Eastern Conference Finals Preview: Rangers vs Devils

Hockey fans are in for a real treat in the Eastern Conference Final this year. The battle of the Hudson River, a heated rivavlry between the New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils is taking center stage, one step away from the Stanley Cup Finals. The Devils are back in the Conference Finals for the first time since 2003, and the Rangers for the first time since 1997. Ofcourse, everyone remembers the epic clash between the two teams in the 1994 Conference Final, when the Rangers won in 7 games. That series included two double overtime winners and one of the most historic calls in overtime history, when Stefan Matteau scored for the blueshirts. However, since that magical 1994 season, the Devils have won three Stanley Cups, and the Rangers have won none. Since the 2004-2005 lockout, the Rangers have been the more succesful organization and have finally made their mark on the league this season. So now the stage is set, Brodeur vs Lundqvist, New York vs New Jersey...so who has the upper hand?

First we will tackle the forwards. The Devils are led by Ilya Kovalchuk and Zach Parise, both can score at will and have played two-way hockey throughout the season. Ofcourse you cannot forget Travis Zajac and Patrick Elias, who continue to be succesful for the Devils, and have playoff experience. Yet, so far this playoffs, the Devils faced two teams with very weak goaltending and average defense, they will be tested vs the Rangers number one playoff defense. The Rangers are led by Brad Richards and Ryan Callahan, yet there are certaintly plenty of threats for the offense that has struggled with consistency all season and throughout the playoffs. The Rangers top line will be a matchup problem for the Devils, the speed of Carl Hagelin and Marian Gaborik has worked through the first two rounds, and past Stanley Cup MVP Brad Richards is the glue that holds it together. On the second line, rookie Chris Kreider will get his first taste of the rivalry, playing with Derek Stepan and Ryan Callahan, this will provide the Rangers with two potent lines. The grinders round out the bottom two lines, and will play an important role in the physical play. I give the forward edge to the Rangers, who are a better balanced team through all four lines. Now the Defense. The Devils are a physical team, but rely heavily on Marek Zidlicky, Andy Greene and Bryce Salavador. They also have rookie Adam Larsson in the lineup with Anton Volchenkov. They are not the most talented defense, and lack depth and experience beyond the top pair, but they play solid hockey. Also the Devils defense relies heavily on a strong backcheck from the forwards helping out...they will need it for the Rangers forcheck.

The Rangers defense has been the best in the playoffs. The set an NHL record for goals allowed in the first two rounds of the playoffs. They block shots and hit hard, as well as being very disciplined. The Blueshirts are led by Dan Girardi, Ryan McDonagh and Marc Staal, who are three all-star caliber defensemen who earn a lot of icetime. They are shutdown defensemen who will be on the ice everytime Ilya Kovalchuk is. Along with those three, Anton Stralman and Michael Del Zotto have made great strides this playoff, and add an offensive touch from the blue line, as well as sound defense. It is with no question the Rangers are the better defensive team. Finally Goaltending. Martin Brodeur is one of the greatest goalies of all time, he holds every regular season and playoff record conceivable, as well as three Stanley Cup victories. Though, there has been much talk that he is not the Marty of old and now that he has turned 40, his skills have diminished. However he has shown glimpses of the old Vezina winner during this postseason, and his experience will play a strong role. He has a 2.0 goals against average and a .920 save percentage, fourth best out of the remaining four goalies in the playoffs. Henrik Lundqvist on the other hand put together a magical season. Widely considered to be the greatest goalie in the world, Lundqvist was nominated for the MVP Trophy (Hart) and Best Goaltender trophy (Vezina) this season. He has put the team on his back at times, and especially during the playoffs. He has a 1.73 goals against average and a .943 save percentage during the playoffs. He finally got the monkey off his back and reached the Conference Finals, now it is time to see if he can continue to silence his critics and lead the Blueshirts to the Stanley Cup. Five years ago, experts would have given the edge to Brodeur, but in 2012, Lundqvist is the better goalie. So, The Rangers are stronger in all three categories. They should win right? Not so fast, because special teams play a strong role in the playoffs, where there is very little margin for error. The Devils set a league record with the best penalty kill in regular season NHL history this year. It proved weak in the first round, but shut down the high powered Philadelphia offense in the second round. The Rangers already have an abysmal power play, so it will be nearly impossible to score any power play goals for the blueshirts. Special Teams goes to the Devils. My prediction: Rangers in 6. They are the better team, better coached team, and have a great balance of experience and hardworking young talent. They have fought through adversity the entire season and continue to quite the critics, but this round will be the series where the Rangers show the country they are for real.

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Stanley Cup Playoffs: Round 2

Tonight's matchups in the Stanley Cup Playoffs are extremely important to both home teams. First, the Washington Capitals return home looking to build off their victory over the Rangers Monday night. The Caps have been outplayed by the Rangers during the first two games, but remain to be a dangerous team. The verizon center is always a loud arena, and the fans will be behind them. Over the last two seasons, the Rangers havent had much success there, but this is a different team now. If the Rangers win tonight, this series could definitely be closed out in 5, but if Washington wins, we will have a long series on our hands. Onto the second matchup tonight, the Phoenix Coyotes at the Nashville Predators. The coyotes took care of business at home, taking both games pretty handedly vs the predators. Nashville will be without Alex Radulov and Andre Kostitsyn, who they suspended for game 3 for violating team rules. This could be a big blow to the predators, who are already struggling to find a little offense. Their hopes lie in Vezina finalist Pekka Rinne in net, who had a terrible outing in Game 2. If Rinne can steal this one, the Predators have a real chance to tie it in game 4, but if the Coyotes dominate again, this series is all but over. I think the Rangers will eventually win their series, but tonight im going with the Capitals in DC. In Nashville, im sticking with the Coyotes, I think they are confident and have played consistent and well-balanced hockey throughout the playoffs.