The Biggest Reason Why Each NHL Conference Finalist Can Win the Stanley Cup

The top goaltender from the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs is in his regal position on the postseason leaderboard yet again at the halfway mark of the 2013 tournament. Ditto the highest-producing scorer from the 2011 playoffs.

Those players constitute a key cog on the past two champions from Boston and Los Angeles, who are both back in their respective conference finals. Joining them are this year’s two regular-season conference leaders from Pittsburgh and Chicago, who are verifying their status as contenders by growing from glitches and translating their success to the postseason.

As always, each conference finalist in the 2013 NHL playoffs has already won multiple rounds for multiple reasons. But for the sake of selectiveness, here is one asset that all remaining Cup contenders―presented in alphabetical order―must keep in the cockpit to pilot them to a title.

Unless otherwise indicated, all statistics for this report were found via nhl.com and are through games of Wednesday, May 29.

Boston: Centers of Attention

His production cooled off a tad when he ran into the Rangers, but David Krejci has still done enough to argue that his 2011 postseason was hardly an anomaly. Two years after he topped the tournament chart with a 12-11-23 scoring log in 25 games, he has charged up an unmatched 5-12-17 transcript through 12 games this postseason.

When the Bruins were at the halfway mark of their run to the Cup in 2011, Krejci had a 5-5-10 line through 11 games. That was in spite of a quiet first round against Montreal, whom he could only exploit for one goal.

This year, he torched Toronto with 13 points and then set up four of the 16 Boston strikes against the Blueshirts.

If linemates Nathan Horton and Milan Lucic are on top of their game and consistently using their brawn against opposing backcheckers, the Czech center will have every opportunity to sustain his pace.

Fellow top-six pivot Patrice Bergeron is one of the league’s most dependable multifaceted forwards.

He has amplified that notion this postseason with a slim goals-against average of 1.70 (seven opposing goals in 247:41 of ice time, the most minutes among Boston forwards). He has seen the most shorthanded ice time among Bruins skaters who have not yet authorized an opposing power-play goal.

Bergeron also easily tops the chart of all qualified leaders with 63.5 percent success at the faceoff. In essence, nothing has changed since the reigning Selke Trophy recipient garnered another nomination in the regular season.

Chicago: Balance

After going on a regular-season rampage to a league-best 36-7-5 record and dumping a rising but inexperienced Minnesota team, the 2013 Blackhawks faced their first serious bout of adversity in the latest playoff round.

They got through it with a bevy of balance in every sense of the word. Joel Quenneville’s coaching and captain Jonathan Toews’ leadership doubtlessly helped them sustain a collective level head as they clawed back from a 3-1 series deficit against Detroit.

With that steady poise, Chicago percolated a stream of driving offense that eroded the Red Wings just enough to have the series culminate in a 2-1, Game 7 sudden-death victory. Over that series, they picked up a point from 18 different skaters, whose individual output ranged between one and five points.

A total of 11 Blackhawks put at least one puck behind Red Wings goalie Jimmy Howard, with none of those players tuning the mesh more than twice. Somebody else constantly needed to step in when others went numb, and somebody always did.

Contrast that with the Minnesota series, which had 15 different point-getters and nine different goal-scorers, led by Patrick Sharp’s five strikes and three apiece via Bryan Bickell and Marian Hossa.

Chicago’s depth has perked up as needed in the deep stages of springtime. In turn, the team has rewarded its own enviable combination of killer instinct and perseverance under pressure.

They will need more of that going forward, especially when they confront the similarly balanced and stingy Los Angeles Kings. Speaking of whom…

Los Angeles: Jonathan Quick

The Kings’ backstopping backbone has bent at times, but never broken through the midway point of the playoffs. In turn, Los Angeles is the first defending champion to reach the third round of the next postseason since Detroit did it in 2009.

If the Kings become the first team since another edition of the Red Wings to repeat its title, Jonathan Quick will likely become the third repeat recipient of the Conn Smythe Trophy. The only two men with that distinction are Philadelphia netminder Bernie Parent (1974 and 1975) and Pittsburgh legend Mario Lemieux (1991 and 1992).

The embedded video is one example out of umpteen to underscore Quick’s unyielding big-game aptitude. Moments after the San Jose Sharks spoiled his shutout bid and cut the L.A. lead to 2-1 in Wednesday’s Game 7, he slammed the door on Joe Pavelski with 5:04 to spare in regulation.

Earlier, he spectacularly preserved a scoreless tie in the tone-setting stages of the second period, buying his skating mates more time to seize the critical first goal.

It is now easy to forget Quick’s costly giveaway in the playoff opener against St. Louis and the Game 2 loss that followed. But his rapid resilience is the reason why.

Quick has not only shaken off that initial 2-0 series deficit, but he has also beaten multiple in-game deficits, particularly Game 4 against the Blues and Game 2 against the Sharks. Those were both L.A. victories and the only two times he has authorized three opposing goals in this tournament.

Pittsburgh: Formidable And Frustrating Firepower

Championship contention requires more than a mere stockpile of skill. An embarrassment of riches on the talent front is a bonus, but every specimen must be cohesive and driven.

Unfortunately for anybody who crosses Pittsburgh’s path, the Penguins are covered on that front. The top dog in the Eastern Conference has jelled as a loaded core and is capitalizing on the luxury of victorious learning experiences.

Over the first two rounds, Pittsburgh went from shaking off a momentary six-game scare against the Islanders to squashing the Senators by a combined 13-5 score in the final two of five games.

Besides that, one of the most telling translations on the stat sheet is Pittsburgh’s peerless power play, which has drawn more opportunities per game (46 in 11) and converted more (28.3 percent) than any remaining team.

Upon flipping through each box score from the first two rounds, here are the Pens’ playoff leaders in the way of drawing power plays: Evgeni Malkin (six), Matt Cooke (five), Craig Adams, Sidney Crosby, Tyler Kennedy, Kris Letang and Brenden Morrow (three apiece).

Pascal Dupuis and Brandon Sutter have each drawn two, and five other skaters have each drawn one.

Some of those 15 drawing artists have not exactly permeated the goal and/or assist half of the scoresheet, but others have. That speaks to the depth and determination of the Penguins and how those elements can put the opponent in a catch-22.

As vital as defense is, the Pens have enough firepower and willpower to test the depth of any blue-line brigade.