Moment/Game #7

Stanley Cup Finals Game 7 Pittsburgh vs. Detroit June 12, 2009

There is one other Stanley Cup moment that was more memorable in my opinion than this one that I will reveal in the coming days. This Game 7 however has to be mentioned for not just the moment, but for the fact that both teams went head to head in back-to-back Stanley Cups. Detroit took the Cup in 2008 in six games celebrating in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh were the underdogs going into 2009, but they weren’t going to let themselves go down to Detroit in their own building again.

All the Hockey world figured the Red Wings weren’t going to let the Penguins win in Joe Louis Arena in a Game 7. The Penguins were looking outside of the playoffs as late as February during the regular season. There was no way they were going to beat the Red Wings who had already beaten Columbus, Anaheim and Chicago to get to the Finals. Pittsburgh had barely skated by them in the previous game winning 2-1. They had to play perfect hockey to beat Detroit in their home arena.

The Penguins got out to a fast start out shooting the Red Wings 10-6 in the first period. No score going into the second period when forward Max Talbot scored the first goal to start the period. Talbot would add another half way through the period. The second one mind you was done when their captain Sidney Crosby wasn’t on the ice. He would return later in the third, but it seemed all was lost for Pittsburgh by everyone except the players for Pittsburgh.

Detroit did out shoot the Penguins in the second 11-7, but Pittsburgh had the lead 2-0 going into the third. Detroit scored a goal thirteen minutes into the third period to be within one of tying. Goalie Marc-Andre Fleury for the Penguins was phenomenal. Stopping 17 of 18 shots in the second and third periods combined. Pittsburgh only had one shot on goal in the third period, but Fleury wasn’t worried. In a Game 7, one player usually shines. Sometimes it’s the one you least expect or the one that you always knew would answer when called upon.

Detroit was as aggressive in the third period as in the entire playoffs. Fleury was repelling every attack they could muster. When soon to be Hall of Fame defensemen Niklas Lidstrom of Detroit shot one final attempt at a goal. Fleury had enough strength to do a Superman dive across the goal to stop the shot with his chest. The most iconic save he will ever have in his career. The NHL’s star player Sidney Crosby got his first of what will probably be many Stanley Cup titles. NHL fans were also treated to a very exciting series that showed when a team is cornered with what seems to be no way out, they will find a way through determination and teamwork. A game 7 for the ages in 2009.

Top Sports Teams of the Decade – MLB, NFL, NHL, NBA

MLB – New York Yankees

It does pain me to say it, but this is the team of the decade for baseball. Why you ask. Well it’s simple, sort of. From the year 2000-09 they have made the playoffs all but one year. In the ten World Series this decade, the Yankees have been apart of four of them. Two wins and two losses. One thing you always have to admit about them is that they hate losing. They always put out winners. Granted they are buying wins, but what fan doesn’t want their team to win every single year? Exactly. I could pick the Boston Red Sox, St. Louis Cardinals or the Angels of Anaheim, but I can’t overlook the consistent winning atmosphere in New York. Whether you like them or not, they are a sports fans dream come true.

NFL – New England Patriots

It is starting to look like an east coast bias here, but who else is even close to these guys. They might have cheated their way to the top (allegedly), but the results are etched in NFL history forever. They’ve appeared in four Super Bowls this decade and won three by a combined nine points. That gives you an idea of how exciting those games were. The level of consistency in the free agent era is astounding. They’ve been able to replace pro bowlers left and right year in and year out. If they had beaten the New York Giants two Super Bowls ago they would be the greatest team ever and perhaps in any decade.

NHL – New Jersey Devils

If you thought the first two were the examples of consistency. This team blew right past them. They made the playoffs the entire decade and appeared in three Stanley Cup Finals, winning two. They like the Yankees and Patriots have been able to replace certain pieces, but kept the core together for so many years. Names like Brodeur, Stevens & Niedermayer have been staples for a great franchise that is still a force in the NHL heading into the new decade.

NBA – Los Angeles Lakers

I could make the case for the San Antonio Spurs, but I will go with a well known here. From 2000-09 they made the playoffs all but one season. Appeared in the NBA Finals six times, winning four championships. The coach through most of it is probably the best of all time in Phil Jackson. Shaq was part of the resurgence, then it was past to Kobe, who is scary to say still in his prime. This team has gotten even better going into the new decade with perhaps its best roster since the early ’00s.

2009-10 NHL Season Preview

Without further adieu a break down of each division for the upcoming NHL season. Right down to the story lines and players to watch. Enjoy. (* denotes playoffs)

Eastern Conference

Atlantic Division
1. Penguins*
2. Flyers*
3. Devils*
4. Rangers*
5. Islanders

Breakdown: By far the toughest division in the NHL. The top four teams made the playoffs last year and could make it there again this season. New Jersey, the defending champs, lost some offense with the departure of Winger Brian Gionta (Montreal), but still have a healthy Martin Brodeur to make them contenders. Philadelphia received standout Defensemen Chris Pronger from Anaheim in the offseason. New York received a gift in Marian Gaborik (Minnesota) in free agency. Not to mention Henrik Lundqvist is still in net for them. The Islanders got the supposed savior John Tavares in the Draft, but it won’t be enough to get out of the cellar this year. The defending Stanley Cup champs Pittsburgh are in line to repeat with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin leading the way. They have to fend off the losses of Rob Scuderi (Los Angeles) and Hal Gill (Montreal) on defense. Plus the rest of the NHL to win.

Storyline: Goaltending, goaltending, goaltending. That has to be in this division. The Islanders had ten goalies in camp it seemed. Who will they settle on between Martin Biron, Dwayne Roloson or Rick DiPietro? Philadelphia is going with Ray Emery. Yes, RAY EMERY. Good luck with that. The Rangers have the best in net with Lundqvist. Jersey has Brodeur to get them at least 30 wins. Can Penguins goalie Marc Andre-Fleury continue on the success of a Stanley Cup championship in net?

Player to watch: John Tavares NY Islanders. Being the first pick brings a lot of unnecessary pressure. And boy does he have pressure. The Islanders haven’t mattered in a long time. Tavares is being thrown into the ocean without a life vest. A good, all be it young core is in place, but the powers that be need to be patient and not rush to judgment on this team and its coach. Aka the Lightning from last year.

Northeast Division
1. Bruins*
2. Canadiens*
3. Senators
4. Sabres
5. Maple Leafs

Breakdown: You could argue this was the most disappointing division last year. Ottawa was expected to contend and Buffalo was better than they played. Boston finished with the best record last year in the conference, but could be the third best team this year. Trading Phil Kessel to division rival Toronto will hurt, but not in the long haul. The Leafs still have some holes, but are a year or two away from contention. Francois Beauchemin was a great pickup for Toronto by the way. The Bruins did add Defensemen Derek Morris and Tim Thomas is, well still Tim Thomas last I checked. Having Norris Trophy winner Zdeno Chara is not bad either. Montreal reloaded getting Gionta (New Jersey), Mike Cammalleri (Calgary) for the offense to replace Alex Kovalev (Ottawa) and Alex Tanguay (Tampa Bay). On defense they did add some good ones in Gill (Pittsburgh), Paul Mara (Rangers) and Jaroslav Spacek (Buffalo). The Sabres are going with the youth movement and are counting on another 40+ goal performance from Thomas Vanek. A healthy goalie in Ryan Miller wouldn’t hurt either. Ottawa got rid of the cancer to be in Dany Heatley (San Jose) and received Jonathan Cheechoo and Milan Michalek in return. Kovalev wasn’t a bad pickup either.

Storyline: Will a someone dethrone the Bruins? Highly doubtful, but anything is possible. With all the spending the Canadiens did this offseason and the moves Toronto made. Ottawa getting rid of the leftovers and Buffalo healthy. This could be a very competitive division. Key word “could.” I like surprises and that would be a surprise to me. Next year though, not so much.

Player to watch: Carey Price Montreal. After that great rookie season two seasons ago, the pressure got to him with all the bicentennial celebration of the franchise. It showed in his play. He has to bounce back and help them show all that spending was not for a 7th or 8th seed in the playoffs. 23-16 with a 2.83 GAA and a save percentage of .905 will not cut it.

Southeast Division
1. Capitals*
2. Hurricanes*
3. Lightning
4. Thrashers
5. Panthers

Breakdown: The Capitals are the class of this division. It starts with Alex Ovechkin and pretty much ends with Ovechkin. Washington will miss Viktor Kozlov, but Mike Knuble (Philadelphia) was a great veteran addition. Carolina surprised everyone making it to the conference finals last year. They have taken two huge steps forward and can’t afford to take any steps back. Goalie Cam Ward needs to remain the rock for this team and the offense needs to improve on last years success at the end. Florida will be hurt without Jay Bouwmeester (Calgary) on defense. He was the best player they had, but this young team needs to improve upon the fact that they almost made the playoffs. Unfortunately for Florida, Atlanta and Tampa Bay made moves that improved their chances. Atlanta signing Nik Antropov (Rangers) and trading for Pavel Kubina (Tampa Bay) were huge moves. Ilya Kovalcuk is happy and might stay if Atlanta can contend with the likes of Washington and Carolina. The Lightning, after a disastrous start last year, have one thing on their side. It can’t get any worse from here on out. Signing Mattias Ohlund (Vancouver) and Alex Tanguay (Montreal) were great additions and this young team will be looking to prove everyone wrong about last year.

Storyline: Scoring. I foresee some high scoring games from these teams this year. No disrespect to the goalies, but all five of these teams can score. We know about Washington with Ovechkin, Alexander Semin and Mike Green. Carolina with Eric Staal, Erik Cole and Chad LaRose. Tampa Bay with Vincent Lecavalier, Ryan Malone and Martin St. Louis. Florida with David Booth, Nathan Horton and Michael Frolik. Atlanta with Kovalchuk, Colby Armstrong and Rookie Evander Kane. Those are some pretty interesting scoring lineups. Scary good.

Player to watch: Alex Ovechkin Washington. There really isn’t anyone else. The most electrifying hockey player today is darn near impossible to stop. Will he finally get the Capitals into the conference finals this year? Could very well happen. They have to avoid the goalie problem they had last year and not look tired and out of it at the end. You shouldn’t lose a Game 7 at home and they unfortunately did. Against the soon to be champion Penguins and rival Sidney Crosby. Ovechkin I’m sure is looking to get back and take the cup this time.

Western Conference

Central Division
1. Red Wings*
2. Blackhawks*
3. Blue Jackets*
4. Blues
5. Predators

Breakdown: We all know who the class of this division is. Chicago is right on the cusp of taking over though. Detroit lost two players to Chicago in free agency. Marina Hossa will be a great addition to the offense that includes Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane. Adding John Madden (New Jersey) will help for the Hawks defense and penalty killing. No one knew if they could replace Martin Havlat (Minnesota), but they did with Hossa. Detroit also lost Mikael Samuelsson (Vancouver), but picked up Todd Bertuzzi (Calgary) and Patrick Eaves (Hurricanes). With Niklas Lidstrom leading the defense, Detroit should be in line for another playoff berth. St. Louis shocked the hockey world by blowing past everyone for the 6th seed last season. The young core of Erik Johnson on defense and Patrik Berglund on offense should be ready to capitalize on the early success. Goalie Chris Mason was a nice surprise, but they must keep his minutes down. Hence the addition of backup Ty Conklin (Detroit). Columbus didn’t go all out in the offseason, but made the smart moves. Locking up star Rick Nash was huge. Adding Sami Pahlsson (Chicago) was a subtle move, but will prove to be a big one come playoff time. Goalie Steve Mason can’t have a sophomore slump for Columbus to contend. Nashville might have the worst record in the league this year. Defensemen Shea Weber is the lone star of a roster that lacks the offensive explosion to compete in this division. The team is in financial turmoil and it could be their last in Nashville.

Storyline: Can Chicago dethrone Detroit? Last years conference finals were really a pre cursor to what is going to happen this year. The Blackhawks will have it go down to the wire for who wins this division and maybe the conference. Will Hossa be in his third straight Stanley Cup final with a different team? Another intriguing plot line in this season long scenario.

Player to watch: Cristobal Huet Chicago. It’s his job to lose now. Khabibulin is out of the picture now Huet has to prove he is the man. Chicago is a potential cup contender this year. The only weakspot is with the goalie. A 30 win season would be a tremendous accomplishment. It is possible with Brian Campbell, Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook in front of him. Don’t be too fancy, just do enough not to lose the game. Like they say with rookie quarterbacks. Just manage the game.

Northwest Division
1. Flames*
2. Canucks*
3. Wild
4. Oilers
5. Avalanche

Breakdown: It’s really going to be a fight between Calgary and Vancouver for this division. The Flames have probably the best trio of defenders this year in Bouwmeester (Florida), Dion Phaneuf and Robyn Regehr. Captain Jarome Iginla leads the offense with goalie Miikka Kiprusoff the constant winner in the net. Vancouver lost Mattias Ohlund (Tampa Bay) on defense, but gained Mikael Samuelsson (Detroit) for their offense. The Sedin twins came back and with the best goalie in the NHL Roberto Luongo in net, the Canucks will be back in contention. Minnesota added Martin Havlat (Chicago) who is coming off a career year. The Wild lost their star player Marian Gaborik (Rangers) in free agency. The new regime will let loose the conservative attitude in Minnesota and let Owen Nolan, Andrew Brunette and Havlat run Wild (pardon the pun). Edmonton lost a piece of their offense in Ales Kotalik (Rangers). With the rumors of getting Dany Heatley in the offseason, they now have to focus on coming together for new coach Pat Quinn. Defensemen Sheldon Souray is the one constant on both sides of the ice. New goalie Nikolai Khabibulin (Chicago) will look to make the Oilers contenders. It is a full on rebuilding mode for Colorado. Joe Sakic has retired. Ryan Smyth (Los Angeles) was traded. The future lies with first round pick Matt Duchene to succeed Sakic and Paul Stastny could very well be a great player for many years.

Storyline: Roberto Luongo vs. Miikka Kiprusoff. Every time the Calgary Flames play the Vancouver Canucks, it will be a low scoring affair. Kiprusoff had 40+ wins last year and Luongo is capable of matching Kiprusoff in wins and saving over 92 percent of shots coming his way. Luongo is hands down the best goalie right now. In his prime and with a new extension. Kiprusoff is one of the best, but can he overthrow Luongo for the crown. It will interesting to see.

Player to watch: Olli Jokinen Calgary. When he was acquired last year at the trade deadline, everyone assumed the Flames would run away with the division and possibly pass Detroit for the second seed. It didn’t happen though. In large part to a stumbling Jokinen and company that couldn’t buy a goal. They got kicked out of the first round by Chicago as the 5th seed. Jokinen needs to have a good season in Calgary or that defense and goaltender will be under enormous pressure to win for the Flames.

Pacific Division
1. Sharks*
2. Ducks*
3. Kings*
4. Stars
5. Coyotes

Breakdown: GM Doug Wilson said he would not dismantle the team after finishing with the best record in the NHL and getting knocked out in the first round. Instead he added another piece with the acquisition of Dany Heatley (Ottawa). Rob Blake and Dan Boyle are still the mainstays on defense. Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau are both the leaders on offense. Evgeni Nabokov is still a solid goaltender that gets you 30+ wins. The Ducks have perhaps the best starting line in the game. Ryan Getzlaf in the middle with Corey Perry and Bobby Ryan on the wings. These three gave the Sharks and Red Wings fits last year in the playoffs. J.S. Giguere will battle emerging goaltender Jonas Hiller for the starting job, but who ever wins, the Ducks have a great tandem. Los Angeles is the dark horse here. Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty emerged last year as future stars that will get the Kings to the postseason sooner rather than later. All they need is for Jonathan Quick to take hold of the goaltender spot and they’ll be in. Acquiring Ryan Smyth (Colorado) and Rob Scuderi (Pittsburgh) were the best moves of the offseason. Dallas is not quite rebuilding, but retooling is more like it. A new coach and new style are in place. An uptempo system that relies on the defensemen to push the puck up the ice more. Captain Brenden Morrow needs to stay healthy and goalie Marty Turco needs to rebound from a dismal season. Phoenix has had a tumultuous summer. With all the court hearings and whether or not Wayne Gretzky would coach has come to an end for now. Gretzky is gone and replaced with former Dallas coach Dave Tippett. A great move considering this is a lost year for them. Captain Shane Doan might be trade bait from the jump and the young stars might take a few steps back after showing such promise.

Storyline: Will Phoenix be able to compete with all the distractions? Regardless of the what happened and didn’t happen in the offseason, the players still have to play. Shane Doan is all but gone. Youngsters Peter Mueller and Keith Yandle showed great skills the last two years under Gretzky, but they couldn’t get Phoenix to the next level. Tippett should be able to do that, but how long will he be around? Things look to get worse for this franchise. The NHL need to do what’s best for Phoenix and not the league.

Player to watch: Dany Heatley San Jose. He got his wish. Now he needs to just stay low and play hockey. The Sharks are counting on him being a contributor not the centerpiece in their offense. His 35 playoff points in 34 career games are what San Jose was after. Heatley has not performed well under pressure in his career. San Jose is a small market, but they have been a disappointment the last couple seasons. Doug Wilson is betting his job that Heatley will get the Sharks out of the first round and possibly into the conference finals. They are still contenders with or without him, but a lot of blame will come his way if they don’t get out of the first round.

Conference Finals
Chicago vs. Detroit
Pittsburgh vs. Washington

Stanley Cup
Chicago vs. Pittsburgh

Congrats to the NHL & NBA Champions

We saw the Penguins do on Friday what no one (including me) thought they could do. Beat the defending champs in Detroit. I mean no one gave them a chance. At least no one I heard or saw did. I figured they would at least make a game of it and also believed that if anyone could beat Detroit at home in a Game 7 no less, it would be Pittsburgh. Why you ask. Back in the semifinals, Pittsburgh went to Washington and beat down the Capitals in a Game 7 by the score of 6-2. Now the Red Wings could have won this game. A turnover and a defensive miscue led to the two goals scored by Pittsburgh. Detroit goalie Chris Osgood is as good as any other clutch playoff goalie. His record speaks for itself. Marc-Andre Fluery was magnificent right down to the wire. That diving save at the end will be his greatest moment. I mentioned to one of my brothers that who ever is going to win the Stanley Cup, will need to win at least one game on the road. It came down to Pittsburgh winning when it mattered.

Now the Penguins will have some decisions to make come July 1 for Free Agency. Key players eligible to leave: Bill Guerin, Ruslan Fedotenko, Hal Gill, Philippe Boucher, and Rob Scuderi. Guerin might end up retiring now that he has name on the Cup for the second time. The other names mentioned were key parts to this championship team. If all of these names leave, I still think the Penguins have enough to still be contenders. Will they repeat though, doubtful. They could delve into the free agent pool to replace them, but you can’t buy a championship as we’ve seen in other sports. As predicted Sid the Kid has one down and many more to go through his still evolving career. He is only 21. Hard to believe.

The monkey has finally gotten off Kobe Bryant’s back and really the entire team’s. After last years Finals meltdown against the Boston Celtics, they were labeled soft, uninspired, wouldn’t show up when it mattered, just to name a few. They showed in these playoffs that even great teams are vulnerable. It is extremely hard to win a championship in any sport. This just proves that. Utah was a relative breeze and many think Houston should have been, but those that know basketball said that the Rockets exposed a Laker weakness in the pick and roll. Towards the end of that series, LA manned up and destroyed it to victory. Denver came in as hot as any playoff team and many were not going to be surprised to see them beat the Lakers. Denver tried to psych them out, but LA held their ground, found out that Denver couldn’t guard the paint and beat them in Denver to advance.

Kobe is one of three people responsible for this championship. The other two I’ll name shortly, but back to Kobe. The Finals brought out the best in Bryant. He didn’t have to score 40 points every game, passed the ball with great efficiency and was a true leader before our eyes. Michael Jordan didn’t win his first until 1991, seven years after he was drafted. Kobe had to wait four for his first and seven to win one without Shaq. He did acknowledge after the game that every team has a dynamic duo, referring to his days with Shaq, to win a championship. Those were great days that could have resulted in six possibly seven championships for the Lakers. To not dwell on the past, Kobe was in the same class as any other great basketball player without this title. Yes all those Kobe haters were not going to let it go, even though he was already showing signs of turning into a reliable passer and team leader. The mamba had to go through a lottery season, no big man (until the Gasol trade), and no Phillip to get to this point. Did Shaq have to go through all that to get his fourth. No, he had Dwayne Wade carry him to that title. Kobe almost left for the Clippers, but stayed through it and it resulted in the awakening of a possible dynasty in LA. I’m not saying that for a fact, just a possibility.

The second man is General Manager Mitch Kupchak. Yes, the heir apparent to Jerry West who was destroyed in LA for the Shaq trade, but it resulted in Lamar Odom. He was hammered for drafting a project in Andrew Bynum with that lottery pick, who Kobe wanted no part of in the beginning. To his credit Bynum put in the work and has become a good center with the potential to be the best. Kupchak got plenty of offers for Bynum, but stayed firm and didn’t give into the pressure. Mitch turned it all around in February of 2008 trading essentially just Kwame Brown for Pau Gasol. Most one sided trade in any sport. More one sided than the Cowboys Herschel Walker deal in the NFL. That same year he traded Maurice Evans and Brian Cook to that Orlando Magic team for, wait for it, Trevor Ariza. The same Ariza who helped get the Lakers back into Game 4 of the NBA Finals. I give a third of the credit to this great GM. Yes he is a great GM. You can’t grade a General Manager of a team until a few years have passed on the deals he has made. It sucks to wait, so we do have to speculate as well. And we were all wrong. Kudos to Kupchak.

Finally, to Phil Jackson. Who now has the title, “Most Titles for a Coach Ever.” In any sport. That is crazy good. A ring for every finger now. For those to suggest that he got where he has was because of the players is valid. To say he did nothing is comical. This guy had to tell Michael to pass the ball every once in a while and good things will happen. He got MJ, Pippen and Rodman to win three titles in a row. That for me is worthy of greatness. But to get Kobe and Shaq to buy in when they wanted nothing to do with each other was a stroke of genius. I don’t know how he did it, but it worked. Now his next achievement was simple compared to the others. Get Kobe to trust in the coach. When Phil left LA the first time, he wrote in a book that Kobe was “uncoachable.” Damning words to Kobe Bryant no doubt. When the time came that the Lakers needed to rebuild fast, they and Kobe turned to Phil. Kobe knew that Phil would bring balance to this team and franchise in turmoil and it was rather quick. Phil Jackson has won 10 out of the last 19 NBA championships. Greatest NBA coach ever on that fact alone.

Congrats to me and JR’s favorite basketball team. This was a great season and I (as is JR I’m sure) am looking forward to another run at a title. Keep Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza in LA. Mitch, I have faith in you. To end the speculation on whether Phil is coming back, I’m going to take a page from Terrell Owen’s publicist. Phil has 12 million reasons to come back. One more year and one more ring wouldn’t hurt. Kobe was great before and is even greater now. These guys will be a force in the West for many years.

NHL Conference Final Preview

All but one of the semifinal matchups went to seven games. Once again, this is probably the best playoff hockey I’ve seen in a while. Crosby vs. Ovechkin was epic. The only thing that could have made it better was if they met in the conference finals. Sid the Kid got the better end of the series skating past the Caps in seven. The Hurricanes surprised the hockey world by beating heavily favored Boston in overtime. Carolina is on a roll. The Blackhawks made it look too easy against the Canucks. Sorry about no Cup Canada. There is always next year. The defending champs outlasted the Ducks to have a chance to defend their Western Confernce crown and the Cup of course. The conference finals will have more of the same exciting action.

Easter Conference Finals

4 Pittsburgh vs 6 Carolina

I’ll say that I’m not shocked Carolina is here, but I’m shocked Carolina is here. The Hurricanes lead by Eric Staal, Joni Pitkanen and Cam Ward have had a great postseason. Great finishes and great coaching to. Paul Maurice has won his last six playoff series. Sidney Crosby will try to get his team back to the Stanley Cup Finals, but have to get past the streaking Canes. Evgeni Malkin has to there from the start. He can’t afford to be absent. Marc-Andre Fleury was spectacular for the Penguins against Washington. Fleury is the key in this series. The Hurricanes will constantly be on the attack. The defense will need to be alert, but Fleury needs to continue the great goaltending to get his team back for another title shot. Penguins in six.

Western Conference Finals

2 Detroit vs 4 Chicago

Two of the original six go face to face in the conference finals. They are also division rivals and really don’t like each other. The young Blackhawks have a lot to look forward to in the near future. I guess that means now. Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane can’t seem to be stopped. The Red Wings have Henrik Zetteberg and Johan Franzen as their one-two punch. This series comes down to who will not give up stupid peanlties, make stops at key moments, the obvious stuff. The key player is Nicklas Lidstrom for Detroit. Kind of shocking. Lidstrom was good, not great against the Ducks. He’ll have to be perfect in this series. Chicago will be looking to upset their rival and take the momentum to a Stanley Cup title. Blackhawks in seven.