Hello, and welcome to the first of the 2014 NHL Playoff Prediction Posts.
Is it still called the Conference Quarter Final Round, or is it now the Divisional Semifinals?
I haven’t paid nearly as much attention to the NHL this year as I usually do. Bruins, yes. The rest of the league, not really. Why? Because I’m still friggin’ furious over the lock out last year, that’s why.
In terms of my playoff picks, it doesn’t matter because they are all blind guesses anyway. Having said that, here are my picks for the first round match ups.
Bruins vs Red Wings. If you’ve read this post so far, then you know who I’m picking. There are caveats this year though. The Red Wings gave the Bruins a tough time. They are one of those teams that are really fast on their skates that give the Bruins and their punishing physical style fits. They are similar to Montreal in that respect, although not similar to Montreal in their black hearted evil. Add to that the Red Wings are starting to get healthy and you have a nervous little match up for my Bruins. Then there is the jinx. The Bruins won the President’s Trophy. The award given to the team that finishes the regular season with the best record overall. Congratulations, Boston! Of course the team that wins the President’s almost never wins the Stanley Cup. If you believe in such superstitions, then you can conclude that the B’s are screwed. It doesn’t matter to me though, I am picking the Bruins in this series.
Lightning vs Canadiens. It breaks my hear to say this, but Montreal is going to win this series. It looked like a decent match up, right up until the moment Tampa Bay’s goalie went out with an injury. That leaves their chances at nil and null. (that’s computer nerd speak for slim and none) Sorry, Tampa Bay. I’ll be rooting for you. I just won’t be expecting positive results. Sorry.
Penguins vs Blue Jackets. Moving on to the idiotically named Metropolitan Division (does that mean Boston, Montreal, Toronto, ext, ext are not Metropolitan places?) This is another series where I will be rooting against my pick. Pittsburgh is a disaster right now. They sucked their way into the post season. They are a total mess. They are ripe for the upset. Unfortunately, Columbus just sucks. Don’t get me wrong, I love them and are totally rooting for them. I just think that the Penguins could put out a roster with only 15 players and still win in four. I’m picking the Penguins even though I feel dirty and disgusting doing so.
Rangers vs Flyers. This looks like it might be a fun series to watch. Record wise, the teams are a pretty even match. Head to head in the regular season they were even. The Flyers really turned it on after the Olympics and are probably an easy team to pick, but I think the Rangers are good enough to take this one. Despite being from Boston, I will pick New York.
On to the Western Conference, where it is safe to say that all eight teams are better than the entire Eastern field with the exception of Boston and maybe Pittsburgh.
Ducks vs Stars. The Ducks are a million times better than the Stars. They also do not have Tim Thomas on their roster. That’s one rational reason to pick them and one irrational, petty reason to pick them. That means I pick them. Tim Thomas can go spend the rest of the season at home, the same way he spent the last year of his contract with the Bruins at home. Boo Hoo.
Sharks vs Kings. This is an easy, albeit irrational, pick for me. Rule one in making my playoff predictions is always bet against San Jose. Rule two is, for Western match ups, never bet against the Kings. Done. Los Angeles wins this one.
Avalanche vs Wild. A match up of Ringo Starrs. They’re both just happy to be here. I want to pick the Wild for the same reason I wanted to pick Columbus. It just seems like the cool pick. Not this time though, I am picking the Avs.
Blues vs Black Hawks. I hate Chicago. After last season I hope they get swept. Unfortunately, the Blues have been a suck-fest over the last couple of weeks. Can they just flip the switch and be awesome again? I’d like to hope so but… no. I am picking Chicago and it makes me want to puke.
There you have it kids, my 2014 Quarter Finals Predictions. May the best team from Boston win!
Inside the Red Head's Head 