Guest Azazello13 Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 avs vs. sharks -- both teams are deep, balanced, and hungry. a couple classic western conference playoff powerhouses poised for a big run. i like the winner of this series to raise the cup. san jose has just enough playoff seasoning that i don't that will be a huge issue for them (like it maybe was the last couple years), but the guess here is that the key guys for the avs are just a little bit better than the main guys for the sharks. avs in 6. wings vs. blues -- the blues are kind of like vancouver, except better. good blend of size, speed and skill up front, solid d, young unproven goalie. but they've got more than one line to throw at detroit, and i don't think johnson will fold the way cloutier did. i think this series will be right there for the blues to take if johnson can rise to the occasion. my bet is he'll do it. blues in 6. sens vs. leafs -- leafs looked sloppy and careless several times during the isles series. but the isles couldn't make them pay 5-on-5. i think ottawa will. they'll win by forcing turnovers and penalties and by keeping constant defensive pressure on the leafs. the sens finally get by their big ontario brother. sens in 6 habs vs. canes -- tough one to call. i'll be pulling for the habs, but i think carolina might be able to pull this one off. might boil down to theodore vs. weekes. what the heck, i'll go with the darkhorse in that head-to-head. canes in 7. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiefs Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 Yea, I'm really psyched for round 2. Fred the dog, using the reliable 'nose to the hand with the winner in it' method, predicts: Wings in 6. Avs in 7. Habs in 6. Leafs in 7. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh 0ne Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 First of all, how great was round one. Well, I only went 4-4 in round one, really didn't think the Devils and Isles would sink, but that might be me reading too much of the NY media crap. Avs in 6 Wings in 6 Sens in 5 Habs in 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lerxst Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 COL vs. SJ: The Avalanche appear vulnerable after taking 7 games to beat the Kings, but the same thing happened last year and they went on to win the Cup. My guess is the Sharks will put up one helluva fight and they will lose several overtime heartbreakers. COL IN 6. DET vs STL: Being a Blues fan, it pains me to say this, but St. Louis will have a very difficult time winning this series. The Red Wings are vulnerable right now, but the Blues never seem to match up well against Detroit. The Blues will hang tough for a while, but eventually will go down to defeat. DET IN 6. TOR vs. OTT: Toronto's defense is very inconsistent and the loss of Sundin will hurt them over the course of an entire series. The Senators are playing very well right now and have had plenty of rest. OTT IN 6. CAR vs. MON: No one expected the Hurricanes to get past New Jersey and few will expect them to beat the red hot Canadians. After a rough start, Theodore has settled down and is playing extremely well and the Habs are getting timely scoring. MON IN 5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foosball God Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 Azazello13:avs vs. sharks -- a couple classic western conference playoff powerhouses poised for a big run. avs in 6. Just curious to know why you consider the Sharks a classic western conference playoff powerhouse? They've never made it out of the second round. Tough series to call. The Avs should win because they are more talented across the board, but they don't look like they are in prime playoff form yet so they could have some trouble with the hungry Sharks. On a hunch I'm going to say Sharks in 7, but it could just as easily go the other way if Colorado starts getting into gear. Azazello13:wings vs. blues -- the blues are kind of like vancouver, except better. good blend of size, speed and skill up front, solid d, young unproven goalie. but they've got more than one line to throw at detroit, and i don't think johnson will fold the way cloutier did. i think this series will be right there for the blues to take if johnson can rise to the occasion. my bet is he'll do it. blues in 6. Somehow I knew you'd pick the Blues here. You are correct that the Blues will be able to throw out more than one line at the Wings but Tkachuk, while a good power forward, isn't quite the load that Bertuzzi was. On the flip side the Blues will have to worry about 4 lines coming at them instead of just one and the Wings have turned it on. Should be a great series but I don't think Johnson will stand up under the constant fire power the Wings will throw at them. Wings in 6 Azazello13:sens vs. leafs -- leafs looked sloppy and careless several times during the isles series. but the isles couldn't make them pay 5-on-5. i think ottawa will. they'll win by forcing turnovers and penalties and by keeping constant defensive pressure on the leafs. the sens finally get by their big ontario brother. sens in 6 Pretty bang on on this analysis, but I think you're giving the Leafs one more game than they'll win. Sens in 5, but a Wings/Leafs finals sure would be fun. Azazello13:habs vs. canes -- tough one to call. i'll be pulling for the habs, but i think carolina might be able to pull this one off. might boil down to theodore vs. weekes. what the heck, i'll go with the darkhorse in that head-to-head. canes in 7. The 'Canes are feeling their oats and have more skill on the offensive side. Montreal gave it all they had to beat the Bruins, do they have enough emotion left to take on the 'Canes? Theodore will steal a couple of games for them but I think the 'Canes will prevail behind solid production from Francis and gritty play by Brind'amour. 'Canes in 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Azazello13 Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 Foosball God:Just curious to know why you consider the Sharks a classic western conference playoff powerhouse? They've never made it out of the second round. "classic" in terms of the makeup of the teams, not past accomplishments. in other words, both teams have the kinds of components necessary to make it out of the west. one more note about this series: the way the kings series shaped up, kasparaitis wasn't a huge factor -- the kings had the one big line, that was dealt with by foote and devries mostly. don't get me wrong...kaspar was as good as anyone in his own zone, i don't recall him making a serious mistake the whole series, and he was as good as they needed him to be. but this next series is where his addition could start to come up big. against the 2 good sharks scoring lines, and the excellent hard-working third line, all 5/6 of the avs D will be tested big-time. having kaspar in the middle of all that is a major plus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
policyvote Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 Avalanche vs. Sharks: I think Forsberg's health will play a big role in this one. If he can go, and contribute, Avs in 6. However, if he can't play at better than 80%, I see an upset: Sharks in 7 Red Wings vs. Blues: Everyone was saying that the Canucks were the youngest, hottest, biggest team in hockey, and that the Wings were primed to fall to them. Well, the Blues aren't as young, hot, or big as the Canucks, and the Wings just finished off the Canucks in four straight games. Brent Johnson may have had a great series against the 'Hawks, but the Red Wings are not the 'Hawks. Wings in 4. Senators vs. Maple Leafs -- The Senators have the more talented team, and they have the MUCH hotter goalie. With half their team hurt (most notably Sundin), the Leafs don't have the firepower to crack Lalime. Senators in 5. Montreal vs. Hurricanes: Both are here almost solely because of their goalies. Theodore is awesome--and on fire to boot. However, he got a lot of help from the posts last series. Also, Weekes comes in on a huge roll--but he was playing above his head, too. Whichever team has the most real firepower takes this series. If Koivu can play more than 10 minutes a game, I like Montreal. If not . . . Hurricanes in 7. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bier Meister Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 Originally posted by policyvote:[QB]Avalanche vs. Sharks: I think Forsberg's health will play a big role in this one. If he can go, and contribute, Avs in 6. However, if he can't play at better than 80%, I see an upset: Sharks in 7 I think Forsberg really changed things for the av's. He would have made a great addition coming back at 60-70%. Looks like he's back at 80-90%. I still have to be a homer and go with my Sharks. This is the best team they've had and can compete with anyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Azazello13 Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 Bier Meister:I think Forsberg really changed things for the av's. He would have made a great addition coming back at 60-70%. Looks like he's back at 80-90%. I still have to be a homer and go with my Sharks. This is the best team they've had and can compete with anyone. getting hejduk back is also huge. in game 6 he was visibly rusty, but by game 7 you could see that sakic/hejduk/tanguay line getting its magic back, and hedjie may have been the avs best skater in that game. that's 2 of their top 3 forwards the avs are just now getting back to health. the top 2 lines are light years better with forsberg and hejduk healthy. not to mention how much better the power play looked in game 7, despite not scoring any official PP goals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiefs Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 Lerxst:DET vs STL: Being a Blues fan, it pains me to say this, but St. Louis will have a very difficult time winning this series. The Red Wings are vulnerable right now, but the Blues never seem to match up well against Detroit. The Blues will hang tough for a while, but eventually will go down to defeat. DET IN 6. As a life-long Blues fanatic and growing up watching games at The Arena, I agree- they'll find a way to lose. If Detroit plays as well as they're capable, they should win in 6 or less. But with Weight coming back, and Pronger finally starting to play at a Norris-trophy type level again, they have a fighting chance. Can Brent Johnson continue to outplay Hasek though? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lerxst Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 policyvote:Avalanche vs. Sharks: I think Forsberg's health will play a big role in this one. If he can go, and contribute, Avs in 6. However, if he can't play at better than 80%, I see an upset: Sharks in 7 [/b]. What a lame prediction that is. Talk about covering your butt. What if Forsberg is at 84%? Do you then pick Avs in 7? Have some balls and make one pick! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bier Meister Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 Chandler, I was going to see if any of you would want to catch the game tonight, but I'm feeling like crep. Any desire to try tomorrow night? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
policyvote Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 Lerxst: policyvote:Avalanche vs. Sharks: I think Forsberg's health will play a big role in this one. If he can go, and contribute, Avs in 6. However, if he can't play at better than 80%, I see an upset: Sharks in 7 [/b]. What a lame prediction that is. Talk about covering your butt. What if Forsberg is at 84%? Do you then pick Avs in 7? Have some balls and make one pick!THE SAN JOSE SHARKS WILL WIN THE SERIES, IN SEVEN GAMES! WRITE IT DOWN, M'F'ER!!!! Peace policy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chavez Posted May 1, 2002 Share Posted May 1, 2002 Here's one huddler who WON'T be participating in this thread...... F'n Bruins. :mad: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crispirons Posted May 2, 2002 Share Posted May 2, 2002 i think the wings win. sharks skate by the avs. in the east i think the the leafs and canadiens advance. setting up a finals of the powerhouse of the west against a team from the great white north. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redwings.cup Posted May 2, 2002 Share Posted May 2, 2002 DET vs STL: The Captain says he expects the Wings to continue improving as they move through the pool. If that's the case, look out St. Louis. Pronger and Big Al can't play 40 minutes per game and after them, there is a noticable difference in the St. Louis D Corp. Johnson will come down to earth as the Wings O is is certainly superior to the mediocre Blackhawks. This is the series where we see some real even strenght improvement via the depth of the Wings 4 lines. RED WINGS in 5 Games COL vs. SJ: Some of you may know i'm a Sharks season ticket holder and get to many of the games. They're for real. This is going to be an extremely tough series for the avs. It will hinge on Blake's health (not too good I'm hearing), the Sharks continued abililty to crash the net, the Ricci, Thorton, and Sundstrom line continuing to play at a high level, Teemu and Nolan stepping it up a notch,& Patty Marleau and Nabokov playing as they have been. this is a series the avs can lose. Sharks have done well against them this year and have confidence. It will be a grind, but Sharks in 7 TOR vs. OTT: Ottawa will take this in 5 games. There is essentially no defensive, playoff-type depth on the Leaf's blue line and losing Sundin has to start hurting sometime. CAR vs. MON:The difference here is the goaltending as, otherwise, the teams match up well. I'll ride the hot hand and say Montreal in 6 games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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