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It took a little bit longer than I had both series going, but we still ended up with the two teams I was expecting. Somewhat remarkable to get the full seven games in both conference finals, but even more remarkable when the road teams win both of them. Whatever. I'll take it.
And I'll take this Final too. One that's extremely likely if not sure to be fast-paced, awe-inspiring displays of skill on the ice. Part of me expects more contests like the first and final three games of that 2010 Stanley Cup Final, except that this Tampa club is significantly more talented than that Philadelphia squad.
That belief is not to write off the two men who will presumably be starting in between the pipes in this series, Ben Bishop and Corey Crawford. Both those goaltenders have had their moments throughout these playoffs, but there's only so much either can do. With Crow in particular, he gave up goals in the last series against Anaheim, but I really can't remember any off the top of my head that we're on him or the result of some brain farts. The Ducks scored largely off deflections or screens that were impossible to stop. I expect similar scoring in this series.
Sure, the Bolts aren't going to deliver the ratings for NBC that the network would have garnered with the Rangers, but the product is probably going to be a lot better. Anyway, knowing who I'm a fan of and the team I haven't picked against since 2009, I guess the only question is how long I see this series going.
It's been a long day, and the playoffs finally resume tomorrow after something like two days without hockey. Withdrawal is a bitch.
Anyway, I got half my picks right in the last round, bringing me to a forgettable 7-5 thus far this postseason. And I've already forgotten how many series I had exactly predicted, but it was none in the most recent round.
Of the four remaining Stanley Cup Final possibilities, the NHL has to be absolutely giddy at the prospect of the much-predicted Chicago-New York Final. That would almost be certain to smash all records with the rating that would deliver.
On the other hand, Tampa vs. Anaheim? That sounds like it could smash records too. Just the ones for lowest viewership.
So do I like either of those scenarios? Or am I guessing it's going to be one of the other two?
You might recall that when we were at this point last year, I played it safe and picked the four teams that we had in the previous year's Conference Finals to all return and set up two rematches. Instead, half of those teams got eliminated.
So here we are getting ready for the conference semi-finals (division finals?), and—minus the Los Angeles Kings—three teams are looking at return trips to the Conference Finals. All three will have home ice, so that should make them presumed favorites, although expert opinion I've seen thus far has been decidedly mixed.
I played it safe in making my second round picks last year, and felt immediately convinced that all four of the higher-ranked seeds would be advancing this year after leaning decidedly toward the upsets last round. The result, however, was that only half of my six so-called upset predictions panned out—and the Blackhawks as an upset still seems a little misleading since a majority of the picks I saw had them favored to beat the Predators.
Either way, my 5-3 record in the first round probably wasn't the best set of predictions on the internet, although four of those five correct picks also nailed the exact number of games the series would last. I'm entirely convinced that at least one underdog is going to overachieve and ruin what I'm about to publish below for this round's predictions—assuming I do go with all four favorites, of course.
Judging by my predictions from before the season began, I'm probably not the guy to trust on what is likely to occur in these playoffs. Although I correctly named 11 of the 16 playoff teams, I had a mere five teams in their correct spots in the final standings. Worse yet, my predicted Stanley Cup Final this year is a complete impossibility as both clubs were among those five teams that I was incorrect about postseason life for.
San Jose and Columbus aren't even the most shocking teams missing from the bracket, as we have a defending champion failing to make the playoffs for the first time in eight years. And a lot of folks had higher expectations of Boston too.
Still, we now gloriously turn our attention to the actual playoffs tonight, roughly two months that might be my wife's least favorite time of year—although hell if I'm not trying to make it one of the child's favorites. After all, the one common prediction that is still possible is the one I was and still am most hoping for: Blackhawks raising Lord Stanley once again.
I'm not going to be keeping track of the predictions of other sites this year (here's the ESPN and Sports Illustrated picks, if you're curious), but I'm guessing I probably won't be setting any records with my guess anyway. I've seen a lot of chalk in some places, but it just seems to me that this year is especially ripe for upsets. Now part of that is probably my own rooting interests (for this round, at least), but perhaps this could be something similar to 2006 when the lower seeds in an entire conference stunned the favorites.
Again, this could all just be wishful thinking, but I'm pretty confident that if nothing else, I'm bound to be pretty damn entertained over the course of the next several weeks.
So I was unable to get these picks up before the puck dropped last night (Blackhawks season, after all, begins tonight). I don't think being a day late gives me any sort of profound advantage or additional insight that any of the experts out there didn't have for the months leading up to making their own predictions.
And as the graphic here indicates, my beloved Blackhawks are quite the popular pick this year. While at the bank yesterday, a segment on PTI simply asked Tony and Michael "Kings or Blackhawks?"
Such is the way of the NHL, where much like the NBA, the West is seen as the overwhelming favorite. And while Chicago and L.A. are understandable favorites, you really couldn't fault anybody for liking other clubs in the West that upgraded this off-season, such as, say, St. Louis or Anaheim.
While seeing the Blackhawks being the choice of so many admittedly bolsters my optimism about a prolonged first viewing of the NHL Playoffs with the newborn (who will be a year old by the time the Cup is awarded), I'm also left a little uneasy by the distinct likelihood that an overwhelming favorite probably won't pan out.
Nonetheless, with the Bears being such a disappointment thus far this season and my still being left with a fair bit of skepticism about how much hope to invest in the Bulls (and let us not even speak of the Braves), hockey arrives at just the right time. Oh, how I have been longing to hear the voice of John Wiedeman again.
