NBA Semifinals Preview

Eastern Conference

1. Chicago Bulls vs. 5. Atlanta Hawks

The Bulls know what they have in Derrick Rose and they like it. With his late game heroics in Game 3 against Indiana the Bulls know they can count on him late in close games. Chicago will need more from Carlos Boozer who was next to being a no-show against the Pacers. Indiana has more size to compete with Boozer than Atlanta does which should bode well for him. Luol Deng was coming on late in the first round and should continue his upward trend. Kyle Korver was hitting big shots at crucial times during the first round. Chicago will be tested to see if they can prove they are the best team in the conference.

The Hawks got over the hump and beat a contender in the playoffs. Not that Orlando was going to make it to the Finals this year, but they were just two years removed from an appearance in the Finals. Joe Johnson was better than advertised for the Hawks. Al Horford held his own against Dwight Howard. Josh Smith was a defensive menace during their first round series. Jamal Crawford was a great catalyst off the bench against Orlando. They didn’t have an answer for him, but it will be more difficult against the best defensive team in Chicago.

Bulls in 6 games

2. Miami Heat vs. 3. Boston Celtics

The most intriguing matcup of the playoffs is about to get underway. Will the result be the same as before with LeBron James and the Boston Celtics? Boston knows exactly what to do about LeBron, but they have to deal with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh as well. Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen have gotten a lot of rest which should help. Whether it will stop the Celtics from giving up any leads is yet to be determined. Rajon Rondo can’t have any bad games if the Celtics are to take advantage of their one strength against the Heat.

LeBron, Wade and Bosh are playing their best at the right time. Their biggest problem is still trying to win close games. Boston knows that and figures they will be close through this series. Another problem for the Heat is who else can they count on? Mike Miller and Udonis Haslem won’t be available and Miami can’t expect Wade, LeBron and Bosh to be there every night against the defending conference champions. Thankfully for the Heat, Boston is banged up too with Shaquille O’Neal and Jermaine O’Neal battling injuries. Boston’s depth isn’t at its peak either.

Celtics in 6 games

Western Conference

2. Los Angeles Lakers vs. 3. Dallas Mavericks

It was tough for the Mavericks, but with some home cooking in Game 5 they rode that momentum into Game 6 in Portland and won decisively. It’s hard to believe that this is the first time these two will meet in the playoffs. There was some bad blood the last time they met. That shouldn’t boil over into the playoffs, but you do start to get tired of seeing the same face every other day. Dirk Nowitzki will need to play his ‘A’ game in this series. He poses a difficult matchup for the Lakers, but they also know that the Mavericks don’t have many other options. Caron Butler is ruled out for this series. Jason Terry will have to be at his best off the bench. Dallas has Tyson Chandler and Brendan Haywood to go against Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol, but will it be enough?

The Lakers had a tough going with New Orleans, but their size ultimately was too much for the Hornets. Dallas has the depth to hang with the Lakers bigs, but it will be a daunting task. Pau Gasol should be better than he was against the Hornets. It was a good wake up call for him going forward. Kobe Bryant played to the Lakers strengths in the last two games against the Hornets. Lamar Odom and Ron Artest played well and even Matt Barnes and Steve Blake played a big part in the Lakers turn around against New Orleans. Depth is always important at this time and the Lakers win in that department.

Lakers in 6 games

4. Oklahoma City Thunder vs. 8. Memphis Grizzlies

Believe it or not this will be a great series. Memphis doesn’t even have their best player in Rudy Gay, but Zach Randolph was phenomenal against the Spurs. If he repeats that performance the Grizzlies will be looking at another upset. Tony Allen was all over Manu Ginobili. He will have to do the same against Kevin Durant, but it won’t be easy. Marc Gasol has a tougher defensive matcup in Kendrick Perkins, but he should still be a force on offense. The key will be what Mike Conley and O.J. Mayo can do for the secondary scoring. If they contribute often they will make it tough for the Thunder.

Russell Westbrook has to play bigger than ever before. He is the one player that the Grizzlies will have trouble defending in the series. Another advantage for the Thunder is Kevin Durant. His relentless scoring ability was no match for the high scoring Denver Nuggets who couldn’t keep up with Oklahoma. Memphis is more defensive minded and will have to hope Durant has a couple bad games. Serge Ibaka is beginning to realize his potential as an offensive player. That isn’t good for the Grizzlies if they can stop Westbrook and Durant. James Harden is going to be a key component off the bench. If he can consistently score in double digits for the Thunder they will be looking at competing for the conference title.

Thunder in 6 games

NHL Stanley Cup Semifinals Preview

Eastern Conference

1. Washington Capitals vs. 5. Tampa Bay Lightning

The Capitals had a some what easy quarterfinal against the Rangers. Washington has had issues with complacency in the playoffs, but that looks to have been an after thought this year. Alex Ovechkin and Alexander Semin were great in the quarterfinals and will have to be again. Michal Neuvirth was spectacular in net for the Capitals. They have to believe that he can continue to be a productive force for them and their run at the Cup.

Tampa Bay an underdog against the Penguins even though Pittsburgh didn’t have Crosby or Malkin. The Lightning held their own winning the last three games of the series including Game 7 in Pittsburgh. They outscored the Penguins 13-4 in those three games. Steven Stamkos and Hart Trophy nominee Martin St. Louis will have to provide the scoring against their division rival in the semifinals. Goalie Dwayne Roloson was a big reason why they stopped the Penguins and will have to be even better against Washington.

Lightning in 6 games

2. Philadelphia Flyers vs. 3. Boston Bruins

The Flyers got a wake up call against Buffalo. Philadelphia had to win the last two games of the series to advance. Stellar goaltending by Ryan Miller almost was the Flyers undoing. They had goaltending issues of their own, but Brian Boucher took control and won all four games for the Flyers. Danny Briere was their catalyst on offense and if Chris Pronger is fully healthy and active against Boston there should be a repeat of the Bruins being eliminated in the semifinals by Philadelphia.

The Bruins finally took control after being down 2-0 to their rival Montreal and won 4 of the last 5 to eliminate them. It wasn’t easy, but they have to think that Vezina Trophy nominee Tim Thomas will bounce back in net for them. Zdeno Chara wasn’t the same on defense and Milan Lucic wasn’t as productive offensively. Nathan Horton was a big reason why the Bruins advanced. Patrice Bergeron was the setup man and will need to get through the Flyers defense to continue that trend.

Flyers in 6 games

Western Conference

1. Vancouver Canucks vs. 5. Nashville Predators

Vancouver got a bit of a scare being up 3-0 to Chicago and having to beat them in Game 7. The Canucks were too much for Chicago to handle, but there is some doubt as to whether goalie Roberto Luongo can rebound from a tough end to that series. If he gets back on track Vancouver will be tough to take to another Game 7. The Sedin twins were lights out in the first three games, but hard to find the rest of the series. Alexandre Burrows and Ryan Kesler will need to pick up the scoring. Kevin Bieksa was their best defensemen and best scoring threat from the blue line.
Nashville shocked many with their first playoff series win against the hottest team going into the playoffs in the Anaheim Ducks. Vezina Trophy nominee Pekka Rinne had a lot to do with the Ducks demise. Shea Weber, Mike Fisher, Joel Ward and Jordin Tootoo each contributed at least 5 points in the six games it took to eliminate the Ducks. If the Predators can continue that trend against the best team in the NHL this year, they will be the cinderella team of these Stanley Cup playoffs.

Canucks in 6 games

2. San Jose Sharks vs. 3. Detroit Red Wings

There was a moment where the Sharks could have had some problems against the rival Los Angeles Kings, but with that amazing comeback victory in Game 3 all was well for the San Jose. The usual suspects, Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau and Dany Heatley were productive, but it was the young guns that won it for San Jose. Ryan Clowe, Logan Couture and Joe Pavelski each contributed at least 5 points. Clowe and Pavelski lead the team with 4 goals apiece. Antti Niemi can bounce back from a shaky start to the playoffs the Sharks should see themselves make a repeat appearance in the conference finals.
It seemed to be too easy for the Red Wings in the quarterfinals. Phoenix was no match for them. Detroit really only needed Pavel Datsyuk to be on his game and boy was he. Valtteri Filppula is beginning to have a breakout playoff stretch and goalie Jimmy Howard was stellar in all four of his starts. The challenge will be to slow down the Sharks scorers. Norris Trophy nominee Nicklas Lidstrom along with Brian Rafalski will be tasked with that and to keep pucks deep into San Jose’s zone. If they can do that the Red Wings will be closer to another conference title.

Red Wings in 6 games

Three’s Company at Chavez Ravine

What is to become of the Los Angeles Dodgers franchise? Baseball’s commissioner Bud Selig (pictured in the middle) has decided to use his power and take control of the franchise from current owner Frank McCourt (pictured left). Frank has been in the middle of a nasty and public divorce with his wife Jamie (pictured right) the last two years which has left the Dodgers as nothing more than pawn in their marital squabble.

Now with that announcement came some surprise from Bud’s move. It doesn’t happen very often that baseball’s commissioner will take control of a franchise. The last time it happened was with the Montreal Expos who were then moved to Washington D.C. and purchased by a new owner. The surprise is that it’s the Dodgers of all teams that has to be saved by baseball.

To be an owner in baseball, it’s a very hard thing if you can imagine. Mark Cuban is called by many to be the best owner in all of sports for the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks. Just look at that franchises’ record before Cuban arrived and since. He has made two attempts to purchase a major league baseball team, but was denied both times. Those two teams were the Chicago Cubs and the Texas Rangers.

If baseball wants to deny a person like Mark Cuban to be apart of their club. Then why did the McCourts get approved? By all accounts they weren’t the ideal purchaser of the Dodgers back in 2004. They made an attempt to purchase the Boston Red Sox in 2002, but folks in Boston knew their history and financial dealings and wanted no part of it. Bud Selig saw it differently apparently as did the rest of baseball. They were invited unanimously into the club.

Of course it wasn’t all bad. The renovations to Dodger Stadium are nice. To fix up a historic ballpark is commendable no matter who does it. Keeping Vin Scully happy is always a good thing, although I’m not sure how happy he’s been the past two years. Allowing general manager Ned Colletti to still make moves to improve the team through all the turmoil has to be acknowledged.

Unfortunately the bad far outweighs the good here. The McCourts are being investigated by the IRS for tax evasion. The kind where they used team-related funds for personal use and didn’t pay tax on it. Hollywood definitely went to Jamie McCourt’s head with a monthly salary of $32,012 for clothing and jewelry of all things. The key word there is “monthly” in that fact from their divorce case.

The funniest thing was they hired some guy named Vladimir Shpunt during the 2004 season to, wait for it, transmit positive energy from Boston to the Dodgers. Supposedly Vlad “discovered that his hands could generate much more energy than the average person’s.” This according to the Los Angeles Times. Now he might have helped in 2004 since the Dodgers did make the playoffs, but the following year they lost 91 games. It goes to show you that you can’t always count on those who claim to be the next Rasputin.

Perhaps the worst part of their financial squandering is that another investigation showed that a member of the Dodgers front office received $400,000 a year from the Dodgers charity. If you do the math that’s one-fourth of the entire Dodgers Dream Foundation entire budget. I’m sure that money was put right back into the organization in someway.

Now I’m not going to put blame at the feet of the McCourts for what happened to Brian Stow on Opening Day. There has been a problem with some stupid thugs at Dodger Stadium for a long time. I would attend more Dodgers games if for one I was a Dodgers fan and two if I felt safe. Most of the time I didn’t. And I wasn’t wearing a hat or shirt of the opposing team. But you have to think that you would have someone hired as your head of security before Opening Day right?

I will admit that I was a Dodgers fan when I started watching baseball. That was the iconic team in Southern California and in all of baseball. Once the O’Malley family began to sell the Dodgers, it was never the same. Great players were coming through their system, but then were traded off before they reached their prime e.g, Mike Piazza, Pedro Martinez, Paul Konerko.

I would point out the awful contracts the Dodgers have dished out, but that would be too easy. The worst part for me is what the ownership of the Fox Entertainment Group was doing to former players. Mike Scioscia was easily penciled in by many to be the newest manager of the Dodgers after the 1999 season. However ownership and perhaps the worst general manager in all of baseball at the time Kevin Malone wanted to go in another direction. The result was no playoff appearances until 2004 and Scioscia was hired by the crosstown rival Angels and won a World Series in 2002.

There has been a serious problem at Chavez Ravine. The fan base is one of the best in baseball and they apparently have had enough. Attendance is projected to be at its lowest in a decade. A lot can be attributed to the state of the economy, but the McCourt divorce and the insane ticket prices have something to do with that to. There are some value seats at Dodger Stadium, but the view isn’t for everybody.

I don’t have a person in mind that can turn this around for the “Boys in Blue.” What I do know is that the person has to have a sense of how to run a baseball team. Let the baseball people do their job and you make sure they can do it. They have to know what the priorities are which include security, a balanced budget and reasonable pricing. Bud Selig made a mistake and is trying to right that mistake. Dodger Stadium is a great place to watch baseball and it can be again.

2011 NBA Playoffs Preview

Eastern Conference

1. Chicago Bulls vs. 8. Indiana Pacers

I made the mistake of predicting the Chicago Bulls would finish 5th in the conference and the Milwaukee Bucks would finish ahead of them in the division. Oops. Regardless thanks in large part to the eventual MVP Derrick Rose the Bulls have a good chance to make some noise in the Eastern Conference. A lot has been said about the Bulls roster, but besides Rose they need Luol Deng and Carlos Boozer to help carry the offense. They are the best defensive team in the league this year, but Boozer and Deng have to be more helpful on offense.

The Indiana Pacers went on a roll after they fired Jim O’Brien. Frank Vogel has done a great job on an interim basis and probably will get the job full time next year. Danny Granger has gotten a lot of help from Nick Collison and Tyler Hansbrough during the season. Both will need to continue to produce in the playoffs as well. Indiana has a deeper team than Chicago, but over a 7 game series I just don’t see the Pacers taking it that far with the Bulls.

Bulls in 5 games

2. Miami Heat vs. 7. Philadelphia 76ers

Well, it’s finally time for the Miami Heat to shine. LeBron James and Dwayne Wade will continue to do their thing, but what can we expect from Chris Bosh? Will we see the Chris Bosh from the first two months of the season or the one who was wanting to be more involved towards the later part? For Miami to make some headway into the conference finals and maybe the title, they will need a productive Bosh. The role players they have will have to shine as well. Mike Miller, Mike Bibby just to name a few.

The 76ers would have rather played the Boston Celtics, but this is a good test for them and their future. Andre Iguodala is turning into a good defender, but will have to be the offensive catalyst the Sixers need him to be. Elton Brand has been around for a while now, but hasn’t been in the playoffs for much of his career. Talent wise they are overmatched, but they might be able to surprise the Heat and take two games in Philadelphia before it’s all said and done.

Heat in 6 games

3. Boston Celtics vs. 6. New York Knicks

Will the Celtics have a healthy Shaquille O’Neal or a banged up one? Does it really matter against the Knicks? If he is able to play don’t expect to see him for more than 20 minutes a game. The Celtics need to play to their strengths which is let Rajon Rondo find the open man and have Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen hit their shots. This would be a good time for Jeff Green (who was acquired for the popular Kendrick Perkins) to shine. He has excellent scoring ability and Boston would like him to bring that in the playoffs.

New York has its star studded lineup with Amare Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups. What they can do with it remains to be seen. You would think New York would probably just run the old Celtics team out of the building, but the Celtics have dealt with these teams many times before and New York is still trying to get the chemistry together since acquiring Anthony. There is plenty of scoring with the Knicks trio and Toney Douglas coming off the bench, but their defense will continue to give head coach Mike D’Antoni headaches.

Celtics in 6 games

4. Orlando Magic vs. 5. Atlanta Hawks

It’s a rematch of last years awful semifinals between these two in which the Magic swept them out of the playoffs. This time the Magic don’t think it will be that easy. Atlanta still has Joe Johnson, Josh Smith and Al Horford as their go to guys, but since they acquired Kirk Hinrich they have more balance to their offense. Atlanta still has last years sixth man of the year in Jamal Crawford as another scoring option off the bench. The Hawks seem to be better equipped to handle Orlando.

The Magic haven’t been a consistent team all year long. Dwight Howard has been their one constant both offensively and defensively. Jameer Nelson has been good at times, but wildly turnover prone the other times. Jason Richardson is their second best scoring option, but hasn’t been that most of the season. Hedo Turkoglu will have to play like it’s 2009 for Orlando. He hasn’t been the same since leaving Orlando after that season and will have to be if the Magic are supposed to advance any further.

Magic in 6 games

Western Conference

1. San Antonio Spurs vs. 8. Memphis Grizzlies

This won’t be easy for the Spurs. If they don’t have a healthy Manu Ginobili for most of this series it will go down to the wire. Tony Parker has been great and even though Tim Duncan had his worst season he knows how to win during the playoffs. San Antonio will have to count on Richard Jefferson and George Hill to ease the burden on Ginobili and Duncan. There’s a lot of mileage on their legs and Jefferson and Hill should be able to produce at high levels in this series.

Memphis isn’t as deep as the Spurs. Zach Randolph is their best scorer. Mike Conley is an adequate point guard, but isn’t a viable scoring threat. Tony Allen and Sam Young have been great since Rudy Gay went down to injury. They will have to be to keep the Grizzlies hopes alive. Marc Gasol has a favorable matchup for himself. The Spurs don’t have as many big men to guard him and that bodes well for Gasol. Whether he can take advantage of it is another question.

Spurs in 6 games

2. Los Angeles Lakers vs. 7. New Orleans Hornets

It was a tumultuous ending to the season for the Lakers. They are all healthy and should be ready to play for the playoffs now. Kobe will do his usual thing and Pau Gasol will still be the constant scorer and rebounder. The questions always end up being the same. What will Ron Artest, Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum bring to the Lakers this time around? All three should be fine since this is their time to shine. The Hornets are a little banged up, but with the Lakers having banged up egos it could get interesting.

The Hornets have a great floor leader in Chris Paul. He will have to do almost everything for them. Score, pass, rebound and play defense for them to make it a close series. No one is expecting the Hornets to do much, but even without David West, they have some good players still. Trevor Ariza knows how to play on this stage. Carl Landry and Emeka Okafor are good rebounders and can play with the Lakers bigs as long as their not in foul trouble. Jarrett Jack was a great addition during the season and can spell Paul off the bench. The Lakers should advance, but it’s up to them how soon they want to.

Lakers in 5 games

3. Dallas Mavericks vs. 6. Portland Trail Blazers

This is not what the Mavericks wanted. Portland has given them problems during the season and to make matters worse they have players that can match up with theirs. Dirk Nowitzki has to play at a high level in these playoffs. If Dallas has any title hopes they rest with Dirk. Jason Terry has to be a productive force off the bench for the Mavericks. They won’t be able to beat Portland without his scoring. Dallas would feel more comfortable if they had Caron Butler, but even without him they nearly clinched the second seed.

The Blazers are the most dangerous team mainly because of their acquisition of Gerald Wallace from Charlotte. He has given them a new aggressive identity. With Marcus Camby entrenched in the paint, Portland has become a great defensive team. LaMarcus Aldridge has had a career year and along with Wesley Matthews and Nicolas Batum Portland is poised to get over the hump and out of the first round of the playoffs.

Blazers in 6

4. Oklahoma City Thunder vs. 5. Denver Nuggets

Oklahoma has an easier road in the West this year. Denver has been one of the hottest teams since the All-Star break during the season, but the Thunder have perhaps the best duo in the game in Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant. Both should be able to dominate at both ends for the Thunder. Denver doesn’t have anyone who can stop them both on a nightly basis. With Kendrick Perkins defending the paint for Oklahoma now that has opened things up for Serge Ibaka. He should have a big series against the Nuggets big men.

Denver will have to rely heavily on two regulars, Nene and Ty Lawson. Both were instrumental in getting Denver the 5th seed in the playoffs. With Wilson Chandler, Raymond Felton and Danilo Gallinari playing at high levels since the Carmelo Anthony trade the Nuggets can score with anyone. What Denver will get out of Kenyon Martin will be a mystery, but he can be the defensive catalyst if he can prevent the Thunder from getting easy baskets in the paint. This is perhaps the most anticipated series with a lot of high scoring games.

Thunder in 6 games

2011 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Preview

Eastern Conference

1. Washington Capitals vs. 8. New York Rangers

Last year the Rangers couldn’t get into the playoffs on the last day of the season. This year they were able to clinch the last playoff spot before the last game. Thanks in large part to their goalie Henrik Lundqvist, the Rangers now have to get past the best team in the Conference to advance. New York has some gritty players in Marc Staal, Bryan McCabe and Brandon Dubinsky. Those three will have to be at their best to slow down the Capitals attack. If Marian Gaborik and the return of Chris Drury can provide adequate scoring the Rangers might be able to give Washington some trouble in the quarterfinals.

Washington has to avoid another early exit. Thankfully they have a healthy Mike Green back on the defensive side. Alexander Semin and Alex Ovechkin are rested and ready to lead the Capitals offensive attack. Michal Neuvirth took control of the goaltender role during the season and will be given the chance to continue that success in the playoffs. A lot is riding on the success of the Capitals playoff run this year with all the other disappointing exits.

Capitals in 6

2. Philadelphia Flyers vs. 7. Buffalo Sabres

It’s a potential trap for the Flyers. Philadelphia has had an easy ride through most of the regular season. They had consistent goaltender in Sergei Bobrovsky. He did have a rough patch down the stretch, but the Flyers have enough offensive weapons to help get through it. Danny Briere, Jeff Carter and Mike Richards have to be on their game. If Chris Pronger is out for most of this series it could be a problem for the Flyers.

Buffalo still has one of the best goalies in Ryan Miller. This is his time to shine and don’t be surprised if Miller decides to play up to his 2010 Winter Olympics stint. Even without Derek Roy, the Sabres were doing just enough with Tim Connolly and Thomas Vanek leading the way. The Sabres don’t have the talent to match the Flyers, but they will give them a good wake up call.

Flyers in 6

3. Boston Bruins vs. 6. Montreal Canadiens

Boston has the potential Vezina trophy winner in goalie Tim Thomas and the possible Norris trophy winner in Zdeno Chara. Both have been a big part of the Bruins success and they will play big parts in this series. Milan Lucic and Patrice Bergeron will have to provide consistent scoring for the Bruins against their long time rival.

The Canadiens have a new resurgent Carey Price in net for them this time around. They don’t expect him to duplicate what Jaroslav Halak did last year, but he is playing at an all time level right now. P.K. Subban has been a force for their defense. Brian Gionta was starting to heat up towards the end of the season. Montreal will need Michael Cammalleri to have another fantastic playoff run like last year to advance.

Bruins in 5

4. Pittsburgh Penguins vs. 5. Tampa Bay Lightning

Not having Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin will hurt the Penguins. For right now they still have one of the best goalies in Marc-Andre Fleury. He has been the constant contributor in the absence of Pittsburgh two best offensive weapons. The Penguins offense will likely have to come from Alex Kovalev and Chris Kunitz. Both have to be around the net to get good scoring chances. Defensemen Kris Letang has been a great complement on offense and a big reason for their success on defense.

The Lightning will get a chance to show their worth against one of the best teams in hockey. The young star Steven Stamkos will be playing on the big stage. Thankfully he has Martin St. Louis and Vincent Lecavalier to show him how it’s done. Pavel Kubina will have to play at a high level on both sides of the ice. Dwayne Roloson was acquired for this moment. It’s playoff time and he has a lot of experience on this stage. What remains to be seen is if the upstart Lightning are up to the challenge.

Penguins in 6

Western Conference

1. Vancouver Canucks vs. 8. Chicago Blackhawks

The deepest team in hockey last year happened to be the Chicago Blackhawks. This year it’s the Vancouver Canucks. They meet again, this time in the quarterfinals. The Canucks have the better goaltender in Roberto Luongo. He can be exposed with the loose pucks, but he has improved on that this year. With all their offensive fire power, Vancouver is actually more of a defensive minded team. The Sedin twins (Daniel and Henrik) are the two driving forces. Ryan Kesler coming off another stellar regular season is poised for a big playoff run.

Chicago has to beat the best in order to continue their quest to repeat as Stanley Cup champions. Corey Crawford you could argue has saved the Blackhawks with his play in net. Whether he can do what Antti Niemi did last year is the problem. Chicago still has Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Sharp providing the offense. Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook are still playing the blue line as well as any. They just seem to have lost their mojo from last year before the playoffs even started.

Canucks in 6

2. San Jose Sharks vs. 7. Los Angeles Kings

The Kings were stricken with the injury bug at the worst possible time. Justin Williams will try to give it a go against San Jose although he won’t be 100 percent healed. Anze Kopitar is out and might be out for quite a bit of the playoffs if the Kings advance any further. For the time being Dustin Brown has picked it up offensively. Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson are becoming more involved than usual on offense. Jonathan Quick has been stellar all season long in net and will have to be going forward. The key for them is Dustin Penner. His scoring has to increase at this time.

The Sharks had a tremendous second half surge and that was thanks in large part to goalie Antti Niemi. He is reminding folks in the NHL of his amazing run last year for Chicago and San Jose hopes it repeats itself this year. Patrick Marleau has been the constant goal scorer. Youngsters Logan Couture and Joe Pavelski had fantastic finishes to the season and they look to ride that finish into the playoffs.

Sharks in 6

3. Detroit Red Wings vs. 6. Phoenix Coyotes

Phoenix took Detroit to 7 games in last years quarterfinals matchup. This year the Coyotes hope the outcome is a little different. Shane Doan will have to make sure of that if Phoenix wants to advance. Goalie Ilya Bryzgalov will have to play even better than he has for the Coyotes to beat the Red Wings. Keith Yandle is their best defensemen. When he’s on, Phoenix is a tough team to beat. One player who will have to get hot is Lee Stempniak. If he is off scoring goals for them Detroit will be hard pressed to match.

Goalie Jimmy Howard was a bit of a disappointment at times, but the Red Wings success this year was thanks in part to him. He has to be better to get them to another Stanley Cup. Johan Franzen and Pavel Datsyuk have been fantastic all year long, but Henrik Zetterberg has had a bit of a down year. Detroit needs him to play at an elite level again. Nicklas Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski continue to get better with age and their experience is unmatched. Both are great assets to have for the playoffs.

Red Wings in 5

4. Anaheim Ducks vs. 5. Nashville Predators

The Ducks were looking dead in the water when goalie Jonas Hiller went down with a bout of vertigo. They made due with what they had in Dan Ellis and Ray Emery. Both made big strides in their games, especially Emery’s who has missed over a year due to a serious hip injury. Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf and Bobby Ryan were consistent contributors and will have to be to make a deep run. Teemu Selanne can still play at an elite level at age 40. Anaheim’s defense has been spectacular thanks to Lubomir Visnovsky and the acquisition of Francois Beauchemin. Both have changed the attitude of the defense and helped with Ellis and Emery’s progression.

Nashville has one person to thank for their success this year and that’s goalie Pekka Rinne. He could very well win the Vezina trophy and he would say his job is made easier with Shea Weber and Ryan Suter playing in front of him. Those three have been a big part of the Predators success these last two seasons. Steve Sullivan will have to lead the way on offense. Mike Fisher has been a nice catalyst since being acquired. Nashville will be in a uphill battle with the Ducks, but is should be a long fought out series.

Ducks in 7