Eastern Conference
(1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (8) New York Islanders
Even though it seems like a no-brainer, the Isles have been playing good hockey as of late.
(2) Boston Bruins vs. (7) Montreal Canadians
Bruins played well on the final game against the Devils to clinch the division. Their playoff success still remains a question-mark, due to the injury to Thorton. Habs have struggled in the stretch run.
(3) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (6) New Jersey Devils
Every year, its the same story with the Flyers, their goalies. I think you all remember what happened to Cechmanek last year, and this year its either Esche or Burke. Esche has struggled lately, and Burke has yet to prove himself in the playoffs. Advantage goes to the Devils in goaltending simply because of Brodeur.
(4) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (5) Ottawa Senators
What kind of stupid law is that the Ottawa city council made?! Banning all Leafs sweaters from the Corel Centre or punishment is donation to the food bank. Its all good though, 10 tonnes of food collected from the April3rd game alone. Anyways, back to the series. Every game will be like an away game for the Senaturds. Somehow there are always more Leafs fan, or 50/50 at the Corel Centre when the Leafs are playing the Sens, and no doubt it'll be a sea of blue and white down in the ACC. History is on the Leafs side in this series, with wins in 2000, 2001, 2002. Sens are a much improved team from even the beginning of the season with addition of Greg de Vries and Peter Bondra. Their offence is pretty much on even grounds with the Leafs, but I must give the edge to Ottawa simply because they were the #1 offensive team in the regular season. I'll also give a slight edge to Ottawa for the blue line. They have 2 elite d-man in Chara and Redden, de Vries, Phillips, Leschyshyn, and Simpson rounding out their 6. While the Leafs have a legitimate top 4 with Leetch, McCabe, Karbele and Johansson, their 5th and 6th defencemen remains a question-mark. When Ken Klee returns, he'll definitely be in the mix. Behind him, Berg has struggled, same with Pilar. Berehowsky haven't got much work in lately. So the edge also go to Ottawa. And finally, goalie. With 2 shut-outs in the last 2 games, definitely Eddie "The Eagle" Belfour is hot. As long as his back holds, the Leafs will go as far as Eddie takes them. While the situation in the Nation's Capital might not be as bright. With Lalime out for the past couple of weeks, Prusek haven't been consistent in net for the Sens. He has his good games, and his bad games. They say Lalime is ready to go by game 1, but I'm unsure if he'll be ready, just simply getting his timing back, and also how his injury affects him. Even if Lalime is at 100%. He haven't proven himself to be able to carry a team on his back. He has impressed with his previous playoff series, but he has yet to prove to be a solid playoff goalie. The edge goes to the blue and white. Even though Ottawa has the edge both on the offence and on the blue-line, the Leafs are not far behind. The experience some of the Leafs bring are priceless, especially their experiences in big games. With Ottawa playing every game almost like an away game, Toronto definitely has the home-ice advantage. This series will not only be decided on the play of star players, but also how the goalies perform. Experiences from the veterans on Toronto will bring the blue and white into the second round.
Western Conference coming tomorrow =)
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