CanadianChris 0 Report post Posted April 4, 2004 Your guess is a good as mine how it's going to go this year...but there are three things I know: - Bob Barron will declare his allegiance to no fewer than three different teams over the course of the playoffs. - Either treble charged or I will never hear the end of it following the first round. - At least two very good teams are going to be playing golf in two weeks. First round matchups: EASTERN CONFERENCE (1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (8) New York Islanders (2) Boston Bruins vs. (7) Montreal Canadiens (3) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (6) New Jersey Devils (4) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (5) Ottawa Senators WESTERN CONFERENCE (1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (8) Nashville Predators (2) San Jose Sharks vs. (7) St. Louis Blues (3) Vancouver Canucks vs. (6) Calgary Flames (4) Colorado Avalanche vs. (5) Dallas Stars Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Choken One Report post Posted April 4, 2004 Is this where we make predictions or is it JUST a site for overall dicussion? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MrRant 0 Report post Posted April 4, 2004 I really wish they would get rid of ties and the point system and just go with straight wins and loses like at least the NBA. Seeing a 42 win team in the playoffs just bothers me. From a standings point of view. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CanadianChris 0 Report post Posted April 4, 2004 Is this where we make predictions or is it JUST a site for overall dicussion? Both. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CanadianChris 0 Report post Posted April 4, 2004 I really wish they would get rid of ties and the point system and just go with straight wins and loses like at least the NBA. Seeing a 42 win team in the playoffs just bothers me. From a standings point of view. Eh...there'll probably be 3 or 4 teams with that many wins or fewer making the NBA playoffs. You're going to have "undeserving" teams from time to time no matter what you do. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slayer 0 Report post Posted April 4, 2004 (4) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (5) Ottawa Senators (3) Vancouver Canucks vs. (6) Calgary Flames I smell conspiracy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Choken One Report post Posted April 4, 2004 Personally, I feel each the NBA AND NHL put too many teams in there... I think Each leauge should cut down to Six Teams per conferences and give the top two teams the bye. In NHL's viewpoint Tampa/Boston/Detroit/San Jose would get Byes...while Montreal/NYI/Nashville/St. Louis would be out of it. Making it #3 vs #6 and #4 Vs #5. It would shorten the playoffs which I think goes too long as it is and rewards the best teams. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CanadianChris 0 Report post Posted April 4, 2004 Personally, I feel each the NBA AND NHL put too many teams in there... I think Each leauge should cut down to Six Teams per conferences and give the top two teams the bye. In NHL's viewpoint Tampa/Boston/Detroit/San Jose would get Byes...while Montreal/NYI/Nashville/St. Louis would be out of it. Making it #3 vs #6 and #4 Vs #5. It would shorten the playoffs which I think goes too long as it is and rewards the best teams. How would it shorten the playoffs? You'd still have the same number of rounds, all still best of 7. Plus, you can't have byes in a sport that doesn't play single elimination...it's too much of an unfair advantage to the teams getting them, taking away from the unpredictability that makes the playoffs great. I don't mind the system they have now. It beats 16 teams advancing out of 21, like it used to be. And eight weeks isn't that long. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MrRant 0 Report post Posted April 4, 2004 I really wish they would get rid of ties and the point system and just go with straight wins and loses like at least the NBA. Seeing a 42 win team in the playoffs just bothers me. From a standings point of view. Eh...there'll probably be 3 or 4 teams with that many wins or fewer making the NBA playoffs. You're going to have "undeserving" teams from time to time no matter what you do. It's not that point I'm thinking about but it is hard to follow compared to just straight Ws and Ls. You could have a team that has actually won more games than another but the other team could be ahead of them standings wise because they have more points via ties. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
starvenger 0 Report post Posted April 4, 2004 Personally, I feel each the NBA AND NHL put too many teams in there... I think Each leauge should cut down to Six Teams per conferences and give the top two teams the bye. In NHL's viewpoint Tampa/Boston/Detroit/San Jose would get Byes...while Montreal/NYI/Nashville/St. Louis would be out of it. Making it #3 vs #6 and #4 Vs #5. It would shorten the playoffs which I think goes too long as it is and rewards the best teams. How would it shorten the playoffs? You'd still have the same number of rounds, all still best of 7. Plus, you can't have byes in a sport that doesn't play single elimination...it's too much of an unfair advantage to the teams getting them, taking away from the unpredictability that makes the playoffs great. I don't mind the system they have now. It beats 16 teams advancing out of 21, like it used to be. And eight weeks isn't that long. I couldn't have put it better myself. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
the max 0 Report post Posted April 4, 2004 EASTERN CONFERENCE (my picks in bold) (1) Tampa Bay Lightning (Their goaltending gets them past the first round) vs. (8) New York Islanders (2) Boston Bruins (Helluva series this is going to be) vs. (7) Montreal Canadiens (3) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (6) New Jersey Devils (Brodeur is the best pressure goaltender in the playoffs) (4) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (5) Ottawa Senators (*plugs ears* BIASBIASBIAS) WESTERN CONFERENCE (1) Detroit Red Wings (one of the best bluelines this year, plus whenever Hatcher decides to play like he's capable, they'll be in a good position) vs. (8) Nashville Predators (2) San Jose Sharks (Their goaltending and better defense makes it for them) vs. (7) St. Louis Blues (3) Vancouver Canucks vs. (6) Calgary Flames (They're my upset pick this year) (4) Colorado Avalanche vs. (5) Dallas Stars (Aebischer is for real) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slayer 0 Report post Posted April 4, 2004 Right now, the Eastern conference definitely has the more interesting first round games IMO (2) Boston Bruins vs. (7) Montreal Canadiens Classic rivalry, and the Bruins will look to avenge their humiliating series loss from two years ago (3) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (6) New Jersey Devils Another fierce division rivalry (4) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (5) Ottawa Senators All-Ontario battle My choice: As an adopted Bostoner, I'm rooting for the Broons Only two series look interesting on the Western side to me (3) Vancouver Canucks vs. (6) Calgary Flames Western Canada battles it out (4) Colorado Avalanche vs. (5) Dallas Stars A couple years ago, this would be a fierce conference final battle. Strange that one of these two teams will be gone in the first round My choice: ANYBODY BUT DETROIT Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Choken One Report post Posted April 4, 2004 Just because God Hates me, We'll get New Jersey Vs Detroit/Colorado/Dallas. I want something FRESH this year... I have a feeling the Playoffs will be a fucking classic ala Baseball last season and yet will shoot itself in the foot right away with the contract talks like Baseball did by "Contraction" talk two years ago after a great World Series and Steroids after the greatest MLB post-season ever. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest BANKYWOOD Report post Posted April 4, 2004 EASTERN CONFERENCE (8) New York Islanders (2) Boston Bruins (3) Philadelphia Flyers (5) Ottawa Senators WESTERN CONFERENCE (1) Detroit Red Wings (7) St. Louis Blues (6) Calgary Flames (4) Colorado Avalanche Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nl5xsk1 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 Being the lazy sod that I am, I'm just going to copy & paste my selections from the OAO NHL thread ... 1. Tampa vs. 8. NYI - the Isles played the Bolts tough this year, but I just can't see Tampa lose in the first round after playing so well all season. Tampa in 5 2. Boston vs. 7. Montreal - Yes, I will fully admit that I'm biased ... but if Thornton is healthy and Raycroft plays as well as he did all season, there's no way the Habs upset the B's again. Boston in 5 3. Philly vs. 6. New Jersey - Philly's annual goaltending problems cause them to lose to the Devils. Jersey in 6. 4. Toronto vs 5. Ottawa - Easily the hardest one for me to call. It all depends on which goalie is the healthiest; if Lalime isn't 100% or if Belfour has any back issues, their team is sunk. My only prediction is that this goes 7 games and the winning team is too spent to muster much in the second round. I can't choose a winner yet. I'll do the Western Conf tomorrow or Tuesday. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Urban Warfare 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 Ok for the predictions... East Tampa Bay over NYI in 6 Games. Montreal upsets Boston in 7 New Jersey takes Philly in 6 Ottawa ousts Toronto in 7. West Detroit over Nashville in 5 St. Louis over San Jose in 6 Vancouver over Calgary in 6 Dallas over Colorado in 7. Stanley Cup Champion: Tampa Bay will take a run and make it to the Stanley Cup Finals, and loose to the Red Wings in 6 Games. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Red Baron 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 (1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (8) New York Islanders Tampa will win the series in five very close games, possibly three of them going into OT. (2) Boston Bruins vs. (7) Montreal Canadiens Montreal in six. While Boston is better in the standings, they have a hard time playing against the Canadiens. Raycroft will be okay, and I wouldn't be surprised if Felix gets a nod in the series. (3) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (6) New Jersey Devils This is probably the most insane pick from the Eastern Conference, but this New Jersey team is, well, average. Brodeur can carry the team so far, but with the absance of Scott Stevens and Ken Danyeko, the team has less than spetacular defence, and lately a mediocore offense. (4) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (5) Ottawa Senators Ottawa in six. Lalime or Prusek, it doesn't really matter. Toronto will be tired, and run down the entire series. Belfour can do so much to carry that team, and Toronto really has one line, the rest...do they even play? WESTERN CONFERENCE (1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (8) Nashville Predators Hey, Cinderella story again? Thats what the Red Wings don't want happen again. While this is Nashville first time ever in the playoffs, and wants to make an impact, they'll be lucky to get a win in this series. Legace will probably start, and thats a good thing, if CuJo started....maybe History can repeat itself. Detroit in 4. (2) San Jose Sharks vs. (7) St. Louis Blues St. Louis is just lucky to be in the playoffs, but they might as well bring out the golf clubs. Sharks in 5. (3) Vancouver Canucks vs. (6) Calgary Flames With Kiprusoff, and a red hot Flames, well its just ashamed that Vancouver has to play them. Well quite frankly, who really wanted to play Calgary as of late? Flames in six. (4) Colorado Avalanche vs. (5) Dallas Stars Too bad this series is in the first round. The hardest pick of all, and its going to seven games, and Colorado will barely get by. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lightning Flik 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 I'm still camping on my Ottawa Senators vs. Calgary Flames for the Stanley Cup finals. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Red Baron 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 I'm still camping on my Ottawa Senators vs. Calgary Flames for the Stanley Cup finals. Three weeks ago, I would have said Montreal and Calgary in the stanley cup finals... that doens't look too good right now. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Wildbomb 4:20 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 Grrrrrrr....Bruins WILL beat the Canadiens. It's just going to happen. How? The Bruins offense is warming up. They put 3 on Brodeur today, which made my day. I was absolutely dreading a possible Ottawa-Boston first-rounder. So was the Devils-Bruins combo that would have killed my season. Razor is gonna have an outstanding playoffs. Potvin might get a start to give him a rest. As long as they don't fall into "Perfect-play-itis," I'll be all set. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Czech Republic 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 I'm still camping on my Ottawa Senators vs. Calgary Flames for the Stanley Cup finals. Three weeks ago, I would have said Montreal and Calgary in the stanley cup finals... that doens't look too good right now. As fitting it would be to end hockey for a while with the Canadiens winning the Stanley Cup, I don't see it either. B's are good. My three teams (Calgary/Ottawa/Montreal) > Bob Barron's three teams (Toronto, Vancouver, New Jersey). They're > by A LOT. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
starvenger 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 EASTERN CONFERENCE (1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (8) New York Islanders Tampa in 5. Conference champs, who'da thunk it? (2) Boston Bruins vs. (7) Montreal Canadiens Habs in 7. When in doubt, go with the team with a clear cut #1 (3) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (6) New Jersey Devils Devils in 6. Going with Brodeur and the defending champs until they prove me wrong. (4) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (5) Ottawa Senators Not picking due to bias. Rooting for the Leafs, obviously. WESTERN CONFERENCE (1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (8) Nashville Predators Winge in 5. I expect the Preds to take one, but I think that this should be easy for the Wings (2) San Jose Sharks vs. (7) St. Louis Blues Sharks in 5. Sharks are impressive, Blues aren't, except for their playoff streak. (3) Vancouver Canucks vs. (6) Calgary Flames Canucks in 6. Canucks are on a roll going in, so we'll see that momentum continue. (4) Colorado Avalanche vs. (5) Dallas Stars Stars in 7. This is the tough series in the west. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lightning Flik 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 I'm still camping on my Ottawa Senators vs. Calgary Flames for the Stanley Cup finals. Three weeks ago, I would have said Montreal and Calgary in the stanley cup finals... that doens't look too good right now. I seriously want those two teams fighting it out for the Stanley Cup. Only exception I'll make is the other Canadian team they face to beat them out and take their spot (Vancouver/Toronto) or a mix and match. I still want those two teams because I think it would be a great final round, and besides, this way I can still cheer on a team with full support (Calgary). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gert T 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 While I like the 16 team format, and that it is better than 16 out of 21 teams, you could make an argument that there are about 4-6 too many teams in the league. I think every series except Detroit-Nashville will be very competitive. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Choken One Report post Posted April 5, 2004 Personally, I want a CANADIAN finals...so America can have an excuse not to care. Let the people who DO care get a game that means something...Im sure Canada is sick of seeing teams from Florida, California winning the damn SC. Canada deserves the all canada Cup Game. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slayer 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 Im sure Canada is sick of seeing teams from Florida, California winning the damn SC. When the hell did that ever happen Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Red Baron 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 Im sure Canada is sick of seeing teams from Florida, California winning the damn SC. When the hell did that ever happen another one of Choken post that does not bring anything to the topic. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CanadianChris 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 My picks: EASTERN CONFERENCE (1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (8) New York Islanders - Tampa outmatches the Isles in every category. Bolts in 5. (2) Boston Bruins vs. (7) Montreal Canadiens - Bruins are much improved from 2 years ago. Habs are not. Bruins in 6. (3) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (6) New Jersey Devils - I forget who, but someone on ESPN Radio said Bobby Clarke was GM for life. There goes that dream. No matter. Devils in 6. (4) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (5) Ottawa Senators - No pick. I'll be at Game 3 in Ottawa next Monday night. WESTERN CONFERENCE (1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (8) Nashville Predators - A whitewash on paper. Of course, they said that last year, too...Red Wings in 4. (2) San Jose Sharks vs. (7) St. Louis Blues - The Blues used up everything just to make the postseason. Sharks in 5. (3) Vancouver Canucks vs. (6) Calgary Flames - With Bertuzzi out and Naslund hurting, the Flames should be competitive, and could steal this series. Flames in 7. (4) Colorado Avalanche vs. (5) Dallas Stars - Give me Turco over Aebischer any day. Stars in 6. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lightning Flik 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 Im sure Canada is sick of seeing teams from Florida, California winning the damn SC. When the hell did that ever happen another one of Choken post that does not bring anything to the topic. I think he more meant teams from Florida and California battling for Lord Stanley. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slayer 0 Report post Posted April 5, 2004 I think he more meant teams from Florida and California battling for Lord Stanley. Im sure Canada is sick of seeing teams from Florida, California winning the damn SC. Speaks for itself Sidenote: It's funny when I think about this... only two US teams west of the Mississippi have won the Cup (Dallas and Colorado); East of the river, the southernest team to win is Philly Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
