Going to repost these with the team that are still in the tourney.
I have to say this year more than any I can remember in recent history,is wide open and every team in the tourney has a legitimate chance at hoisting the cup in a couple months. And there are a bunch of new faces as well this year with many mainstays like the KINGS,SHARKS,BRUINS and FLYERS all hitting the links instead of the ice.
And I believe the RAGS are the best team,top to bottom. But they are not perfect by any means. And all the other teams have significant strengths and weaknesses as well such as....
N.Y-RANGERS; The made a very deep run last year taking the KINGS to game 7 of the finals. And although that may give them helpful experience. It may also hurt them as this is a marathon and having played many more games than other teams in the same amount of time can be taxing. Especially in a such a physically demanding tourney. They do have the best 6 man d-core in the league though and thats key because like many other sports,when it come down to it defense wins championships.
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T.B-LIGHTNING; TB has proven that last year was not a fluke and they can compete with the best teams in the league. However two of my main worries with them is that for one. They are an offensive team that often wins in high scoring games and with power-play goals. And that can be problematic in the post season when the goals dry up,as do the PP opportunities. The 2nd issues is that they are homers. They have an outstanding home record of 32-8. But on the road they are barely over 500 (18-16) and when you don't have home ice you need to win at least a single game on the road to take the series. I think TB could do some damage in the earlier rounds but I don't see them getting to even the conference finals,let alone the Cup finals.
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CHI-BLACKHAWKS; The HAWKS have proven for years that they have all the ingredients needed to be a perennial legit cup contender. They have one of the best two way players in the show with J-Toews,a super sniper in Kane,clutch perfomers in Hossa and Sharps. And then on the backend two world class d-emn in Kieth and Seabrook. I don;t think that Corey Crawford is anything special,but the HAWKS have won a cup with him in the pipes so he's obviously good enough. This team has shown a few more chinks in the armour this season,then in recent years. But I would never put it by them to go all the way. I think they have some solid value at +850....although they will have their hands full in the first round just trying to get past a NASH team that is a textbook "built for the playoffs" type team. But if they do look out.
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ANAHEIM DUCKS; This ANAHEIM team has been one of the best in the business for several years now. And it all starts with their dynamic duo of Getzlaf and Perry. The problem is that these two are not the most consistent when it comes to the effort department. When they are both pissed off and fully motivated they can be as good as any 1-2 punch in hockey. But if you don't wake them up and just leave them alone. The can occasionally sleep through games and be non factors. As it is the playoffs I expect the latter of the two options. But the fact that I'm unsure of what version we're gonna get is enough to keep me from putting anything on them to win it all,despite another exceptional regular season filled with wins.