The Western Conference Finals are complete. The Stanley Cup Final is upon us. It’s a tad bittersweet for the die-hard hockey fan because we know that the end of the season is seven games (or less) from being finished. The lockout deprived us of almost half a season, but the playoffs have more than delivered the goods.
Heading into the postseason, the top seeds in each conference looked almost unstoppable. Chicago and Pittsburgh had significant unbeaten streaks throughout the abbreviated season. Each entered the playoffs as the top seed and though Chicago had to battle back against Detroit, they earned a berth in the conference finals against the defending champions.
Pittsburgh cruised through the first two rounds with a six game win against the New York Islanders and a five game series against Ottawa. A berth in the conference finals against Boston matched the top offense in the league and one of the top defenses in the NHL.
Both Chicago and Pittsburgh looked strong and seemed ready for a collision course in the Finals. Then Boston happened. After Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals it appeared that Pittsburgh’s season would be coming to an end. The unraveling of the Pittsburgh all stars would be complete in four games setting up the first “Original Six” final matchup since 1978.
Chicago and Boston looks to make up for the matchups we all expected to see in the conference finals. I anticipated a much longer series for each, but the finalists made quick work of their conference opponents. To tackle the Stanley Cup Final I’ll break down each area and make my prediction.
Goaltending-Tuukka Rask could not have played any better against the high scoring Penguins. His .44 GAA and .966 save percentage were ridiculous considering the offensive firepower he was up against. Corey Crawford has been almost as impressive during Chicago’s run. As the biggest question mark headed into the season, Crawford has been sensational for Chicago. Expect a low scoring series, but I have to give the edge to Rask. Advantage Boston.
Defense-With all due respect to the vastly improved defensive corps in Chicago, this category belongs to Boston. Even with rookies in and out of the defensive rotation, Zdeno Chara, Johnny Boychuk and Dennis Seidenberg have carried the workload and made life difficult for all of Boston’s opponents. If there is an opportunity for Boston to improve their play, it is on the blue line. The Hawks have an impressive crew of their own with Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Nick Leddy but advantage again to Boston.
Forwards-This area clearly belongs to Chicago. Maybe not so clearly because Boston has their own crew led by Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, Nathan Horton, Tyler Seguin and Milan Lucic. Chicago has been getting consistent production from all four lines and that will need to continue throughout the Final. Jonathan Toews hasn’t even started to play well. Patrick Kane is heating up, and Marian Hossa, Patrick Sharp and Bryan Bickell are already playing their best hockey of the year. Advantage Chicago.
Special Teams-The Chicago penalty kill has been almost impenetrable. Only three goals have been scored against the Blackhawks with the man advantage, a 94.7% success rate for Chicago. Boston’s penalty kill has been a respectable 86.5% and both teams have been anemic on the power play converting at fewer than 15%. There is talent on both rosters but Chicago has the more reputable snipers on the man advantage. Slight advantage to Chicago.
Summary-This series could play out so many different ways it is nearly impossible to predict. Both teams have shown that they can dominate opponents and have also been at the brink of elimination at the hands of less talented opponents. It could be argued that either team could win four straight or either could win in seven.
For every advantage that each team may possess, there is another advantage for the other. Here is how I see the series going. The two teams split at Chicago and head to Boston tied at one. Expect at least one of the first two games to go into overtime. Boston will hold serve at home, winning two very close matchups. Again, expect one or both games to require overtime.
The series heads back to Chicago with the Stanley Cup in the house. It will be referenced ad nauseam during every commercial break and we will all wonder why no one has required that Philip Pritchard update his feathered coif. Boston wins a one goal game in the “Madhouse on Madison” silencing forever (I wish) the droning of “Chelsea Dagger” until the fall. Boston wins in five.
The series will be much closer than the 4-1 tally will indicate and I legitimately expect two or three overtime games. It will be a satisfying end to a season that we once thought could be lost and for a city that is due for some good news this year.