2009 Stanley Cup Playoff Predictions: Finals

Detroit Red Wings vs. Pittsburgh Penguins

I'd like to start this post off by noting that I called this match-up in my conference finals predictions including the Wings taking care of the Hawks in five games. I was pretty impressed by what I saw from Chicago over the course of the regular season and deep run into the playoffs. I could see them winning at least one Stanley cup in the next five years since the average age on the team is only 25 years old.  With Jonathan "Captain Serious" Toews and Pat "Buffalo Boy" Kane they have a legit one-two punch that could rival Malkin-Crosby, Ovechkin-Semin and Datsyuk-Zetterberg in the next few years.  In the case of Toews, I have heard a lot of comparisons long time Red Wing captain and First Ballot Hall of Famer Steve Yzerman. That's quite an honor for the young man but I feel he has the game and the leadership ability to back it up. Check out this funny clip of a Toews interview after winning the U-18 Championship.

In the East, I'm actually glad the Pens didn't give the Canes a sniff of the Finals by sweeping them in four games. Unfortunately for the NHL, the Canes somehow managed to knock out the top-seeded Bruins which would've made for a much more exciting match-up in the Eastern Conference Finals. 

Now for the prediction...

As tough as it is for me to compliment the Red Wings because of my jealousy of their success and hatred of their fans in general, it's tough for me not to show them the respect they deserve. They have become the franchise to emulate over the past two decades in the NHL and somehow they continue to acquire top-notch talent through the draft and free agency.  The Pittsburgh Penguins on the other hand struggled through the middle part of the decade and used those poor seasons to snatch quality draft picks like Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal and Marc-Andre Fluery. These young players have matured over the past few seasons and gained valuable playoff experience over the past three seasons and are now in their second straight Stanley Cup Finals.

If the Penguins are to dethrone the defending champs, they are going to have to control a few factors. First of all, they need to take advantage of their dynamic power play.  Pittsburgh is going to have limited chances 5-on-5 due to the Detroit's stifling defense so any chance they get with the extra man, they must get traffic in front of Chris Osgood and get pucks on the net. The second factor is goaltending. Marc-Andre Fluery has to outplay Osgood every night for the Pens to stay in the game. Detroit always seems to score timely goals which can be take the wind out of their opponents sails very quickly. If Fluery can stand on his head and win the Pens at least two games, they have a shot to win. Injuries are also going to be a huge factor. Nick Lidstrom and Pavel Datsyuk both missed games in the Blackhawks series but it didn't seem to rattle the playoff-tested Red Wings who found guys like Johnathan Ericsson and Darren Helm to step in to roles. My golden rule is that the team that is playing the best at this time will ultimately take the crown and I think Pittburgh is playing well enough and has gained enough experience over the past few seasons to take the Red Wings down.  I know I should never bet against the Red Wings but I just have this feeling.

Pens in 7

Random Thoughts of the Week 5/18

1. T.O. in Buffalo. It was one of the top stories on SportsCenter this morning as Terrell Owens arrived last night at the Buffalo Airport to a sea of Bills enthusiasts hoping to get a glimpse or maybe even an autograph from the 35 year-old wide-receiver.  This showed me 2 things: 1. There's not much else going on in Buffalo right now. 2. There was nothing in the Buffalo News this morning on his arrival which means the national sports media(ESPN) is destined to turn this relationship as controversial as possible and I have a sad feeling little old Buffalo is going to get thrown under the bus by T.O. shortly after his departure from the Bills. It's just bound to happen. T.O. was also set to get a key to the city this afternoon from Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown, which to me is a little premature and absurd. I mean it's obvious the type of talent this guy has but come on, what has he really done besides bring a bunch of negative attention to three different NFL teams. I'm just hoping if he does leave Buffalo the way he left San Fran, Philadelphia and Dallas, he does so with a Super Bowl ring.

2. I like the match-ups in the NBA Conference Finals. I personally think the Lebrons are going to cruise past the Magic in 4 or 5 games. I'm just glad I don't have to watch the Celtics anymore. They just aren't the same team without KG and it's time for Dwight Howard to take another step in his career. In the West, I'm not gonna lie, I jumped on the Nuggets bandwagon around the same time Charles Barkley.  I think Chauncy totally changes the mindset of this team and brings a confidence they didn't have in years past that we've seen through the first two rounds.  Don't get me wrong, Kobe and the Lakers won't go down without a fight so I'm predicting this series goes 6 or 7 games with Denver advancing. As much as people want to see Kobe vs. Lebron, I would be just as excited to see Melo, Chauncy, K-Mart and the Birdman vs. Lebron.

3. I have a new obsession with Jim Rome. I love watching his show on ESPN. He's witty and informative at the same time with a wise crack coming out of his mouth what seems to be every other sentence and the reason I love it is because it's always true.

4. I'm excited for summer. I would really like to be employed by then. Keep your fingers crossed. 

5. I'll be in Buffalo for the Memorial Day weekend and I'm excited to do some things that I don't normally get to do here in Manhattan:

1. Drive a car 

2. Play golf 

3. See my dog Dockers

4. Hang out with my family and high school buddies

5. Eat some REAL Buffalo wings and a Burger from Grover's. And maybe a Roast Beef Sandwich from Anderson's

Back to Back Champs!

If you haven't heard yet, the University of Michigan Men's Lacrosse team went wire-to-wire for the second straight year and captured the 2009 MCLA Championship on Saturday night in Denver. They overcame a 4-goal halftime deficit to beat Chapman University for the second straight year in the finals 12-11. They have now won an incredible 40 games in a row and will have the talent coming back next year to continue that streak. 

Everyone has been asking me if this win will help them reach NCAA D-1 status and I tell them that it will have as much impact as last year's national championship. Winning always helps and shows people outside the inner circle that Michigan Lacrosse is taking the necessary steps to reaching the goal of becoming a D-1 program, but unfortunately there are factors outside of the Michigan Lacrosse program(Title IX and facilities the two biggest) that will keep us a "Virtual Varsity" team for the time being. I predict that if all goes as planned, we will see a varsity team at Michigan by 2014. I know that seems like a long ways away but unfortunately I think there are th getting in the way of the lacrosse team bumping up to the D-1 level . They only thing I'm hoping for between now and the time we become a Varsity program is that the quality of play in the MCLA to keep progressing and obviously more National Championships for the Big Blue!

People on the outside looking in don't really comprehend the amount of time, money and effort that goes into this program and it's really nice to see everyone get rewarded for their hard work and dedication. Congrats to JP and the rest of the 2009 MCLA Champions!

2009 Stanley Cup Playoff Predictions: Conference Finals

Well I was 0-2 in the Eastern Conference Finals. But at least I called the Caps/Pens series going to 7 games and who saw the Canes outlasting the mighty Bruins in their second 7 game series in a row? The NHL has to be excited that their superstars shined in the big spotlight and the series lived up to all of the hype. Even though I picked the Caps to win, I'm not surprised at all that the Pens are moving on because as Mark put it shortly after the embarrassing performance by the Caps in Game 7, "Man, what a dud. But c'mon, the better team won the series." OV now has to go to the LeBron school of team-building and instead of trying to carry this team on his back for 4 rounds in the playoffs, learn to use his teammates and create an atmosphere where the other talent around him wants to raise their game to another level. 

Now onto my Eastern Conference Finals predictions:

Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Carolina Hurricanes

All of the headlines leading into this series are about the Staal brothers going head-to-head with younger defensive minded Jordan shadowing the offensive powerhouse in Eric. Every time I've seen Eric play in person it's obvious that he is the most talented player on the ice. Things will be a little different in this series as the two-headed monster down the middle known as Sid and Gino. I'm sure Carolina has a ton of confidence after knocking out the first place Bruins but I just don't see how they are going to be able to handle the deeper and more talented Penguins. Cam Ward better be ready to face a lot of shots but he's shown he has the ability to keep Carolina in many games throughout his playoff career. In the end though I think Pittsburgh feels it's their destiny to meet the Red Wings in the Stanley Cup Finals to avenge last years loss. 

Pens in 6

The NHL struck gold twice during the 2009 Playoffs as this is the best match-up they could've asked for coming out of the West. Two original six teams with Chicago being relevant again in the league after years of being the embarrassment of the league and the Detroit Red Wings proving once again that they are the closest thing to a dynasty this league has seen since the Oilers in the 80's. 

Chicago Blackhawks vs. Detroit Red Wings

This prediction is a little late due to the fact that the Red Wings took Game 1 yesterday in Detroit but the result didn't do much to change my opinion on how this series is going to play out. I've said it before and I'll say it again, the Red Wings are too deep at forward while doing such a great job at possessing the puck and scoring timely goals. They just seem to find guys like Dan Cleary and Mikael Samuelsson who fit well into their system and succeed. The only hope for Chicago is for Khabibulin to stand on his head and not give up soft goals like he did multiple times yesterday(See Cleary's first goal and Franzen's wrap around goal). They're not going to be able to rely on Kane and Toews the entire series in terms of offensive play and need secondary scoring from guys like Patrick Sharp and Dustin Byfuglien.  After all is said and done the Red Wings will remain victorious and Marian Hossa will get a shot at playing for another Stanley Cup vs. his former team. 

Red Wings in 5

Random Thoughts of the Week

1. As much as I love to watch ESPN and SportsCenter, I cannot stand it when they report about stupid stories like Brett Farve coming out of retirement, Alex Rodriguez doing steroids in high school, Terrell Owens missing voluntary workouts. It reaches the point where I turn the channel because its the same story over and over and they keep on reporting the same stupid shit. Sports Guy Bill Simmons summed it up best in his column about how great the Bulls/Celtics series was:

Think of all the crap we deal with as fans. "Bulls-Celtics 2009" explains why we put up with every story about Clemens and Bonds and Michael Vick and Terrell Owens and everyone else who conspires to make sports less fun. On the same day of Game 6, a story broke that Alex Rodriguez was allegedly seen with human growth hormone. The story was digested and consumed in the same predictably brief cycle: Mainstream Web sites and blogs and message boards and sports radio first, then "PTI" and "Around the Horn," then "SportsCenter," then newspapers and magazines. You can either throw yourself into that cycle or look the other way. I am getting older. I just want to watch sports. I have trained myself to look the other way. This stuff clutters my brain, and not in a good way. I just want to watch sports. I just want to watch sports.

I'm just like Bill. I just want to watch sports. It's just too bad we have to put up with all that other crap. 

2. LeBron James is a freak of nature. After watching him single-handedly beat the Detroit Pistons in the 2007 Eastern Conference Finals I always knew he was destined to win a few NBA titles and MVPs.  He's already halfway there and I'm convinced he will lead the Cavs to their first NBA title this year. I was also convinced that at the when he becomes an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2010 season, he was certainly going to sign with the Knicks. If you haven't noticed, LeBron likes to be in the spotlight and the lights don't get any brighter than playing at MSG every night. But now I'm not sure New York will be his destination next off season. I could see Lebron building a dynasty in Cleveland (much like Jordan did in Chicago) and winning 4-5 NBA Championships/MVPs as a member of the Cavs. They scariest thing about him is he's only 24 years old and hasn't even reached his prime. 

Mark has a good post about Lebron's life off the court that I found to be interesting. Check it out.

3. I don't think Manny should be suspended for 50-games. Maybe 25 at the most. Hell, Rafael Palmero was only suspended 10 gamses. This a tough blow to Major League Baseball but I guess they had to show the general public that even one of the best hitters in the league was not above their strict drug testing policy.

4. Classic TV never gets old. I was flipping through the channels today and I saw Tom and Jerry on Cartoon Network. Well needless to say I had to stop and I literally watched the rest of the show. I felt like a kid again, it was great. Other TV shows from my childhood that I would definitely watch/have watched recently: Saved by the Bell, Step By Step, Family Matters, Hang Time, Bugs Bunny and Friends just to name a few. 

5. I can't believe I've been out of college for a year already. Depressing.