NHL Playoffs: Quarterfinal Match-Ups, Part 1

Western Conference

1. Detroit Red Wings vs. 8. Nashville Predators 

2. San Jose Sharks vs. 7. Calgary Flames 

3. Minnesota Wild vs. 6. Colorado Avalanche 

4. Anaheim Ducks vs. 5.Dallas Stars

Eastern Conference

1. Montreal Canadians vs. 8. Boston Bruins 

2. Pittsburgh Penguins vs. 7. Ottawa Senators 

3. Washington Capitals vs. 6. Philadelphia Flyers 

4. New Jersey Devils vs. 5. New York Rangers

Detroit Red Wings vs. Nashville Predators

Neither team will be throwing any surprises at the other as they played each other 8 times during the regular season. Detroit won the majority of those games (5) and only lost one game at home. That is why Detroit having the home-ice advantage will play a huge factor in this series.

Injuries however will play a bigger role. Detroit’s roster has been injury ridden recently with 6 players currently on the injury report. Fortunately for Detroit all but one of the injuries are minor and at most will only hold the injured player out one or two games. An example would be hard-nosed forward Tomas Holmstrom (groin) and center Kris Draper (groin) should both be good to go in game one. Nashville on the other hand has had some impacting injuries, such as losing Steve Sullivan and David Legwand most likely for at least this round. In the end quality beats quantity here, as injuries will be more of a factor against Nashville.

Detroit has the #3 ranked offense (257 GF) in the league and #1 ranked defense (184 GA), making them a difficult team to beat and Nashville’s 15^th ranked offense (230) doesn’t exactly intimidate Detroit’s tandem of Goaltenders. Detroit will score plenty of goals in this series and if Nashville wants to win, they will need to score plenty of their own while trying to neutralize top-line forwards Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk who each have over 90 points this season. That is a hard task to handle and I personally don’t think that the Predators are up to the job.

Bottom Line: Wings in 5

San Jose Sharks vs. Calgary Flames

Calgary leads the seasonal series 3-1, and won both games they played in San Jose this year, so do the Sharks stand a chance against a team that has bested them all season? One thing is certain, this will be a close fought series.

Injuries won’t be a major concern for either team as most of their players are day-to day with their injuries. The most notable is Jonathon Cheechoo (head) who is day-to-day with the Sharks and former Los Angeles King Craig Conroy (torso) who is questionable for the start of the series. It’s a bit of a wash as far as injuries go for these two teams.

Neither team is known for their offense, but each has their own high-scoring superstar. The Shark’s Joe Thornton has two less points (96) than Calgary’s Jerome Iginla (98), but the majority of the goals will have to come from guys with out big names. So what will the series come down to? Goaltending. Evgeni Nabokov (San Jose) and Miikka Kiprusoff (Calgary) are arguably two of the best goaltenders in the league, but San Jose’s 193 GA (#3 in the league) speaks for itself against Calgary’s 227 GA (15^th). This will be a defensive match-up to say the least and will come down to what goaltender is hot and what team wants it more. Seeing as Nabokov is playing red hot as of late and San Jose is coming in with a lot to prove, I’m going to have to give the series to the Sharks.

Bottom Line: Sharks in 6