Well folks this is it. It’s down to the finals and I’m down to my last pick. As of now I’m sitting at 10 – 4 and need a win to reach my goal of besting my record from last year. If I end up blowing this now I think I will still be satisfied due to a few factors. One being that a tie at least shows consistency (besides, 10 – 5 really isn’t that bad) another is at least I will have been treated to what should be a whale of a series and finally I was able to get to this point without having to pull any tricks out of my bag to do battle against my primate nemesis Maggie. You don’t know what a relief it is not to have to throw your poop at a spinning wheel just to beat a stupid freakin’ monkey! On the other hand maybe you do. I really shouldn’t judge. Anyway, that’s certainly a discussion for another time right now the finals pick is all that matters and I can’t for the life of me decide a winner in this battle and feel good about it.
DETROIT VS. PITTSBURGH
In my opinion, the two best teams in the league will face off in this beauty of a cup final. There is no David versus Goliath in this one, only two Goliath’s going head to head. Each team posses enough weapons to do the other in and this factor should even things out between them. The biggest question is which team has the most heart and enough gas left in the tank to get the job done? Who will be the one to reach down deeper and find that extra gear that no one else has? As they say, the cream will always rise to the top, only in this series it’s a crapshoot on which superstar will pull it off. Will it be Datsuyk, Zetterberg, Lidstrom, Franzen or Osgood? Will it be Crosby, Malkin, Hossa, Staal or Fleury? My bet is that each of them will play a factor, but only one of them will be MVP and it won’t be an easy choice to make. No matter how this series ends not since the ’82 – ’83 finals have we had the pleasure of witnessing so much talent at one time fight for the prize and that alone makes this a dream series. The NHL hierarchy must be completely giddy with joy over this, although through strict laws they are not allowed to show any emotion, but on the inside you know they are all pissing themselves. Can you say “Cha-ching”? This match-up has me torn right down the middle as far as picking a winner. My heart says pick the Pens, it is the romantic choice, the kids done good story, the let’s bring a Championship to a city that almost lost their team pick. My head says pick the Wings, it is the money bet, the smart and logical choice, the let’s bring a Championship to a city that desperately needs some sort of good happening pick. Do I go with my head or with my heart? I’ve always been told to follow my heart but not to lose my head in the process, so you can see why I’m having trouble making this pick and have been staring a blinking cursor on this page for quite some time not wanting to make this pick. I know as soon as I do I won’t feel good about it so I guess I better just do it and get it over with. DETROIT IN SEVEN (But I will be rooting for the Pens to take it in six. Don’t try to understand the madness just embrace it!) Enjoy!
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
COULD THIS FINAL SERIES BE THE BEST EVER?
Just in case no one is saying it…this upcoming Stanley Cup Final series has the potential to be one of the greatest of all-time. There its been said. Now hold on Spanky, before you call for my head and remind me of all the great cup finals in the history books let me reassure you that I’m fully aware of the history of this sport and point out that I did say “potential” and “one of the greatest”. Now that I have the disclaimer out of the way…it’s on to the madness.
In my opinion, not since the ’82 – ‘83 and ’83 – ’84 cup finals have we seen so much talent on one ice surface fight for the cup. What we are about to see could have us flashing back (if you’re old enough to remember) even though the game has changed so much since then. Back then you had the experienced veteran team against the upstart kids. Shift after shift you had the best of the best hitting the ice from both benches, it seemed like there was a scoring chance every minute. This year’s final could give us the same feeling as both of these teams are capable of turning on the jets with a flick of a switch. The Penguins remind me of the high flying Oilers of the early 80’s and the Wings remind me of the great Islanders in the prime of their reign. Gretzky – Kurri, Bossy – Trottier, Messier – Anderson, Gilles – Tonelli, Coffey and Potvin, Fuhr and Smith sounds an awful lot like Crosby – Hossa, Datsuyk – Zetterberg, Malkin – Sykora, Franzen – Hudler, Gonchar and Lidstrom, Fleury and Osgood don’t you think? I’m just scratching the surface of this year’s combatants, there are many layers and many weapons laced throughout each roster that truly gives the feeling of something great brewing. That same feeling you get when you are witnessing history unfold before your very eyes. Search your feelings Spanky; you know this to be true. No, I’m not trying to lure you to the “Dark Side” or anything like that, I merely want to point out that whenever you put this much talent to the ultimate test of wills, the results could be phenomenal.
While we won’t see any Jedi hocus-pocus during the finals, we will be treated to some damn good hockey by the two best teams in the league. A match-up the likes of which hasn’t been seen for quite some time and one you shouldn’t miss a second of (the beers will wait for commercials). I can’t wait to see how it will all play out. We could very well get a little of everything that makes us love this game to our very core. Speed and transition, outstanding goaltending, crushing hits, shorthanded breakaways, monster power-plays, stingy defense, relentless offence and the potential of fisticuffs. Yes folks, this series could go down as one of the greatest of all-time so soak it all in and enjoy the all out assault on your hockey senses.
For those of you following my picks of this year’s playoffs, I’ll be posting my finals pick soon (in the next day or so) as I need a victory to top my record from last year. The pressure is on.
In my opinion, not since the ’82 – ‘83 and ’83 – ’84 cup finals have we seen so much talent on one ice surface fight for the cup. What we are about to see could have us flashing back (if you’re old enough to remember) even though the game has changed so much since then. Back then you had the experienced veteran team against the upstart kids. Shift after shift you had the best of the best hitting the ice from both benches, it seemed like there was a scoring chance every minute. This year’s final could give us the same feeling as both of these teams are capable of turning on the jets with a flick of a switch. The Penguins remind me of the high flying Oilers of the early 80’s and the Wings remind me of the great Islanders in the prime of their reign. Gretzky – Kurri, Bossy – Trottier, Messier – Anderson, Gilles – Tonelli, Coffey and Potvin, Fuhr and Smith sounds an awful lot like Crosby – Hossa, Datsuyk – Zetterberg, Malkin – Sykora, Franzen – Hudler, Gonchar and Lidstrom, Fleury and Osgood don’t you think? I’m just scratching the surface of this year’s combatants, there are many layers and many weapons laced throughout each roster that truly gives the feeling of something great brewing. That same feeling you get when you are witnessing history unfold before your very eyes. Search your feelings Spanky; you know this to be true. No, I’m not trying to lure you to the “Dark Side” or anything like that, I merely want to point out that whenever you put this much talent to the ultimate test of wills, the results could be phenomenal.
While we won’t see any Jedi hocus-pocus during the finals, we will be treated to some damn good hockey by the two best teams in the league. A match-up the likes of which hasn’t been seen for quite some time and one you shouldn’t miss a second of (the beers will wait for commercials). I can’t wait to see how it will all play out. We could very well get a little of everything that makes us love this game to our very core. Speed and transition, outstanding goaltending, crushing hits, shorthanded breakaways, monster power-plays, stingy defense, relentless offence and the potential of fisticuffs. Yes folks, this series could go down as one of the greatest of all-time so soak it all in and enjoy the all out assault on your hockey senses.
For those of you following my picks of this year’s playoffs, I’ll be posting my finals pick soon (in the next day or so) as I need a victory to top my record from last year. The pressure is on.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
GREGSKY'S PLAYOFF PICKS - CONFERENCE FINALS
Well its crunch time now folks. Last round I spent all of the losses I can afford if I have any chance of bettering my record over last season. I’m now at 8 – 4 and have to go perfect the rest of the way. The pressure is now on for me as it is on the teams facing off for the conference titles. Monkey be damned, I’m going to show up and do my best to pick the winners despite the magic and trickery the animal kingdom will undoubtedly be using against me. Last year all I had for a thorn in my side when it came to making picks were the Senators, this year I seem to have two pesky teams (Stars and Flyers) fudging things up. Chances are one of these teams will ultimately screw me out of my goal of going 11 – 4 for the playoffs so it is making my picks a bit harder to make, but since I have to make them; let’s get to it.
PITTSBURGH VS. PHILADELPHIA
The big time players for the Pens came through in route of dispatching the Rangers where as the lesser lights propelled the Flyers past the Habs. Goaltending was superb for both teams and there is no reason to believe that it will be any different going forward. Neither goalie has seen action this deep into the second season so it is hard to gage how they will respond and will most likely wash each other out barring a complete disaster. When looking at the talent of the rosters the Pens have the edge and with the Crosby/Hose combination just starting to click they seem to possess all they need to get past their state rivals. As for the Flyers, they have been living off 2nd and 3rd liners coming up big for them when their top players are put in check. I wonder though just how long they can live off of Umberger, Hartnell and Upshall as go to guys. We all know that the Flyers will try and play physical and stay in the face of the Pens forwards while trying to make them pay for mistakes like they did against their previous opponents. The Pens have shown us this season that they can play any style of game and still come out on top shedding any notion that their defense is suspect in any way. They will have to work for everything they get as the Flyers have no quit in them and make you pay for every inch. They will have to make the Flyers run around with puck movement in the offensive zone and force them into taking penalties. This series should be a good one and I foresee a split after 4 games. PITTSBURGH IN 6
DETROIT VS. DALLAS
The Stars fell a couple of would be giants in route to the Conference Final and in the process made them look big, slow and sloppy. They had outstanding goaltending from Turco and excellent play from the kids on the blue-line as well as hard nosed effort from their leaders. Finding timely scoring is what did them in last year and it looks like they solved that problem this time around. No, that is not their problem any more. Their problem is they are about to face a machine not a hockey team. The Wings systematically dispatch anything in their path rolling 4 lines of pressure when needed and puck possession – time eating dominance when in the lead. There are no holes in this lineup as every line can create offense and defensive pairings are top notch. The one thing that Turco has not really had to deal with so far is someone constantly in his face. Both the Ducks and Sharks failed to keep him from seeing shots, but that will all change facing the Wings. It will be interesting to see how he reacts with Holmstrom in his grill the entire time. The Wings actually lucked out with the Stars beating two very physical teams and drawing the Avs in the 2nd round, they are healthy for the most part and arrive at the final without having been beaten up which was missing from the formula the last couple of seasons. I have to give credit to the Stars for a very nice run, but this is where the run ends. DETROIT IN 5
PITTSBURGH VS. PHILADELPHIA
The big time players for the Pens came through in route of dispatching the Rangers where as the lesser lights propelled the Flyers past the Habs. Goaltending was superb for both teams and there is no reason to believe that it will be any different going forward. Neither goalie has seen action this deep into the second season so it is hard to gage how they will respond and will most likely wash each other out barring a complete disaster. When looking at the talent of the rosters the Pens have the edge and with the Crosby/Hose combination just starting to click they seem to possess all they need to get past their state rivals. As for the Flyers, they have been living off 2nd and 3rd liners coming up big for them when their top players are put in check. I wonder though just how long they can live off of Umberger, Hartnell and Upshall as go to guys. We all know that the Flyers will try and play physical and stay in the face of the Pens forwards while trying to make them pay for mistakes like they did against their previous opponents. The Pens have shown us this season that they can play any style of game and still come out on top shedding any notion that their defense is suspect in any way. They will have to work for everything they get as the Flyers have no quit in them and make you pay for every inch. They will have to make the Flyers run around with puck movement in the offensive zone and force them into taking penalties. This series should be a good one and I foresee a split after 4 games. PITTSBURGH IN 6
DETROIT VS. DALLAS
The Stars fell a couple of would be giants in route to the Conference Final and in the process made them look big, slow and sloppy. They had outstanding goaltending from Turco and excellent play from the kids on the blue-line as well as hard nosed effort from their leaders. Finding timely scoring is what did them in last year and it looks like they solved that problem this time around. No, that is not their problem any more. Their problem is they are about to face a machine not a hockey team. The Wings systematically dispatch anything in their path rolling 4 lines of pressure when needed and puck possession – time eating dominance when in the lead. There are no holes in this lineup as every line can create offense and defensive pairings are top notch. The one thing that Turco has not really had to deal with so far is someone constantly in his face. Both the Ducks and Sharks failed to keep him from seeing shots, but that will all change facing the Wings. It will be interesting to see how he reacts with Holmstrom in his grill the entire time. The Wings actually lucked out with the Stars beating two very physical teams and drawing the Avs in the 2nd round, they are healthy for the most part and arrive at the final without having been beaten up which was missing from the formula the last couple of seasons. I have to give credit to the Stars for a very nice run, but this is where the run ends. DETROIT IN 5
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
ROUND 2 WRAP UP : SHARKS/HABS FALL FLAT
Wow, now that was a fast and furious 2nd round of playoff action. Two teams surprised me with wins and even more surprising were two teams that lost. I stayed up until sometime past 3:00am waiting to see if Dallas would close out the Sharks or if that whole “Every 33 years” thing had any merit. I love marathon playoff games, especially ones with the series on the line. I know there are people out there that complain about the length of some of these games and that makes for a great subject to explore, but I’ll save that battle for another day. Today I want to look at why the Sharks and Canadiens are starting their summer early.
SHARKS – I don’t know where to start so I guess the beginning of the series will do. Giving credit to the Stars for having a ton of jump in their game catching the Sharks flatfooted from the drop of the puck. For the first couple of games the Sharks looked big, slow and sloppy and continued that in spurts throughout. Landing in a 0 – 3 hole, Nabokov finally stepped up his game, but it was too little too late at that point. Too many turnovers everywhere and giveaways along the boards made Dallas’ job easier. The Sharks failed to take advantage of a young and inexperienced defense and use their big forwards to get in Turco’s grill. They didn’t show any sense of will until their backs were against the wall. Looking back at the end of the regular season, they reeled off some 20+ wins. At that point I had wondered if they were peaking too early and it seems that might have been the case. Not that that is any excuse for sleepwalking through the first 3 games of a second round series, but they did show signs of this in the first round when at times they looked out of gas. Whatever the reasons the Sharks face some tough questions this summer and need to take a long look in the mirror and see if this combination has enough heart to get them to the promised land or if some house cleaning is in order.
CANADIENS – This one is easier to understand. Of all the teams that made the playoffs this year, the Habs were the most fragile. It was their speed and transition through the neutral zone coupled by what was supposed to be the most potent power play in the league and a rookie goaltender on fire that should have propelled them to the Conference Final. All they had to do was let the horses run and they would breeze their way through destroying anything in its path. Only trouble is they ran into a couple of teams that used their size and toughness to wear the Habs down, zap all the power from their power play and exploit the cocky young net-minder. Absolutely nothing went according to plan. They were supposed to roll right over Boston, just like they did in the just about all of games played against them this year, instead found themselves in a gritty battle. A battle they eventually won but left them punch drunk and about to face another bruising team. They were supposed to regroup and use the same plan against the Flyers except they forgot to regroup. There was doubt from the start and they never gained any momentum as the Flyers flat out took it to them pounding out the wins. Let’s face it, the horses were hobbled and the magic ran out of the man-advantage. Oh yeah, and that rookie goaltender looked like a rookie. Welcome to the playoffs kid. The Habs need to get tougher over the summer to wear down opponents in order to let their speed dominate next year and don’t let the press beat up the kid too much. Show that you have a ton of confidence in him as he has so much upside you don’t want to damage that in any way.
SHARKS – I don’t know where to start so I guess the beginning of the series will do. Giving credit to the Stars for having a ton of jump in their game catching the Sharks flatfooted from the drop of the puck. For the first couple of games the Sharks looked big, slow and sloppy and continued that in spurts throughout. Landing in a 0 – 3 hole, Nabokov finally stepped up his game, but it was too little too late at that point. Too many turnovers everywhere and giveaways along the boards made Dallas’ job easier. The Sharks failed to take advantage of a young and inexperienced defense and use their big forwards to get in Turco’s grill. They didn’t show any sense of will until their backs were against the wall. Looking back at the end of the regular season, they reeled off some 20+ wins. At that point I had wondered if they were peaking too early and it seems that might have been the case. Not that that is any excuse for sleepwalking through the first 3 games of a second round series, but they did show signs of this in the first round when at times they looked out of gas. Whatever the reasons the Sharks face some tough questions this summer and need to take a long look in the mirror and see if this combination has enough heart to get them to the promised land or if some house cleaning is in order.
CANADIENS – This one is easier to understand. Of all the teams that made the playoffs this year, the Habs were the most fragile. It was their speed and transition through the neutral zone coupled by what was supposed to be the most potent power play in the league and a rookie goaltender on fire that should have propelled them to the Conference Final. All they had to do was let the horses run and they would breeze their way through destroying anything in its path. Only trouble is they ran into a couple of teams that used their size and toughness to wear the Habs down, zap all the power from their power play and exploit the cocky young net-minder. Absolutely nothing went according to plan. They were supposed to roll right over Boston, just like they did in the just about all of games played against them this year, instead found themselves in a gritty battle. A battle they eventually won but left them punch drunk and about to face another bruising team. They were supposed to regroup and use the same plan against the Flyers except they forgot to regroup. There was doubt from the start and they never gained any momentum as the Flyers flat out took it to them pounding out the wins. Let’s face it, the horses were hobbled and the magic ran out of the man-advantage. Oh yeah, and that rookie goaltender looked like a rookie. Welcome to the playoffs kid. The Habs need to get tougher over the summer to wear down opponents in order to let their speed dominate next year and don’t let the press beat up the kid too much. Show that you have a ton of confidence in him as he has so much upside you don’t want to damage that in any way.
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