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After last night’s first half of first round games and Montreal being the only home team to lead a series, it makes you wonder if the road teams will dominate in the second half again tonight. The teams with home ice advantage look pretty promising, but it is going to take a lot more than luck and good stats to take the lead against a team that is looking to go back to their own ice with one or two wins to start with.
Rangers vs. Penguins – Who You Takin?Â
This is going to be one intense round and it could have something to do with the fact that this is probably the long awaited sequel to the second round of last year’s Stanley Cup playoffs when the New York Rangers overcame a 3-1 deficit against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Rangers have home ice advantage and I don’t want to jinx anything, but I haven’t come across a hockey team yet that is OK with taking a loss in an arena as historical as Madison Square Garden. The series kicks off tonight with the Garden expected to be louder than ever. With Rick Nash back in the lineup for the Rangers tonight, alongside Mats Zuccarello, Martin St. Louis, and the rest of the Blue shirt boys you are hearing about everywhere, Sydney Crosby may have a few things, or an entire roster, to fear. The Rangers have just won the President’s Trophy, but the Penguins faced a season full of injuries and just barely made it into the playoffs. This round is going to prove which one of them really wants to advance more.
Without trying to sound completely biased, I am going to have to go with my Rangers on this one. There is no doubt in my mind that it is going to have crazy ups and downs and it’s going to take a full seven games. Last year, history was made, and history always repeats itself. Maybe it will repeat 1994 this time around. Just saying.
Lightning vs. Red Wings – Who You Takin?Â
Both teams are no strangers to the Stanley Cup playoffs and the GM of the Tampa Bay Lightning was once a Detroit Red Wings legend, which will not only give him a lot of attention, but it will make for a very interesting series. We know that Tampa Bay scored more than any other team in the League during the regular season and finished second in the Atlantic division, two points behind Montreal. They scored a combined 262 goals, 43 going to Steven Stamkos, 29 going to Nikita Kucherov, another 29 going to Tyler Johnson, and 24 going to Ryan Callahan, to name a few. And not to mention, Tampa Bay has very good chemistry. Trailing behind Tampa by eight points were the Red Wings, who are going into the first game tonight on Tampa ice with pretty big goaltender issues, but they may be able to make up for that with their good mix of veterans and rookies out on the ice. Captain and veteran Henrik Zetterberg and fellow vet Pavel Datsyuk lead the team in scoring with 66 and 65 points, and this could really be used to their advantage. Petr Mrazek will be in net for the Red Wing’s first game tonight, but there haven’t been any decisions made for game two, which could really be detrimental to whoever is decided to play at the last minute.
This series is looking like an all Tampa Bay series to me where the Red Wings could be bounced out in six games. Even though it is possible that the Red Wings could throw us a curveball, I’m going to have to stay with the Lightning as my pick.
Blues vs. Wild – Who You Takin?
What do the St. Louis Blues have that the Wild doesn’t? The likes of Paul Stastny, David Backes, T.J. Oshie, and Vladimir Tarasenko, and Tarasenko is often known for being the game changer. Though Minnesota has their key players like Zach Parise, Nino Niederreiter, and Thomas Vanek, it may not be enough to keep them out of trouble tonight. What each team does have though are solid goaltenders, and what they can do with that is easily use it to their advantage. Jake Allen, who posted a .964 save percentage in the regular season, will be in net for the Blues tonight on home ice. Devan Dubnyk, the holy-grail goaltender who came in and changed everything for the Wild on January 15th and has posted a .936 regular season save percentage since his first day will try to keep his team in the game tonight, just like he has done since he came in. Whether you’re watching for fun because your team is currently playing golf, or you’re watching because one of these two teams is your favorite, keep your eyes on Dubnyk and Suter, one who will protect the attacker, and one who will do the attacking.
Described as a “matchup nightmare for Minnesota” by Puck Daddy, I am choosing the Blues to take them out in five this round, whether or not the Blues would be able to hold up in the event that they advance is another story.
Ducks vs. Jets – Who You Takin?
After being wrongfully taken out of the first round last year, which is how Anaheim felt about what happened, they have been itching hard to get back into the Stanley Cup playoffs, and they really showed they deserved it all season long. Not only did they remain in a top spot, but they finished with the best record in the League by the end of the regular season. With their three dominant players in the lineup, Getzlaf, Perry, and Kesler, dubbed the “Holy Trinity” a series lead should come easy to the Ducks, but if there is anything we have learned in sports about underdogs, it is that they don’t let up. With that being said, the Winnipeg Jets may make it extremely hard for the Ducks to claim a win tonight. While the Ducks have recent playoff experience, the Jets don’t, but at this point, they have to work with they have and use it for as long as they can stretch it out for. Winnipeg has not made the playoffs in 19 years, since they relocated, and this is a factor in why this game is such a huge deal. Being the underdog of the series could backfire, but if they play their cards right, they could advance as far as the cup.
Though I really do want to see the Ducks win the series in five games, especially for the sake of my NHL Stanley Cup playoff bracket, I’m leaning towards the Jets, just because I think the underdogs deserve a chance.
