Faceoff Factor

Comments

1. DaBich

   May 6, 10:36 AM

   Ahhhh…you ALL chose the Penguins to prevail…I hope you’re all correct and not just picking your fav team…
   Ashley chose the Wings as did Justin Maffei. The Wings are my second fav team, and I’m hoping they prevail over Dallas.
   What a Stanley Cup series that would be! Pens and Wings.

2. DS

   May 6, 11:50 AM

   Somebody needs to fix the bracket graphic…why is Philly over the Pens? Pens are the higher seed. Don’t invite bad juju before it happens!

3. Matt Bodenschatz

   May 6, 03:20 PM

   Dabich, the question posed to all writers is, “Who do you believe will win?” not, “Who do you want to win?” In other words, these are true predictions, not favorites.

   DS, I changed the brackets to suit you. Can’t have an unhappy reader!

4. Tom

   May 6, 05:10 PM

   Can’t see Dallas beating Detroit, a team that is clearly the class of the league. However, since I believe the Pens’ chances against Dallas are significantly better, I shall cheer for the Stars and Pens.

   Let’s see how the Fleas score against a team that can play defense and has a top shelf goalie in the playoffs. With a couple of exceptions (Coburn and Timonen) the Fleas defensemen are large, old and slow. The Pens’ first three lines are generally good sized, young (only Sykora is over 30), and fast. The fourth line can hold the puck endlessly down low. With good, accurate, offensive exit passing by Gonchar, Whitney, Gill, Letang and Orpik and aggressive forechecking to keep the pressure on the Fleas’ defense, the Pens’ great talent ought to prevail. The Rags were a far better and more skilled team.

   If the Fleas decide to goon it up, we must play with restraint and discipline; then play our anti-goon squad, perhaps Staal, BGL, the Hockey God, Letang and Orpik, possibly Ruutu and Gill. BGL will earn his pay this round; however, I’d rather face BGL than Roberts (berserker) or Letang (absolutely savage when he wants to be).

   Besides the Pens ought to enjoy all the PP chances when the goons get penalties as they have against the Habs and Caps.

5. Eric

   May 6, 07:50 PM

   Pens

   Wings

   I’m hoping for Pens vs. Stars because of the home ice advantage.

6. Ben Schmidt

   May 6, 09:13 PM

   Both series are ones I feel are tough to predict, but since I was expected to, I went with the above. I was personally surprised to find myself picking the Stars in the end, because my gut reaction was to pick the Red Wings. Here’s my reasoning for both series:

   I picked the Pens over the Flyers for the following reasons: The Pens have developed a team toughness that they can use to weather the Flyers’ toughness, and the Pens simply have a lot more talent on their roster (though the talent on the Flyers’ roster is not to be sneezed at). Biron may be a hot goalie right now, but Fleury has been even hotter. As such, I’m taking the Pens for this series.

   For the Red Wings vs the Stars, it was an even tougher choice. I felt that the Red Wings had the easier teams in each round – the Predators barely made the playoffs and the Avalanche were hit with so many injuries that they weren’t the same team that made it to the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Stars had to beat the reigning Stanley Cup Champion Ducks, and the widely Cup-favored Sharks. Turco has been playing out of his mind, and the Richards trade has finally given them some offense. The Red Wings are really good, but their goaltending is a bit suspect, and they really haven’t faced a team as tough as the Stars yet. I also think there is a greater chance that the Stars can wear out the Red Wings. I think it will be a long series, and I think that will benefit the Stars more than the Red Wings.

7. Lori Holtsberry

   May 7, 12:05 AM

   I had to chuckle when reading your predictions for the Western Conference. It was a bit puzzling to find so many (just on this site, and I’ve been to numerous sites) that the favored pick was Dallas. I guess it would be somewhat understandable if you went soley by the numbers of both teams because they are so close percentage wise. But think about it…these two teams met up 4 times during regular season and Detroit won 3 out of 4 games with the Stars. The Stars found it hard to score with only 5 goals scored total. Turco had a hard time playing against Detroit going just 2-10-5 with a 2.88 GAA and .897 save percentage. Although Turco is favored above Osgood a bit, remember which player will be there in front of Turko to mask all he can and that is Holmstrom, who is a big asset to the Wings. And I haven’t even began to mention the Wings Defense, which is superior by far! They have more depth and all-around skill. One thing is for sure, it will be an exciting, nail-biting series to watch.

8. Lori Holtsberry

   May 7, 12:12 AM

   I had to chuckle when reading your predictions for the Western Conference. It was a bit puzzling to find so many (just on this site, and I’ve been to numerous sites) that the favored pick was Dallas. I guess it would be somewhat understandable if you went soley by the numbers of both teams because they are so close percentage wise. But think about it…these two teams met up 4 times during regular season and Detroit won 3 out of 4 games with the Stars. The Stars found it hard to score with only 5 goals scored total. Turco had a hard time playing against Detroit going just 2-10-5 with a 2.88 GAA and .897 save percentage. Although Turco is favored above Osgood a bit, remember which player will be there in front of Turko to mask all he can and that is Holmstrom, who is a big asset to the Wings. And I haven’t even began to mention the Wings Defense, which is superior by far! They have more depth and all-around skill. One thing is for sure, it will be an exciting, nail-biting series to watch. I predict Detroit in 6.

9. Matt Bodenschatz

   May 7, 08:16 AM

   Lori, while I understand your reasoning — and it is very good, to be honest — I think what FF’s writers, myself included, are thinking is that the regular season doesn’t matter. This is a whole new season where everything from the first 82 games is thrown out the window. The Penguins had a losing record against the Senators and Rangers in the regular season and defeated both teams rather easily. And, if we’re going strictly on statistics, clearly, few (if any) teams would beat the Red Wings in a series. But, as we have seen time and again in the playoffs, both this year and in years past, very little is predictable. That’s what makes it so fun.

   We’re glad to have you as a contributor to our conversations, as you clearly know the sport. Please come back and continue to voice your opinions!

10. Ashley Gallant

    May 8, 07:11 PM

    When looking at the Pens/Flyers series, I thought about how Philly played against Montreal and how Montreal responded. I felt that the Habs basically played as though they were intimidated of the Flyers, and they didn’t make things hard on Biron. Biron saw every single shot coming at him because the Canadiens didn’t even try to screen him. I don’t believe that the Pens will make those mistakes this time around.

    For Dallas/Detroit, I thought I’d go with the Red Wings because they are one of those fast, skilled teams – not to suggest that the Stars aren’t as good. I think it will be a long series, but the finesse of the Red Wings will shine. Besides, Johan Franzen is money in the bank.

    For the record, I don’t put any stock in the season’s record between two teams. Just look at Montreal: they went 8-0 against Boston in the season, and just barely won the series in 7 games. They then faced Philly (the season series was 4-0 in favour of Montreal) and lost in 5. It’s all about how you play now.

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