NHL Semi-Finals Preview & Predictions by Ryan Henderson

Breathe with me.

Go ahead, breathe in…..and exhale.

We are ONLY half way through the NHL playoffs.

            The gauntlet has been set for the final four in The Stanley Cup playoffs and it has been nothing short of entertaining. I myself am still reeling from the NY Rangers and Washington Capitals Game 7, a game for the ages. I don’t think I have been that tightly wound watching a hockey game in ye……wait a minute, since last season when the Rangers decided to go down 3-1 to the Pittsburgh Penguins and work themselves back to win the series and eventually move onto to the Stanley Cup Finals.

            Well here we are, the semifinals, where men become, well more manly because their beards are still growing, and Alex Ovechkin can continue to do what those in our Nation’s Capital are best at – making empty promises that get us nowhere fast. In all seriousness, the playoffs to this point have been nothing short of fantastic.

The Chicago Blackhawks are showing why you can never mess with Chitown, unless it’s in baseball because lets face it, both the Cubs and White Sox are atrocious this season. The Blackhawks simply dismantled the Wild, even Gordon Bombay or Charlie Conway couldn’t have helped the Wild advance in that series.

Staying on the West Coast, Anaheim “Don’t Call Us The Mighty” Ducks showed why they earned the #1 seed in the West and some can argue are the best team in the NHL this season. The Ducks’ high fast pace and ability to get deep in the forecheck allowed them to impressively handle the Calgary Flames in 5 games.

The Eastern Conference playoffs have been a bit more interesting with both quarterfinals series going at least 6 games. As I already hinted, the Rangers needed not only 7 games, but to win 3 in a row to move on to the semifinals and put aside the negative relationship between winning The President’s Trophy and Lord Stanley’s Cup. On the other side of the Eastern Conference, the Tampa Bay Lightning needed 6 games to put away the Montreal Canadiens, eh. If only the Lightning could have signed more of the Rangers players from 2013-14, they may have won the series in 4 or 5.

            Let’s take a look at the upcoming final four and make some solid predictions as to who will move on to the Stanley Cup Finals.

Eastern Conference Finals:

Tampa Bay Lightning (2) vs. New York Rangers (1)

Prediction: Rangers in 6

            Game one puck falls at 1:00pm EST on Saturday May 16^th as a nice little precursor to The Preakness (if you haven’t done so already, read my article about The Preakness). NBC Sports must be eating up their recent scheduled programming. This series will be nothing short of fast paced hockey. Both the Rangers and the Lighting, or as I like to call them “The Pseudo-Rangers”, look to attack the zone at a very consistent pace. Neither team traditionally likes to sit back and let the play come to them.

            A few things to keep in mind while watching this series is that, many of the Lightning players have played for Alain Vigneault with the Rangers last season. They may have an upper hand knowing the Vigneault’s style against high power offensive teams like the Lightning. Expect Martin St. Louis to leap out of his current offensive slump and attempt to flash signs of his younger self against his previously tenured team.

            The success of each team could significantly hinder on one or two players in the lineups. In this series the impact players are definitely Henrik Lundqvist for the Rangers and Steven Stamkos for the Lightning. Both players have the ability to play at an MVP level – expect either team to play to the level these superstars project early on in each game. X-factors always come into play in hockey and most other competitive sports. These are the guys that don’t necessarily score goals, but may make the biggest impacts in the locker room or on the bench. For the Rangers, if he is able to come back from injury I would give this to Mat Zuccarello. If he is able to return from the upper body injury suffered in the first round, the Rangers may have the upper hand. Similarly, for the Lightning, their X- Factor underwent emergency appendectomy surgery on Monday and will need time to rest and recover. Ryan Callahan, the Ranger’s old captain, will be trying his damndest to prove to the Rangers that they should never have traded him away. I expect former “Captain Cally” to make an impact when he returns to the Lightning roster.

Western Conference Finals:

Chicago Blackhawks (2) vs. Anaheim Ducks (1)

Prediction: Blackhawks in 7

            Realistically this series has the ability to bomb or bust. The reason I say this is solely due to the inconsistent playoff play of Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford. This series hinders on his ability to play to his potential on the big stage, something he has struggled to do to date.

            In order for the Blackhawks to win this series, Crawford will have to hold the Ducks to no more than 3 goals a game, something he is struggling to do. The Ducks have a tendency to “pour it on” when they get one. If the flood gates open and the Duck offensive lead by Jonathan Getzlaf is able spread the ice, the Blackhawks are in for a short series. The series kicks off with Game 1 on Sunday, May 17^th at 3:00pm EST.

            The Blackhawks need their usual suspects to step up and show their high level of pace and play. The litmus test of this series for me will be which Patrick Kane shows up to the party. The one who has the ability to slash and pass and score, or the Patrick Kane that tends to get bodied out of his offensive groove. With that being said, Patrick Kane is my X-Factor for the Blackhawks while Corey Crawford is their key to success. The Ducks on the other hand will be hoping to see Jonathan Getzlaf control the ice like he tends to do with their X-Factor coming from all of their defenseman. Yes, I am not singling out one player, but the Ducks’ defense has been nothing short of impressive. Averaging the least amount of penalty minutes in the playoffs while touting the number of goals coming from their defenseman. Not to mention the fact that they have allowed only 30+ shots on goal just ONCE this playoffs.

            The final point to keep in mind when it comes to this series is that the teams have met 3 times previously this season. The season record for those 3 games is 2-1 in the Blackhawk’s favor. Not necessarily a monumental stat, but one that may be important when it comes to a 7 game series.

            Regardless of if you have or have not been keeping up with the NHL Playoffs to date, these two series will produce some amazing hockey that will make even the non-fan an instant believer in Playoff Hockey. The ferocity that these players project transcends that the efforts made by most any other major sport in the world- yes THE WORLD! The smell of the ice, the impressive facial hair, and the skill level itself will make any sports fan realize that these players are more related to The Vikings then they are to normal homo sapiens. For the Love of The Game, grab a beer, grab a seat, and buckle up for one helluva Stanley Cup Semifinals. Cheers!