Bye Felicia!

[TheGriceBoys]

Big first round upsets and early exits for the the two top seeds in each conference, the Lightning and Flames.

Which one surprised you the most and why?

 

[gobuffalo2331]

Yea who would of thought? Shocking to the say the least but hey, i guess this is what happens when you're on cruise control for most of the season and reach the playoffs and play teams that have basically been playing playoff games the last month or so fighting for their lives.

 

[TheGriceBoys]

Yea who would of thought? Shocking to the say the least but hey, i guess this is what happens when you're on cruise control for most of the season and reach the playoffs and play teams that have basically been playing playoff games the last month or so fighting for their lives.

Avs remind me very slightly of the 2012 LA King’s, same sort of momentum coming in before they ousted the Nuckies. Columbus? I’m not sure who to compare them to or whom they remind me of in recent memory? They’re surprisingly balanced and obviously can shut anyone down when they work hard and roll their lines.

 

[dismonkey1]

I would say the Lightning. The Avs were going strong in the beginning of the season and then ran into a slump and some injuries before getting their Mojo back at the end. They may not have depth, but their first line is scary and the goaltending has been good. To win, the goaltending has to be good and the best players have to be the best players. Lightning just didn't adjust at all and I was never really sold on Calgary.

 

[30ranfordfan]

To show how much I know... In my playoff brackett I had Columbus and Colorado winning a combined 1 game. Had the Flames sweeping avs, Lightning in 5.

I'm more surprised at Tampa, because I didn't belive Calgary had the goaltending to go very far.

It's wide open now, I think. 2012 Kings, or '06 Canes (and Oilers) is a good comparison. With who has gone down... there's now a lot of teams you could argue are the best left.

I'm sticking with my origional cup winning pick though..... Sharks. Winner of that series will take it, I think, and SJ I'm still banking on a game 7 win.

 

[Krakenfan]

Pretty amazing the two highest scoring teams in the league this year couldn't get anything done. The next team in scoring is San Jose and they are on the brink of elimination. That tells me defence really works. If that is the case, then the Islanders will take it all. They only gave up 196 goals this year and took out the Pens in the first round.

 

[creasecollector]

Avs remind me very slightly of the 2012 LA King’s, same sort of momentum coming in before they ousted the Nuckies. Columbus? I’m not sure who to compare them to or whom they remind me of in recent memory? They’re surprisingly balanced and obviously can shut anyone down when they work hard and roll their lines.

I got that same vibe from the Avs as well this year. Sure, they were playing the top team in the West, but they had some momentum coming into the Playoffs and showed they can dominate this series, no matter where they finished in the regular season.

I wanted the Flames to win (family on the team), but hey, that's the way it goes sometimes.

And what Columbus did was just shocking. Good for them.

 

[chefjason]

MacKinnon turned his game on and wanted to win, you could see it every single time he stepped on the ice, Tampa on the other hand, Wow and good on Columbus

 

[gobuffalo2331]

MacKinnon turned his game on and wanted to win, you could see it every single time he stepped on the ice, Tampa on the other hand, Wow and good on Columbus

How about Rantanen ! He was a beast too.

 

[Moose#11]

Goaltending and grit are the key ingredients to going far in the playoffs and the Jackets contain a nice balance of both.i wasn't suprised at all that they held up and frustrated Tampa Bays skill players,it happens alot in the Eastern conference(see the Isles/Pens series)
i didn't get to see Calgary play much this year due to the logistics,i love my Hockey but staying up til 1am doesn't work for me.i will say that of the games i watched from the series i expected more tenacity from their forwards and Giordano seemed off to me,perhaps he was hurt?

 

[tkachukfan]

Since the 04-05 lockout, only two President's Trophy winners have won the Cup (07-08 Red Wings and 12-13 Blackhawks). Only one other President's Trophy winner made it to the SCF (10-11 Canucks).

The past four years, the Presidents Trophy winner has lost in the first or second round.

I think there's something to be said for not expending all of your effort in the 82 game regular season and finding your game in Feb/Mar/Apr. The best teams in Oct/Nov/Dec rarely win the Cup.

Based on the history above, it shouldn't be all that surprising that Tampa and Calgary lost.