1) St. Louis vs. (C3) Chicago, (M1) NY Rangers vs. (M3) NY Islanders, & (A2) Tampa Bay vs. (W1) Ottawa.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Was wondering if this thread would return this year. Nice job.


East:


(M1) NYR vs. (W2) PIT

You can call it bias if you like, but this is all Rangers, all day. Rob Rossi of the Pittsburgh Tribune, one of the Pens' beat writers, called this PIT team a "poor excuse for a playoff seed", and said they'd be the first team in the history of the NHL to be swept in three games. Clearly that's a joke, and I'm not so bold as to say they'll be swept, but a sweep wouldn't surprise me. Rangers have better depth, better D, better goaltending (in the playoffs). It's Rangers in five.


(M2) WAS vs. (M3) NYI

I'm actually not really sure. I just think this goes seven, for sure. Two very similarly matched/built teams. Caps are a little bigger, Isles are a little faster. Both have goalies who have a lot to prove in the post-season. Coin flip says Caps in seven. But we all know the odds of flipping a coin for a specific result.


(A1) MON vs. (W1) OTT

Cinderella doesn't live happily ever after in this one. She gets snuffed out and buried in a shallow grave. I'm so sick of the Turdburglar hype. He's a scrub. He's been a scrub his whole life. He'll continue to be a scrub. The Sens are a goalie-lead version of a team with an absolutely unsustainable PDO. Canadiens in five... and I want to say four.


(A2) TB vs. (A3) DET

Wings have no goalie. They might — might — make a series of this, but the Lightning are the second best team in the East for a reason. Goaltending, defense, goal-scoring (best in the league)... it's all there. Not to mention a truck load of playoff/Stanley Cup Final experience in a trio of ex-Rangers: Anton Strålman, Ryan Callahan and Brian Boyle.


West:


(P1) ANA vs. (W2) WPG

I could see this being an upset, but the Ducks are built for the post season as well as any team, East or West. I think the Jets will make a go of this, but home ice will give the edge to Anaheim who take it in seven.


(P2) VAN vs. (P3) CGY

What a sweet little Smythe division match-up this is, eh? Hard-hitting, hard-shooting, fast-as-can-be, old fashioned West coast hockey right here. It's probably going seven. It's probably going Vancouver.


(C1) STL vs. (W1) MIN

The series I care the least about. This should be as fun to watch as paint drying. Two defense-first teams playing defense-first hockey on teams built on their defense. Did I mention defense? But in all honesty, it's the Blues' series to take. In six. It'll come down to goaltending, and great a season as Dubnyk has had, experience and success in the playoffs just isn't there. I'm a firm believer in what have you done for me lately, so we'll see how that pans out. Blues in six.


(C2) NSH vs. (C3) CHI

Hawks in seven in what is probably going to be the most exciting, overtime-laden series in first-round history. Last night's 2OT venture was a taste of things to come in all likelihood.

--

Second round match-ups: MTL/TBL, NYR/WSH, STL/CHI, ANA/VAN

 

[tripolie atche]

I went 4-4 in the Quarterfinal Round.

2015 NHL Semifinals Predictions


West:
(P1) ANA vs. (P3) CGY - The Flames’ Cinderella run continues into the second round, but can they keep their momentum going against a deeper, much experienced Ducks team? Sure, why not lol. The Ducks are obviously they heavy favorite to win this series, but CGY has been under-appreciated, underestimated, & overlooked by everyone this season….which obviously works in the Flames’ favor. I expect Hiller will be focused & more motivated to beat his former team, while Gaudreau, Hudler, & Monahan continue their spectacular play in this series. While CGY hasn’t won in ANA in nearly a DECADE!, I think the Ducks will show rust allowing the Flames to steal a game & home-ice. Of course, Kesler, Perry, Getzlaf, & Andersen will do as much as they can to avoid the upset, but eventually they’ll succumb to pressure against a much looser Flames team after dropping a home game early on. Flames in 6.

(C3) CHI vs. (W1) MIN - Can I see the Wild pull off the upset against a proven Blackhawks team? Yes….but they won’t lol. While the Blackhawks, mostly their goalie play, didn’t look too good against the Preds in the last round, they still figured out a way to win that series in 6. Yes, the Wild have been fantastic since the acquisition of Dubnyk in January, but I expect Toews, Kane, Sharp, Keith, etc. to get to MINs defensemen making it tough for Devan. Now in terms of CHIs goaltending, I think we see the Corey Crawford from the Blackhawks’ 2013 Stanley Cup run in this series. Hopefully, CHI can avoid spotting the Wild two or three goal leads in the first period haha. If so, then they’ll be just fine, but if not, then they will be fucked this time around against Parise, Pominville, Niederreiter, & Co. Blackhawks in 7.




East:
(M1) NYR vs. (M2) WAS - This is becoming one of the best rivalries in the NHL right now with these two teams meeting in the playoffs for the 5th time in the last 7 years (3 of the 4 meetings have gone the full 7 games). I expect this to be entertaining as well, & while Zuccarello will likely be out for this series, I still believe the Rangers will come out on top. I hope their stars (namely St. Louis & Nash) will be more involved in this series, compared to the PIT one, as it may not be enough to get past the Caps if they both combine for 1 goal in this series. The Rangers should get a big series from the two, while their defense will help contain Ovechkin, Backstrom, & rising star Evgeny Kuznetsov. Also, I expect NYR to stay disciplined & limit WASs PP opportunities, while Lundqvist will play like….well….Lundqvist lol. Having him at net will be one of, if not the, main reason why NYR advances into the ECF. Rangers in 7.

(A1) MON vs. (A2) TB - I hate taking the regular season matchups into account when making a playoffs series prediction, but TB went 5-0-0 against the Habs this past season. While I expect MON to play well in this series, it just won’t be enough to get past TB. The Lightning have the advantage when it comes to offensive potential (Palat, Tyler Johnson, & Kucherov), not to mention the deepest group of forwards in the NHL. While Stamkos only registered 3 points (0 goals) against the Wings, I think we’ll see the Steven Stamkos who dominated MON in the regular season show up in this series. Price’s goaltending should help MON win 1 or 2 games, but obviously it won’t be enough as TB will move on to the ECF. Lightning in 6.


So, these would be my Conference Finals matchups: (C3) Chicago vs. (P3) Calgary & (M1) NY Rangers vs. (A2) Tampa Bay.

 

[tripolie atche]

I went 3-1 in the Semifinal Round getting only the Flames pick wrong.

2015 NHL Conference Finals Predictions:


West:
(P1) ANA vs. (C3) CHI - This will be a fun series that could go the distance, especially with the Toews-Getzlaf matchup which’ll feature arguably the two best Centers & Captains in the NHL. As for my pick, I’m going to go with CHI to reach its third Stanley Cup Final in 6 years. The Blackhawks are more proven, playoff-tested, & have much better depth than the Ducks. Yes, the Ducks looked great in the first two rounds but their opponents (WPG & CGY) didn’t have much playoff experience, so how will they fare against this Chicago team where the margin of error diminishes? I don’t expect Anaheim to have much success, especially against CHIs D-Men (Keith, Hjalmarsson, Seabrook, Oduya, & Timmonen). While the Roszival injury does hurt CHI, I’m sure Quenneville will find still find a way to win like he usually does ever since he got to CHI. Blackhawks in 6.



East:
(M1) NYR vs. (A2) TB - The biggest storyline going into this series will probably be the St. Louis/Callahan trade from March of 2014. So, expect to have to hear about that a couple hundred times throughout this ECF & if/when Callahan will play in this series after having to undergo an emergency appendectomy a few days ago. Anyways, this should be another fun series where it’s basically offense vs. defense…I’m sure everyone can figure out by now which teams play which role lol. In any sport, most of the time it’s defense that comes out on top so I’m going with NYR to reach its second consecutive Stanley Cup Final. All 12 of NYRs playoff games thus far has been decided by one goal. If the Rangers strike early & can avoid multi-goal deficits then they’ll be fine. Obviously, it won’t be easy for the Rangers from having to go up against Stamkos, Killorn, Filppula, & “The Triplets Line” of Tyler Johnson, Kucherov, & Palat. However, I expect Girardi, McDonagh, Yandle & the rest of NYR’s D-Men to do enough to get past TB. Plus, it doesn’t hurt to have Lundqvist at goalie either. On offense for the Rangers, Nash & St. Louis will finally decide to make their presence felt in this series. This will likely go seven games & we all know how the Rangers fare when they play a Game 7 at home. Rangers in 7.


So, my Stanley Cup Finals matchup would be: (M1) NY Rangers vs. (C3) Chicago

 

[tripolie atche]

I went 1-1 in the Conference Finals

2015 NHL Stanley Cup Finals Prediction:


(A2) TB vs. (C3) CHI - While TB has shown to be a resilient bunch in these playoffs (e.g., overcoming a 3-2 deficit vs. DET & winning Game 7 of the ECF at MSG), I think the Blackhawks will win their third Stanley Cup in six years & therefore cementing their dynasty. It won’t be easy for CHI & their defensemen from having to go up against Stamkos & the “Triplets” line (Kucherov, Palat, & Tyler Johnson) after just getting by the Ducks in the WCF, but I expect Duncan Keith, Seabrook, Oduya, Hjalmarsson, etc. to be up to the task & do just enough to win this series. Also, it doesn’t hurt CHI to have Kane, Sharp, Hossa, & Toews & the experience they bring to this series, & until proven otherwise, I simply can’t go against the Blackhawks right now. Blackhawks in 6.

Conn Smythe Winner: Jonathan Toews. Not only would CHI cement its dynasty by winning the Cup again this season, but Toews would probably go down as hockey’s biggest winner of modern times if one includes his two Olympic gold medals….& he’s still a couple years away from turning 30.