Now I'm going to make this short, because I don't feel like I have THAT much to say here. However, you never know, I may surprise myself. This post though (whatever the length) is for one purpose. To remind all/any readers out there that I PREDICTED THAT THE ANAHEIM DUCKS WOULD WIN THE STANLEY CUP IN 5 GAMES!
That's right. For anyone with short-term memory loss, I had predicted a Ducks victory in 5 games at the start of the Stanley Cup Finals. Now I know it may have been more impressive if I had done so before the entire playoffs, but well, you can't be right ALL THE TIME.
The thing that gets me charged up though is not only the fact that I correctly predicted the outcome of the Finals in the accurate amount of games, but I also did it in spite of the fact that many "experts" (::AHEM:: ESPN, I'm talking to many of your hockey reporters) picking the Senators in about 6 games. Sadly, I missed the boat on Scott Niedermyer winning the Conn Smythe, only because I didn't think that Chris Pronger would a) get suspended again or b) said suspension would inspire another gritty victory for the Ducks reminiscent of the Detroit series. So, my bad on that one. But still..
I PREDICTED THAT THE DUCKS WOULD BEAT THE OTTAWA SENATORS 4-1.
And that's all that matters. Thanks for your time.
Showing posts with label Stanley Cup. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Stanley Cup. Show all posts
Thursday, June 7, 2007
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Stanley Cup Playoff Predictions, Revisited
Sooooooo, the Anaheim Ducks are in the Cup. I know, many of you are probably not enthused (funny how I'm talking like anyone actually reads this). I will, however, point out that I PREDICTED that the Ducks would be there. Yes, I know, the Ducks were the odds-on favorite to make the Stanley Cup Finals from the Western Conference, but still, I did predict it, as well as the team they would defeat in the Western Finals.
As for the Eastern Conference- my bad. I totally missed the mark on the Ottawa Senators due to the fact that they have choked every year since I can remember, so i figured "what makes this year any different?" And as far as the Buffalo Sabres are concerned, well, my condolences to anyone in the city of Buffalo who lost a family member to suicide or something like it the night of Game 5. I honestly thought they had it in them to win the Cup this year until I saw the way played against my New York Rangers in the Eastern Semifinals. Now, the Rangers were not a highly-regarded team going into the playoffs. Many even downplayed their sweep of Atlanta in the first round, and virtually wrote them off against the Sabres. The Rangers ended up playing a very good series though, winning two games, coupled with the fact that Buffalo got some extremely lucky breaks, and the last four games were all decided by just one goal. New York could have easily won that series, and it just would've sent the citizens of Buffalo spiraling into depression about 10-12 days earlier.
Now, what have we learned from the Stanley Cup Playoffs thus far?
1. I didn't do half bad picking the outcome of these playoffs at their onset. When posting my original predictions in April, I ended up picking the results of 10 of the 14 series correctly. Not bad, if I do say so myself.
2. You still can't trust the Sabres. (See above)
3. The Ducks are one of the best franchises in the NHL over the last five years, as odd as that may sound. Keep in mind, this team has made the Western Conference Finals for the past two seasons and three of the past four seasons (five years, as we are obviously eliminating the strike year), and the Cup in now two of the past four seasons. They have a bright future, with solid talent and a lack of a goofy logo and nickname (the Ducks winning the Cup is nowhere near as devestating as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, hockey traditionalists!).
4. The Detroit Red Wings continue to disappoint, as a regular season power only, similar to the Philadelphia Flyers and Toronto Maple Leafs of old, save the three titles since 1997, but not even a berth in the Cup since 2003.
5. The San Jose Sharks are still an enormous disappointment year in and year out, so they own the title of "Biggest Western Conference Choke Artists", but who now owns the title in the East, since the Senators now have a Stanley Cup berth under their belts? The Flyers cannot take that honor since they are in rebuilding mode. The Sabres have only recently returned to prominence, so they don't have consistent years of futility to back this title up. For lack of a better choice, the honor now goes to the New Jersey Devils. Yes, they are a team who has won a Cup in the past five seasons, but remember, that was a seven game contest against the, then-Mighty, Ducks, and the MVP was awarded to J.S. Guigere that year. The Devils have since shown futitly rivaling the Red Wings, even with the best goaltender in the league. They may lose Scott Gomez and Brian Raflaski this offseason though, which could end their current string of regular season success.
6. The Anaheim Ducks WILL WIN THE STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS. They showed a lot of heart and grit against the Red Wings, especially in Game 4 without Chris Pronger. Ottawa just isn't ready to handle a superior team like the Ducks who have played consistently well all season, and have played the tougher competition of the Western Conference all season as well. Expect a good series, but not necessarily a long one. The MVP will probably go to either Jean-Sebastian Guigere or Pronger.
STANLEY CUP FINALS: Anaheim Ducks over Ottawa Senators (4-1)
As for the Eastern Conference- my bad. I totally missed the mark on the Ottawa Senators due to the fact that they have choked every year since I can remember, so i figured "what makes this year any different?" And as far as the Buffalo Sabres are concerned, well, my condolences to anyone in the city of Buffalo who lost a family member to suicide or something like it the night of Game 5. I honestly thought they had it in them to win the Cup this year until I saw the way played against my New York Rangers in the Eastern Semifinals. Now, the Rangers were not a highly-regarded team going into the playoffs. Many even downplayed their sweep of Atlanta in the first round, and virtually wrote them off against the Sabres. The Rangers ended up playing a very good series though, winning two games, coupled with the fact that Buffalo got some extremely lucky breaks, and the last four games were all decided by just one goal. New York could have easily won that series, and it just would've sent the citizens of Buffalo spiraling into depression about 10-12 days earlier.
Now, what have we learned from the Stanley Cup Playoffs thus far?
1. I didn't do half bad picking the outcome of these playoffs at their onset. When posting my original predictions in April, I ended up picking the results of 10 of the 14 series correctly. Not bad, if I do say so myself.
2. You still can't trust the Sabres. (See above)
3. The Ducks are one of the best franchises in the NHL over the last five years, as odd as that may sound. Keep in mind, this team has made the Western Conference Finals for the past two seasons and three of the past four seasons (five years, as we are obviously eliminating the strike year), and the Cup in now two of the past four seasons. They have a bright future, with solid talent and a lack of a goofy logo and nickname (the Ducks winning the Cup is nowhere near as devestating as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, hockey traditionalists!).
4. The Detroit Red Wings continue to disappoint, as a regular season power only, similar to the Philadelphia Flyers and Toronto Maple Leafs of old, save the three titles since 1997, but not even a berth in the Cup since 2003.
5. The San Jose Sharks are still an enormous disappointment year in and year out, so they own the title of "Biggest Western Conference Choke Artists", but who now owns the title in the East, since the Senators now have a Stanley Cup berth under their belts? The Flyers cannot take that honor since they are in rebuilding mode. The Sabres have only recently returned to prominence, so they don't have consistent years of futility to back this title up. For lack of a better choice, the honor now goes to the New Jersey Devils. Yes, they are a team who has won a Cup in the past five seasons, but remember, that was a seven game contest against the, then-Mighty, Ducks, and the MVP was awarded to J.S. Guigere that year. The Devils have since shown futitly rivaling the Red Wings, even with the best goaltender in the league. They may lose Scott Gomez and Brian Raflaski this offseason though, which could end their current string of regular season success.
6. The Anaheim Ducks WILL WIN THE STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS. They showed a lot of heart and grit against the Red Wings, especially in Game 4 without Chris Pronger. Ottawa just isn't ready to handle a superior team like the Ducks who have played consistently well all season, and have played the tougher competition of the Western Conference all season as well. Expect a good series, but not necessarily a long one. The MVP will probably go to either Jean-Sebastian Guigere or Pronger.
STANLEY CUP FINALS: Anaheim Ducks over Ottawa Senators (4-1)
Monday, April 9, 2007
Stanley Cup Playoff Predictions
Now, the theme of this blog wasn't supposed to be all sports, but since sports happens to be on my mind a lot, I might as well go with it. With the end of the NHL season yesterday, the Stanley Cup Playoffs, one of the best postseasons in sports, are starting. Now this years field is extremely intriguing, as there really aren't any "cake walks" persay (except maybe the Buffalo-Islanders series), and you could definitely make a case for any of the 16 teams to make a run. That being said, my picks for the 2006-2007 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals
(1) Buffalo Sabres over (8) New York Islanders (4-0)
(2) New Jersey Devils over (7) Tampa Bay Lightning (4-2)
(6) New York Rangers over (3) Altanta Thrashers (4-2)
(5) Pittsburgh Penguins over (4) Ottawa Senators (4-3)
Western Conference Quarterfinals
(1) Detroit Red Wings over (8) Calgary Flames (4-2)
(2) Anaheim Ducks over (7) Minnesota Wild (4-2)
(3) Vancouver Cannucks over (6) Dallas Stars (4-3)
(4) Nashville Predators over (5) San Jose Sharks (4-3)
Eastern Conference Semifinals
(1) Buffalo Sabres over (6) New York Rangers (4-2)
(5) Pittsburgh Penguins over (2) New Jersey Devils (4-3)
Western Conference Semifinals
(1) Detroit Red Wings over (4) Nashville Predators (4-2)
(2) Anaheim Ducks over (3) Vancouver Cannucks (4-2)
Eastern Conference Finals
(1) Buffalo Sabres over (5) Pittsburgh Penguins (4-2)
Western Conference Finals
(2) Anaheim Ducks over (1) Detroit Red Wings (4-3)
Stanley Cup Finals
Buffalo Sabres over Anaheim Ducks (4-2)
Conn Smythe Winner- Ryan Miller, G, Buffalo
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals
(1) Buffalo Sabres over (8) New York Islanders (4-0)
(2) New Jersey Devils over (7) Tampa Bay Lightning (4-2)
(6) New York Rangers over (3) Altanta Thrashers (4-2)
(5) Pittsburgh Penguins over (4) Ottawa Senators (4-3)
Western Conference Quarterfinals
(1) Detroit Red Wings over (8) Calgary Flames (4-2)
(2) Anaheim Ducks over (7) Minnesota Wild (4-2)
(3) Vancouver Cannucks over (6) Dallas Stars (4-3)
(4) Nashville Predators over (5) San Jose Sharks (4-3)
Eastern Conference Semifinals
(1) Buffalo Sabres over (6) New York Rangers (4-2)
(5) Pittsburgh Penguins over (2) New Jersey Devils (4-3)
Western Conference Semifinals
(1) Detroit Red Wings over (4) Nashville Predators (4-2)
(2) Anaheim Ducks over (3) Vancouver Cannucks (4-2)
Eastern Conference Finals
(1) Buffalo Sabres over (5) Pittsburgh Penguins (4-2)
Western Conference Finals
(2) Anaheim Ducks over (1) Detroit Red Wings (4-3)
Stanley Cup Finals
Buffalo Sabres over Anaheim Ducks (4-2)
Conn Smythe Winner- Ryan Miller, G, Buffalo
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)