Game 7!

I return for a brief look at and thought about Game 7's.

Tonight features a Game 7 between the Boston Bruins and the Vancouver Canucks. Winners get their names engraved on Lord Stanley's Cup.

Who I will be rooting for? The underdog Boston Bruins. Vancouver has come across too much like thugs in this series - biting fingers, giving concussions, offering advice, getting their goalie pulled. Boston has been exemplary - the best example being Tim Thomas, a hard working guy from Flint MI who has refused to play the media game and make fun of Luongo (despite Luongo most assuredly deserving it).

I remember three of Detroits recent Game 7's. I was too young for the Game 7 in 1997 with Stevie Y's overtime goal against St Louis. The first Game 7 I remember watching in nervous anticipation was 2002 when Detroit faced their hated rivals - the Colorado Avalanche. It was a nervewracking experience. Detroit had played a perfect game 6, and still only won because of two mistakes by Patrick Roy, a goaltender who didn't make mistakes. I remember thinking how it would go down to the last second, and it would be nervewracking.

We won 7-0, and the game was never in doubt. We chased (Patricia) Roy and started singing "Sweet Caroline" as we started mentally playing the Hurricanes. I smiled for days. Even now, I put in the DVD of that game if I want to have a little mental pick-me-up. Nothing compares to winning a Game 7.

I remember watching two other game 7's. 2009, when Detroit lost 2-0 to Pittsburgh, and 2011, when Detroit lost 3-2. Those were sucker punch games, where everything you fear comes to hit you in the face. 2009 was particularly devastating, as we lost the Stanley Cup to snot-nosed Cindy Crosby. I called in sick to work the next day and don't remember having a single conversation with my then fiance for three days.

My point is this - Game 7 will make or break you. Boston or Vancouver fans, enjoy this moment of reprieve. Because in 6 or 7 hours, the game of nerves will start. Whoever blinks first will lose. The game will stay with you, win or loss.

(p.s. I bet ten bucks Vancouver riots, win or loss).

Madcap NHL Conference Semifinal Picks

I went 6-2 in the first round, and came within two goals of 8-0. But hey, Pittsburgh is out! Whoo! Although we'll have to listen to them whine about how far they would have gone with Cindy...

Anyway, on to the conference semifinal picks:

Eastern Conference:

Washington versus Tampa Bay - TB should be exhausted. Washington is rested and good, and should manhandle the Lightning in 5.

Philadelphia versus Boston - Another rough series. I see this going seven, and Washington walking through the winner for the finals. I'll take Philadelphia in seven.

Western Conference:

Vancouver versus Nashville - Nashville in 6! Vancouver got pushed to the brink and I don't think they match up well against Nashville.

San Jose versus Detroit - Not even being a homer, but this will be the best series to watch this round. These teams are very close in talent and skill; but I'll give the edge to Detroit (duh) because San Jose barely beat LA. They won three games in OT - not exactly a ringing endorsement.

Sets up Detroit versus Nashville and Washington versus Philadelphia.

Madcap NHL Playoff Picks

First, a confession: I don't want much NHL these days. It's hard to find in Seattle. I know of one sports bar that shows games, and it's in the U-District. So my observations and picks will be based mostly on wishes and on bias. Pretty much like everything else I do. I'm hoping to catch games online - we'll see how it goes. So here's my Madcap Picks for the first round.

Eastern Conference:

1. Washington Capitals vs 8. New York Rangers - Will the Capitals finally get it, in the playoffs? Will Ovechkin become a great postseason player? I'm thinking the Caps dispose of their playoff demons (for now) and win this in 5.

2. Philadelphia Flyers vs 7. Buffalo Sabres - This is probably the most commonly picked "upset" round this year. A lot of analysts are picking the Sabres because the Flyers are hurting and not playing well. Rule of thumb: anytime most people agree on an upset, it's not going to happen. I'll take Philly in 6.

3. Boston Bruins vs 6. Montreal Canadiens - This promises to be a brutal series, after the hit that Chara put on Pacioretty just a month ago. These two teams hate each other. And that spells a seven game series to me. I'll take Montreal to come in and shock the Bruin's faithful in Boston in Game 7.

4. Pittsburgh Penguins vs 5. Tampa Bay Lightning - I don't know what to expect in this series. Will Crosby show up? I'm pretty sure if Pittsburgh falls behind in the series or faces elimination he'll be there. I'm cheering on Tampa Bay, but it's not a wise idea to pick against home ice and against experience... Pittsburgh in 6.

Western Conference

1. Vancouver Canucks vs 8.Chicago Blackhawks - Ah geez. I hope this goes 7 and these two teams cream each other. I'm picking Vancouver in 5 though.

2. San Jose Sharks vs 7. Los Angeles Kings - San Jose in 5. Kopitar is hurt, and San Jose is a good team.

3. Detroit Red Wings vs 6. Phoenix Coyotes - Rematch, huh? So if Detroit took 7 games to beat Phoenix last year, without home ice and banged up, I think I'll take Detroit in 6 this year.

4. Anaheim Ducks vs 5. Nashville Predators - Sort of the afterthought series, even if it includes probable MVP Corey Perry. Both of these teams fly under the radar. I'll take Nashville in 6.

So that sets up round 2:

Washington vs Montreal

Philadelphia vs Pittsburgh

Vancouver vs Nashville

San Jose vs Detroit (ouch)

Here's the thing... I don't see Detroit winning it this year. The Western Conference is very strong, with too many teams that seem to have Detroit's number. Vancouver, San Jose, and Chicago are teams we definitely do not want, and it's not like Nashville or Anaheim are good for our health. Our best bet is Vancouver wins, LA wins, and Nashville wins first round. Then we draw Nashville and hope that LA can beat up Vancouver. Basically, to set up a cherry second round, we're looking for an LA round one victory - the one thing that's pretty much guaranteed not to happen.

Also, we don't have Colorado to beat up this year. Maybe the Wings are bluffing - they've been coasting for a few weeks and are ready to turn it on for the playoffs (see: 2002 playoffs). Or maybe they won't turn it on in time (see: 2001 playoffs). We'll see.

NHL: Bias Ranking

In the spirit of my NFL Bias Rankings, I present to you the first ever annual NHL Bias Rankings. As I said for the NFL Rankings:

"They're just like power rankings, but intentionally skewed to the teams that I am biased towards or against. So at the higher end you'll have teams that I hate and thus tend to root and pick against. Lower numbers more directly correspond to teams that I root for."

I'll be inventing whole new divisions (separate from the NFL Divisions). Without any further ado, here we go!

The Turtle Division

30. Pittsburgh Penguins

29. Colorado Avalanche

28. Chicago Blackhawks

Named after this particular fighting style - "The Turtle." As you can see, dirty coward Claude Lemieux has decided to fight Darren McCarty by hiding his head and trying to not get hurt. Epitome of cowardice and disgrace. For this division, we have Pittsburgh, Colorado, and Chicago. Colorado is on principle; as the employer of Claude Lemieux. They haven't really been a rivalry in years - and the last attempt to convince loyal Red Wings that they were a rival was the playoff series where Johan Franzen singlehandedly outscored the entire Colorado team (2008, nine goals to eight). Pittsburgh is on this list for employing Sidney Crosby, who I am willing to bet will not miss a single playoff game. What a weasel. And Chicago had no fans before taking the easy road to the Stanley Cup last year. Nowadays, you have to watch to not get crushed underneath the bandwagon.

The Put Up or Shut Up Division

27. San Jose Sharks

26. Nashville Predators

25. Vancouver Canucks

Seriously. If you can't win a Stanley Cup, don't even try to pretend you're any good. Doesn't matter if you get into the playoffs every year.

The Mel Gibson Division

24. Anaheim Ducks

23. Ottawa Senators

22. St Louis Blues

Can't like them on principle. Might have been cool in the past, but nowadays they're just spewing nonsense. Blue's get here for being a rival; Ducks are here for what I'm sure was black magic voodoo for their cup run (Pretty convinced Giguere had cellophane wrapped around the goal, with the way pucks would bounce out rather than in). And Ottawa... well, they probably deserve to be in the Put Up or Shut Up division, but they're from a province of Canada that comes across as snobby and pretentious. Pretentious Canadians? Unbelievable.

The Contraction Division

21. Florida Panthers

20. Atlanta Thrashers

19. Carolina Hurricanes

18. Columbus Blue Jackets

17. Minnesota Wild

If we combined all of these teams into just two teams, I'd be okay with that. Florida/Atlanta/Carolina become the Southeastern Thrashing Hurricanes. Columbus and Minnesota become the Minnesota Blue Stars. With that, the NHL goes to 27 teams, we put one in more in Canada (for a total of 28), and we can go to 4 divisions. Piece of cake.

The New York Division

16. New York Rangers

15. New York Islanders

14. New Jersey Devils

13. Buffalo Sabres

I can't think of why I don't like these teams, except that they're New York teams. My hatred of Yankees and Giants may be rubbing through. I do like Buffalo and New Jersey, mainly because they've both had amazing goaltenders (Hasek and Brodeur).

The Canadian Division

12. Edmonton Oilers

11. Calgary Flames

10. Montreal Canadiens

9. Boston Bruins

Isn't Boston in Canada? These are teams I wish were better, because they have a good rich history of hockey. Or they're canadian.

The Michael Biehn Division

8. Phoenix Coyotes

7. Philadelphia Flyers

6. Los Angeles Kings

I vaguely remember these teams from the playoffs years ago, and possibly winning the Stanley Cup through them. It was so long ago though that I don't recognize them any longer. It's like Michael Biehn - you certainly remember him from growing up with Aliens and Terminator and The Abyss, but if you saw him today you wouldn't have the foggiest idea who he was.

The Elephant Ear Division

5. Dallas Stars

4. Washington Capitals

3. Toronto Maple Leafs

Guilty pleasures, all. Shouldn't like them, but I do. Dallas had Mike Modano for awhile; perhaps in the top three of classy captains of all time (behind Yzerman and Messier). Capitals were always a fun team (and Ovechkin is a real player, unlike Crosby). And Toronto? I wish they were a team we met in the playoffs a lot. That would be a fun rivalry to reignite.

The Karl Urban Division

2. Tampa Bay Lightning

Surprisingly delightful. I've always enjoyed them, and now that their manager is good ole Stevie Y, I find myself rooting for them. They'll be in the playoffs this year, and that would a great matchup for the Stanley Cup Finals.

The Home Team

1. Detroit Red Wings

Flatout the most dominant team in hockey in the last 20 years. Since 1997, we've had 4 Stanley Cups. We've won the Central Division 9 out of the last 10 years. We're on our 10th straight 100 point season (NHL record, and active). We're also on 20 straight years in the playoffs.

And thus, the NHL Bias Rankings. I realized that because I care more about Hockey, and actually have a team that's worth supporting, there are a lot more villains than there are heroes. In football, it's about 50/50. In hockey, I like approximately 1/6 of the teams. I thought this would be a good primer, and also a good start for my NHL predictions (as the playoffs are only a week away). Go Wings!

NHL: Conference SemiFinals Preview

First a review of my picks from Round 1:

PICK: Washington over Montreal in 5. ACTUAL: Montreal stuns em in 7. Halak!

PICK: NJ over Philly in 7. ACTUAL: NJ fizzles out in five.

PICK: Boston over Buffalo in 6. ACTUAL: Boston over Buffalo in 6!!!

PICK: Pitt over Ottawa in 6. ACTUAL: Pitt over Ottawa in 6!!!

Eastern conference: 2 picks exactly correct, and 2 picks way wrong.

PICK: SJ over Col in 4. ACTUAL: San Jose struggled, but still won in 6.

PICK: Chi over Nashville in 6. ACTUAL: Chicago in 6!!!

PICK: LA over Vancouver in 7. ACTUAL: Vancouver over LA in 6, but this series could have gone either way.

PICK: Det over Phoenix in 5. ACTUAL: We struggled, but won in 7...

Western conference: 3/4 teams, and one series correct.

On to the Conference SemiFinals:

(4)Pittsburgh vs (8) Montreal:

Can Montreal summon the magic and knock off another team? No... Sorry... Pittsburgh in 5. (Although there's part of me that wants to say Halak is 2003 Giguere...). But not...

(6)Boston vs (7) Philadelphia:

Rough defensive series. Philly plays good playoff hockey... Philly in 6.

(2) Chicago vs (3) Vancouver

Don't have much of a read on these two teams. I'll pick Chicago in 6 because of home team advantage and because Vancouver came real close to losing against LA.

(1) San Jose vs (5) Detroit

Ah yes, our good friends San Jose. We beat them in 2008 when we won the cup (I think?). And they are the masters of the playoff choke.... As we nearly saw in Round one. Detroit in 6.

NHL: Playoffs Preview

The NHL playoffs arrive this week, and it's a much different landscape than last year. Let's take a look with the Eastern Conference first:

1) Washington vs 8) Montreal: One of the best teams in the league vs a team that scraped into the playoffs? That was an easy pick to start with. Washington in 5, and Ovechkin nets four goals.

2) New Jersey vs 7) Philadelphia: The one team NJ probably didn't want to play... Philly is a rough team any time of the year, and they seem to have the tenacity of a bulldog come playoffs. The team to take them out the last two years? Pittsburgh, repeating Eastern Conference Champions. But, this is Brodeur we're talking about. He'll steal two games, at least. NJ in seven.

3) Buffalo vs 6) Boston: Battle of the goalies. Tuuka Rask vs Ryan Miller. I think this will be the series that no TV analyst will want to put on... 1-0, 2-1, etc. In the end, it's a crapshoot. Neither of these teams are going anywhere, so I'll take Boston as the upset. Boston in 6.

4) Pittsburgh vs 5)Ottawa: Freaking Pittsburgh. I hate Sidney Crosby with a passion that burns from my inner soul. Unfortunately, I agree with Scott Burnside that Pittsburgh has an on switch... And Ottawa just has no playoff soul. Pittsburgh in 5.

Western Conference Picks:

1) San Jose vs 8) Colorado: That worked out well for San Jose. They caught a layup first round; existing in the same situation as Washington. Colorado is flailing, and won't put up much of a fight. San Jose in 4.

2) Chicago vs 7) Nashville: Tough series. Nashville is a nasty playoff team. But Chicago outmatches them in skill and talent. Chicago in 6.

3) Vancouver vs 6) Los Angeles: Why is LA in the playoffs again? I have zero feel for this team. Maybe They can prove a cinderella and upset Vancouver in 7?

4) Phoenix vs 5) Detroit: Poor Phoenix. Finally get to the playoffs again, and have to face Detroit. Detroit has more Cup rings than Phoenix has players... And on top of that, because of the nature of Detroits auto industry's various relocations, playing in Phoenix is like playing a home game. Detroit in 5.

Further Predictions:

Washington over Boston in 5.

Pittsburgh over NJ in 6.

Pittsburgh over Washington in 7.

Detroit over Chicago in 7.

San Jose over LA in 5.

Detroit over San Jose in 5.

Detroit over Pittsburgh in 7.