(hey NHL, the picture is yours i know. i'm not saying it's mine. don't sue me jerks)
The Eastern Conference wrapped up its quarterfinal rounds tonight in dramatic fashion. Montreal and Boston went into OT, where Boston actually won a game 7, and Tampa Bay came back from being down 3-1 in the series to ride out a last minute penalty to defeat the Penguins at the Consol Energy Center. We now officially have our match ups, so it's time to break them down.
#1 Washington Capitals vs #5 Tampa Bay Lightning
Regular season results, Washington wins 4-2 (3-1-1 tampa bay)
The Washington Capitals beat the New York Rangers, erasing some dubious history of losing a series after being up 2-0. Michael Neuvirth has been excellent, even in loses for the Caps. Look for him to continue starting for the Caps to start this series. Meanwhile Southeast Division rivals, the Tampa Bay Lighting, have fought back from the brink of elimination to advance to the next round. Dwayne Roloson has been huge for the Lightning since being acquired from the New York Islanders earlier in the season.
Washington Capitals: The Capitals are past the first round, and they beat an excellent goaltender to do it. The commitment to team defense has really paid off. All of their regular season adversity has really seemed to make this a better club this spring. While, one player does not make a team, the deadline acquisition of Jason Arnott certainly hasn't hurt. The goaltending carousel has stopped on Michael Neuvirth and he has yet to disappoint. Washington will need to get more scoring out of Backstrom who has a points in the first series. Yes, not even a number, but a letter of points. The trio of Ovechkin, Backstrom and Semin will need to step up for Washington as Tampa Bay is more offensively gifted than the Rangers.
Tampa Bay Lightning: Tampa Bay has really come into their own under first year head coach Guy Boucher. Given the talent this team has up front, it's not so much as surprise as it is a relief. The Lighting have a goaltending merry-go-round of their own, as four goaltenders have played for them this season. When the ride finally stopped Rollie the ageless goalie, Dwayne Roloson, has emerged as their starter and he is on a mission. Twice in his career, before the series against Pittsburgh, he has lead a team back from being down 3-1 and almost singlehandedly won a cup in Edmonton. It's hard to recall an injury to one player being so significant to a team, than Roloson going down in '06. With the team he has in front of him, it's very possible that Roloson can will this team back to their first Cup final appearance since their win in 2004.
Breakdown: Look for goals, and lots of opportunities. Neither of these teams are defensive juggernauts, but they are capable of keeping games close. At the end of the day though, these are two teams who are more comfortable scoring goals than preventing them. With that said, goalies will still be called upon to make crucial saves to give their teams a chance to win.
Bottom line: Bolts in 7. Look for this series to be a back and forth battle. As good as Neuvirth has been good, Roloson knows what it takes to win and will be a deciding factor in this series.
#2 Philadelphia Flyers vs #3 Boston Bruins
Regular season results, Boston won 2-1-1
The Flyers have once again staged a comeback in the playoffs, battling back from 3-2 to defeat Buffalo in an exciting series. Boston was engaged in one of the oldest rivalries in the NHL with the Montreal Canadiens. In a series where the home teams were both 1-2 before game seven. Boston was the aggressor getting leads and holding them for periods of time, but the Habs continually battled back and forced overtime where they ultimately lost thanks to Nathan Horton. The win has set up a rematch of last year's Eastern Conference semi final, where the Flyers became only the third team in the NHL to come back from a 3-0 series deficit to win a series. In that monumental game seven the Bruins managed to blow a 3-0 lead. This series is going to be epic
Philadelphia Flyers: Well we can't talk about how determined this team is, or the talent from the the fowards to the defense. No, the only thing that matters in Philadelphia is goaltending. Will it be Boucher? Bob? Leighton? It doesn't matter that Danny Briere leads the league this postseason with goals, or that Claude Giroux leads the postseason with assists and is second in points and Timmo Kimmonen leads the league at +9. None of that matters since they don't have a superstar goaltender capable of stopping shots from five different angles at once. While goaltending is certainly a concern, Brian Boucher has been more than up to the task of backstopping the Flyers. With the exception of a terrible stretch during game 5, Boucher has been excellent between the pipes for Philadelphia. He's 3rd among all goalies in the playoffs in goals-against average (not including Lindback or Niittymaki who came in relief for their respective clubs). Their abysmal power play has shown signs of improvement since Chris Pronger has returned to the lineup, scoring critical goals in both games 6 and 7.
Boston Bruins: The Big Bad Bruins are more than capable of playing physically, yet they seemed content to let the faster Canadiens move as they pleased. They will need to up their physical play against the Flyers, a team who can bang and move. The Bruins have an undeniable edge in net with Tim Thomas who had one of the best regular seasons in recent memory. They're going up against a team who can put a lot of rubber on net. Timmy Thomas will need to be at his best to keep the Bruins in the game. The Bruins will need to improve their special teams, especially their power play which was absolutely dreadful against Montreal. The Flyers kill penalties aggressively and the Bruins will need to be smart with the puck, or they will give up shorties. Chris Kelly has been an excellent pick up for them in the post season. He leads the team in goals and is second on the team in points. Look for him to continue his steady play against the Flyers.
Breakdown: This should be a very physical series, as both teams are able to bang bodies and dish out some punishment. The key will be special teams. The Flyers are looking to be clicking on the power play, while the Bruins power play is powerless. This is one of the more evenly matched series we will see this post season and should be an exciting one. The Flyers entered the playoffs on a terrible run, but picked it up in the series against Buffalo. The Bruins were in a tight division race all year and rode the back of Tim Thomas to the third seed. The speed of the Habs showed their weaknesses, but given the history between these teams, expect this to be hard hitting and nasty. Boston will want revenge for last year, and the Flyers will look to get a lead and stay on top.
Bottom Line: Flyers in 6. Given the officiating this post season, and both teams ability to sit in the sin bin, special teams will be crucial to this series. Boston will need to find a way to score on the power play, otherwise they will have to completely dominate five-on-five play to get to the conference finals. The Flyers will also need to continue to find success on the power play. Tim Thomas is more than capable of stealing games, so scoring when you have the man advantage will be huge.
#1 Washington Capitals vs #5 Tampa Bay Lightning
Regular season results, Washington wins 4-2 (3-1-1 tampa bay)
The Washington Capitals beat the New York Rangers, erasing some dubious history of losing a series after being up 2-0. Michael Neuvirth has been excellent, even in loses for the Caps. Look for him to continue starting for the Caps to start this series. Meanwhile Southeast Division rivals, the Tampa Bay Lighting, have fought back from the brink of elimination to advance to the next round. Dwayne Roloson has been huge for the Lightning since being acquired from the New York Islanders earlier in the season.
Washington Capitals: The Capitals are past the first round, and they beat an excellent goaltender to do it. The commitment to team defense has really paid off. All of their regular season adversity has really seemed to make this a better club this spring. While, one player does not make a team, the deadline acquisition of Jason Arnott certainly hasn't hurt. The goaltending carousel has stopped on Michael Neuvirth and he has yet to disappoint. Washington will need to get more scoring out of Backstrom who has a points in the first series. Yes, not even a number, but a letter of points. The trio of Ovechkin, Backstrom and Semin will need to step up for Washington as Tampa Bay is more offensively gifted than the Rangers.
Tampa Bay Lightning: Tampa Bay has really come into their own under first year head coach Guy Boucher. Given the talent this team has up front, it's not so much as surprise as it is a relief. The Lighting have a goaltending merry-go-round of their own, as four goaltenders have played for them this season. When the ride finally stopped Rollie the ageless goalie, Dwayne Roloson, has emerged as their starter and he is on a mission. Twice in his career, before the series against Pittsburgh, he has lead a team back from being down 3-1 and almost singlehandedly won a cup in Edmonton. It's hard to recall an injury to one player being so significant to a team, than Roloson going down in '06. With the team he has in front of him, it's very possible that Roloson can will this team back to their first Cup final appearance since their win in 2004.
Breakdown: Look for goals, and lots of opportunities. Neither of these teams are defensive juggernauts, but they are capable of keeping games close. At the end of the day though, these are two teams who are more comfortable scoring goals than preventing them. With that said, goalies will still be called upon to make crucial saves to give their teams a chance to win.
Bottom line: Bolts in 7. Look for this series to be a back and forth battle. As good as Neuvirth has been good, Roloson knows what it takes to win and will be a deciding factor in this series.
#2 Philadelphia Flyers vs #3 Boston Bruins
Regular season results, Boston won 2-1-1
The Flyers have once again staged a comeback in the playoffs, battling back from 3-2 to defeat Buffalo in an exciting series. Boston was engaged in one of the oldest rivalries in the NHL with the Montreal Canadiens. In a series where the home teams were both 1-2 before game seven. Boston was the aggressor getting leads and holding them for periods of time, but the Habs continually battled back and forced overtime where they ultimately lost thanks to Nathan Horton. The win has set up a rematch of last year's Eastern Conference semi final, where the Flyers became only the third team in the NHL to come back from a 3-0 series deficit to win a series. In that monumental game seven the Bruins managed to blow a 3-0 lead. This series is going to be epic
Philadelphia Flyers: Well we can't talk about how determined this team is, or the talent from the the fowards to the defense. No, the only thing that matters in Philadelphia is goaltending. Will it be Boucher? Bob? Leighton? It doesn't matter that Danny Briere leads the league this postseason with goals, or that Claude Giroux leads the postseason with assists and is second in points and Timmo Kimmonen leads the league at +9. None of that matters since they don't have a superstar goaltender capable of stopping shots from five different angles at once. While goaltending is certainly a concern, Brian Boucher has been more than up to the task of backstopping the Flyers. With the exception of a terrible stretch during game 5, Boucher has been excellent between the pipes for Philadelphia. He's 3rd among all goalies in the playoffs in goals-against average (not including Lindback or Niittymaki who came in relief for their respective clubs). Their abysmal power play has shown signs of improvement since Chris Pronger has returned to the lineup, scoring critical goals in both games 6 and 7.
Boston Bruins: The Big Bad Bruins are more than capable of playing physically, yet they seemed content to let the faster Canadiens move as they pleased. They will need to up their physical play against the Flyers, a team who can bang and move. The Bruins have an undeniable edge in net with Tim Thomas who had one of the best regular seasons in recent memory. They're going up against a team who can put a lot of rubber on net. Timmy Thomas will need to be at his best to keep the Bruins in the game. The Bruins will need to improve their special teams, especially their power play which was absolutely dreadful against Montreal. The Flyers kill penalties aggressively and the Bruins will need to be smart with the puck, or they will give up shorties. Chris Kelly has been an excellent pick up for them in the post season. He leads the team in goals and is second on the team in points. Look for him to continue his steady play against the Flyers.
Breakdown: This should be a very physical series, as both teams are able to bang bodies and dish out some punishment. The key will be special teams. The Flyers are looking to be clicking on the power play, while the Bruins power play is powerless. This is one of the more evenly matched series we will see this post season and should be an exciting one. The Flyers entered the playoffs on a terrible run, but picked it up in the series against Buffalo. The Bruins were in a tight division race all year and rode the back of Tim Thomas to the third seed. The speed of the Habs showed their weaknesses, but given the history between these teams, expect this to be hard hitting and nasty. Boston will want revenge for last year, and the Flyers will look to get a lead and stay on top.
Bottom Line: Flyers in 6. Given the officiating this post season, and both teams ability to sit in the sin bin, special teams will be crucial to this series. Boston will need to find a way to score on the power play, otherwise they will have to completely dominate five-on-five play to get to the conference finals. The Flyers will also need to continue to find success on the power play. Tim Thomas is more than capable of stealing games, so scoring when you have the man advantage will be huge.
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