Can the Canadiens Win the Series From the Capitals?

Headlines are starting to post all over Eastern Canada. The headline, "Canadiens force a Game 7 in Washington." Millions of Canadien fans are piling the streets of Montreal, celebrating a decisive Game 6 decision in Montreal, which they won 4-1 over the Washington Capitals, forcing a Game 7 and allowing the Canadiens to have a chance to win the series. Wouldn't it be great that an 8 seed would be able to upset a 1 seed, especially President Trophy winners. Well, it's not rare. Look back at last season. The 8 seed Anaheim Ducks upset the 1 seed San Jose Sharks in six games, and boy was it thrilling for me and Ducks fans alike to see a big upset like that. That's just how Canadiens fans are feeling right now. But it's only one game, and the party will most likely stop in a few hours. There's a Game 7 to go either way, and will Mike Cammalleri play an excellent game there like he did tonight? Jaroslav Halak looks like a beast in the net, and could pretty much stop any Capitals player, including Alex Ovechkin. So do they win Game 7 or will the Capitals wash them out? There is no easy way to explain this, as this is a playoff match that has seen its fair share of good victories. Montreal could very well take the series from Washington and have the Capitals end their season on such a bad note. It wouldn't look good for Ovechkin, Bruce Boudreau, or the Capitals organization. But we'll never know what happens until Tuesday. Until then, Canadiens fan, enjoy your victory, and beware, there is still one more game to decide whose fate will be sealed and who will end up victorious.

Can the Phoenix Coyotes Stay Alive?

One team is already out in the New Jersey Devils, but it would probably also be heartbreaking if another really good team like the Phoenix Coyotes could see their season end so abruptly. However, the Detroit Red Wings are also a very good team, so there would be some heartbreak either way. The Coyotes did nothing in Friday night's game against the Detroit Red Wings at Jobing.com Arena. They lost 4-1, with only a goal by Ed Jovanovski, but the Red Wings were a little too much for a Coyotes team that hasn't been much of the playoffs for some time. But can the Coyotes bounce back and send this series to a game 7 back at Jobing.com Arena? There would be a yes or no answer to this. First the yes. They have a really good powerplay that can compete with the Red Wings. Second, they have a magnificent goaltender in Ilya Bryzgalov, who can keep this team up with them. Now the no. The Red Wings are a much more experienced team in the playoffs, and Game 6 is being played in Detroit, which is not a win-win for the Coyotes. Although, they did win in Detroit in Game 3, the Coyotes can't match up against the Red Wings who have Henrik Zetterberg, Johan Franzen, Jimmy Howard, and many other players that can put the puck in the net. So, basically, it will end tomorrow night for the Phoenix Coyotes. I'm sorry to see them go in the first round, but the Red Wings will go to the second round, while the Coyotes watch the rest of the playoffs in Phoenix.

Is Nabokov a Playoff Goaltender?

You think that NHL goaltenders can last all the way through the regular season and the postseason. You think that they can lead their team to the cup, win them the championship, and then lead them on the road again. That is not how it is working out for San Jose Sharks goaltender Evgeni Nabokov. I have seem him play and perform both good and bad. However, the good seems to be during the regular season, the bad during the playoffs. Some people have also seen his goaltending and think that the real problem is scoring. As a matter of fact, the other goaltenders have been able to step up to the big boys in the playoffs. So this poses a question about the troubled netminder: Is he a goaltender that works in the playoffs? My answer to this question is no. He may be good in the regular season, but he's under too much pressure, both from head coach Todd McLellan and general manager Doug Wilson, to get the Sharks to a Stanley Cup. I believe he is afraid to piss off Doug Wilson yet again after the debacle last year when they were eliminated in the first round by the Ducks. I believe this team needs to find an identity in goal, and Evgeni Nabokov would not be their guy. I could recommend their backup Thomas Greiss, but we know Doug Wilson will not pull his elite goaltender for a backup who hasn't seen playoff hockey. Right now, they need to find something that will work, and it equals goaltending. Will Evgeni Nabokov be pulled the rest of the postseason for Thomas Greiss? Or will he stay in net? We'll have to wait and see what the Sharks will do and how they address these needs for tomorrow's game against the Avalanche.

Who will surprise in the NHL playoffs?

So there are 16 teams out of the potential 30 teams in the NHL that have clinched a playoff birth. All have deserved these spots because they overcame obstacles and challenges in their way to earn their spots again. Some teams got in because they got lucky and had a good number of points to move them in, while other teams had to win some late regular-season games in order to be considered eligible. There are 16 teams in the playoffs. Only one of them will win the Stanley Cup prize each team desires so badly. So here's a question I am dying to ask you: Who will be the biggest surprise in these year's playoffs? Well, when you look at a good number of teams that got here, you can say pretty much anybody can be a surprise this season. But there's one team in my mind that might not win the Stanley Cup, but will definitely go farther than they expected. It's the Los Angeles Kings. Yes, the Kings did have a bit of a downfall late into the regular season, but you look at what they have in the first round. They play the Vancouver Canucks. And I saw these two things down in Los Angeles during spring break and the Kings beat them 8-3, a wide margin. It was definitely not Luongo's best night, but it proved for the Kings that they can play with the big boys, such as Vancouver, San Jose, and Detroit. The power play is clicking and the goaltending by Jonathan Quick has been solid. Terry Murray, the coach of the Kings, has put together a solid team and it looks like it can take them far. They will have to figure out a way to win on the road in Vancouver however, because they have not win up in the 2010 Olympic City so far this season, losing their two contests there against the Canucks. These team nevers to overcome these statistics if they even have a chance of getting to the next round. If they are able to do this, it looks like a bright and solid destiny to the Cup. As I said before, I don't see them winning it, because with a team like that, there might be no answers coming from the Canucks or any other opponent in the first two rounds.

Did the Tampa Bay Lightning Panic?

There are fourteen teams that unfortunately did not make into the playoffs. Although some came close, others felt their team needed to be improved a bit more. That is what the Tampa Bay Lightning did. A day after their season finale with a 3-1 win over the Florida Panthers in Sunrise, the Tampa Bay Lightning fired coach Rick Tocchet and dismissed general manager Brian Lawton after missing the playoffs for a third straight season. According to the Associated Press, it is the club's third coaching change in the last two years. They have been under .500 since Rick Tocchet took over for Barry Melrose last season. So, did the Lightning panic? Did they jump too early to make a coaching change, especially a day after the regular season ended? No, they did not. They knew they had to make a change in order to improve their club. They don't know if Vincent Lecavalier is going to come back to the team next season. Luckily, they'll have Steven Stamkos with that team in case Lecavalier leaves, and a good coach is needed to help Stamkos become another version of Sidney Crosby or Alex Ovechkin. As for the general manager, I'm guessing the rest of management didn't feel he did enough for the Lightning and they needed a change there to order to get a reasonable guy who can help this club improve and get back to the Stanley Cup championship, which they won in 2004. A good coach and a well-placed general manager will be the key in leading this Lightning club forward for next year. It's going to take a while to get a new coach and a new GM in place. The GM job should be hired within the next month or so, while the coaching position might take a bit of time to get. It will all make sense in the next couple of months what Tampa Bay Lightning management will decide to do with these two positions.

Who wins the eighth seed? NY Rangers or Philadelphia?

So in the past few days since I wrote about a blog determining who would get an eighth seed, I said that it was either between Boston and Atlanta and that the NY Rangers would be the odd ones out. John Tortorella might have heard me. The way the NY Rangers are playing now is at exactly the right time. Since Boston and Montreal claimed a playoff spot and Atlanta being eliminated, they have to fight the Philadelphia Flyers tomorrow to see who ultimately wins the chance to play in the Stanley Cup playoffs. It just so happens they are playing each other tomorrow at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, which will put the icing on the playoff cake. So you're probably wondering who wins, who ultimately gets that eighth seed and gets the Washington Capitals in the first round? Guess what? I'm going to head for the NY Rangers. Why? Because they have fought back from almost the bottom of the Eastern Conference pit and put themselves in very good position to get that seed. Henrik Lundqvist is playing well and even some players are getting some of the important goals that they head. John Tortorella is turning this team in the right direction for the moment. Another positive thing for the New York Rangers is the fact that they have played the Washington Capitals in the playoffs before last year and took them the entire seven games. Of course they lost the series, but they know they can do it again and hopefully put the pressure on the Capitals and Coach Bruce Boudreau to fight this team. So unfortunately for Philadelphia, it'll be the end. Brian Boucher has not done well for this team, and their offense is lacking, especially the last game against the New York Rangers at MSG, in which they lost and tied the Rangers for that last seed. Hopefully, it will be correct and the NY Rangers will indeed get that seed and play the Capitals in the first seed. It will be a fight to the end of the third period for the Flyers and NY Rangers.

Will the Washington Capitals win the cup?

Alex Ovechkin looked red-hot over the years and has not quit that trend. He had good players around him to help him control him to a playoff destiny the last two years. But this year, he took this team to win the Presidents' Trophy, which is the Capitals' first in franchise history. He has helped his team a long way, but with a Presidents' Trophy, can Ovechkin carry this team towards the Stanley Cup? If you remember the San Jose Sharks last season, they won the President's Trophy and didn't even make it past the first round. A year before that, the Detroit Red Wings won it and did win the Stanley Cup. Can the Capitals be the Red Wings or will they be the Sharks? This is actually a question that can go either way. Their positive side of winning the Cup might be Alex Ovechkin, Mike Green, Mike Knuble, Alexander Semin, and many other players that have impact on this team. The negative that might prevent the team from getting to the Stanley Cup. They've had to switch goaltenders between Semyon Varlamov, Michal Neuvirth, and Jose Theodore. Theodore and Varlamov have playoff experience, but if they decide to go with Neuvirth, it could be a disappointing season. Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau will probably have to assess that area before entering for the playoffs. He needs to see who can carry this team all the way to the final. He had better make this decision wisely. For my advice on who to pick, I suggest to pick the Capitals until at least the Conference Finals, then you can make your pick on who you think will make it. I think the Capitals will win the Stanley Cup if the fowards and defenders can help the goaltenders out and score some goal. It should be a big fight to the Cup for the Capitals.