Pretty much, discussion thread for the NHL playoffs, which began April 30th. Eastern side is decided, if I remember right, but I think there's still a possibility for the Red wings to lose their seat to another team.

Anyway, go Canucks!

I'm looking forward to seeing how things play out in the West tonight. I'm torn about who I want to see win. If Columbus and Minnesota win then Detroit is out which would be awesome but if Nashville wins then they jump Calgary in the standings which gives them a better draft pick potential.

Also, we need to do round predictions as the playoffs progress. I always enjoy seeing who people think will win each round and what not.

Elara : I know you don't post much but hopefully you'll come here for playoff chat.

Oh, of course! This is, after all, my place for Playoffs.

And congrats, by the way, to my Penguins, for getting top seed in the East. I am watching them play Carolina right now. I figure we can do our predictions after tonight since the West might still change.

There is a game tomorrow night as well, Ottawa @ Boston. I don't think that'll have any bearing on the playoff teams though, so I'm cool with getting my round one predictions in tomorrow. XD

Hoping this is the year! #GoCanucks

looks like we have to wait until after the Boston Ottawa game tonight before we make our full predictions. I am excited to see the final standings and for the playoffs to start. The intensity that comes out during the playoffs makes nearly every game worth watching.

So, The playoffs are starting in two days? Got to get some buttered Popcorn!

http://www.nhl.com/ice/standings.htm?season=20122013&type=PLA&navid=nhl:topheads

here is a pretty good source for how the matchups will be. I don't have the brain power to put together my predictions tonight but it'll be fun.

Did anyone else think that Boston just didn't try last night? Like, at all?

Also, NBC Sports is far more tolerable to watch when Milbury and that other goon are not there. They should keep it that way.

Alright, predictions... let me see.

Western Conference:
Wild vs Blackhawks - Blackhawks in 6
Red Wings vs Ducks - Ducks in 5
Sharks vs Canucks - Sharks in 7
Kings vs Blues - Kings in 6

Eastern Conference:
Penguins vs Islanders - Penguins in 6
Senators vs Canadiens - Canadiens in 7
Rangers vs Capitols - Rangers in 4
Maple Leafs vs Bruins - Leafs in 5 (unless Boston gets their s*!t together)

I was surprised that Boston lost last night. Not saying I'm sad, I really don't like Boston. I'm surprised at how much worse they are since their Stanley Cup run.

Predictions? Good idea! I'll do that... I'll be a little biased, since the Canucks are my team...

Western

Wild vs Blackhawks - Blackhawks in 5
Red Wings vs Ducks - Red Wings in 7
Sharks vs Canucks - Canucks in 6
Kings vs Blues - Kings in 5

Eastern

Penguins vs Islanders - Penguins in 6
Senators vs Canadiens - Canadiens in 6
Rangers vs Capitols - Rangers in 6
Maple Leafs vs Bruins - Maple Leafs in 5

I'm going for all Canadian teams, but the picks I chose are actually what I think the outcome will be. Canucks need Schnieder, Luongo is a has-been.

Go Canucks!

mrfe : From what I've seen from Luongo, he sure has been.  
And I will probably biased as well.

West:

Wild vs Blackhawks - Wild in 7 - Yeah, I actually think they will be gone in round one.
Wings vs Ducks - Wings in 6
Sharks vs Canucks - Canucks in 5
Kings vs Blues - Kings in 6 

East:

Penguins vs Islanders - Penguins in 7
Senators vs Canadiens - Senators in 6
Rangers vs Capitals - Capitals in 6
Maple Leafs vs Bruins - Leafs in 5

patar4097 : I'd personally love to see both the Kings and the Blackhawks go in round one, I don't like either. I don't like the Bruins either. Sadly, I think the Kings will last until Round 2 (unless they're looking real good) and the Blackhawks until the Conference final.

I'm really looking forward to the Leafs-Bruins matchup. I think those will be good games, unless Boston continues failing.

mrfe : I'm not much of a Bruin fan either. I have family near Boston, so it's nice to beat them. Yeah, I thought the Bruins would have a better chance, but the problem is that they haven't been playing well. As for the Hawks, I don't know why, but they just don't seem like a championship team to me.

Interesting first few days so far. Here is how the series stand up:

Chicago is up 2-0 over Minnesota.
Detroit is tied 1-1 with Anaheim
San Jose is up 2-0 over Vancouver
St. Louis is up 2-0 over L.A.

Penguins are tied 1-1 with the Islanders.
Ottawa and Montreal are tied 1-1.
Washington is up 1-0 over the Rangers.
Boston is up 1-0 over Toronto.


Chicago being head is no surprise. I don't think anyone but the fans are picking the Wild to win that series.
Detroit and Anaheim being tied isn't a big surprise. Detroit in the playoffs can never be underestimated. I do want them to get eliminated though.
San Jose is up 2-0 and about to go home. I don't think anyone saw that coming.
Glad to see St. Louis is winning. I don't want to see L.A. win again so soon.

Penguins being tied with the Islanders is a surprise. I expected it to be 2-0 going back to New York.
Ottawa and Montreal being tied is not a surprise. That series should go 7 because it has been pretty interesting so far.
Washington being ahead is not a surprise. I do hope that New York pushes back and makes this series go to 7 games. I don't care who wins but I want the team that wins to be tired by the end of it.
Boston being ahead after 1 game is not a surprise. Toronto will get a huge boost going home after game 2. I don't expect this series is close to being over yet.

Yeah, pretty surprised at some of the outcomes so far. And sad about a few too, lol.

I actually expected the Wild to win a couple games, I expect those will come at home. Chicago still wins though.
Detroit I expected to be up 2-0, tbh. I'm glad it's not 0-2 though, lol. I like the Wings.
San Jose needs to take a nap. I really am hoping this is the year for the Canucks, but with Luongo in net I don't see that happening. Anyone know how long until Schneider's back?
St. Louis over L.A. 2-0? Dream come true! I really dislike L.A. However, I don't think St. Louis can sweep.

Penguins are tied with the Islanders? I kinda expected that... Penguins win, 4-2.
Ottawa and Montreal are tied... awesome! I really like both teams! I think it's montreal in 6.
Washington - Rangers, should get good from here on out. I hope that Washington wins, but I don't care too much either way.
Boston over Toronto I didn't expect. I was expecting 4-1, but I expected the Leafs to win the first 2.

Anyway, really looking forward to the upcoming games! Now that my grandma's back from the hospital and doing well, I might be able to watch a few games!

   mrfe: You were expecting a Wings lead? I sure didn't, and most Detroit fans thought we were going to lose at least one as well. But we should have a really good chance now going back home. And also, Schneider looks like he might not even make the trip to San Jose.  As for the Hawks, I was not expecting a 2 - 0 lead for them. I thought the Wild would be able to grab one. And was expecting a tie coming out of St. Louis, before they won.

   I kind of expected the Penguins to be tied. I see the Islanders making the series closer than people thought. I don't really have anything to say about the Montreal series. I still think the Sens will win it. And the Rangers don't look like a team that can do it. the Capitals are doing really good right now, and I don't see that stopping. And I really didn't expect Toronto to be losing. I thought they would at least win one. I guess Boston decided to show up, but I haven't really gotten to watch that series.

So the San Jose Sharks have swept their series... a pleasant surprise, to be honest. I like the Sharks... maybe this is finally their year? I found it hilarious that the mascot skated around the arena after the game last night waving the team flag attached to a broom.

Here is the state of the other series'

Blackhawks vs Wild: 3-1
Ducks vs Red Wings: 2-2
Blues vs Kings: 2-2
Penguins vs Islanders 2-2
Habs vs Senators 1-3
Capitals vs Rangers 2-1
Bruins vs Leafs 2-1

The Penguins though... we are choking. Plain and simple. Series is now tied 2-2, and I did predict us going to 6 games... but this is not the kind of series I was expecting at all. I wanted to kill Malkin for those penalties last night and kick Fleury in the butt for letting in some of those goals. Hopefully they get their act together and can turn this around to win the next two.  They've already announced Vokoun will be in net for Game 5... which makes me sad because I love Fleury, but I think the man needs a break... should've been done for last night's game to be honest.

The big surprise for me this round is honestly Ottawa and Montreal... the Habs are getting spanked! Did you guys see game 4 and that huge fight? I was expecting that in the Pens/Islanders series, not Montreal's!

Capitals and Rangers have surprised me a bit... I guess the Rangers are choking a bit as well. And Boston seems to have finally shaking off their malaise and decided to fight. Sad really, I would like to the Leafs go forward. And the Kings have bounced back at home to tie the series... hopefully they keep their momentum up because I absolutely hate the Blues and do not want to see them move forward.

Elara : I figured you would be pretty happy about that one. I personally think it had less to do with the Sharks beating the Canucks and more to do with the Canucks playing the wrong kind of game. They tried to be physical in a series that was being reffed fairly strictly. It's hard to win when you're getting at least twice as many penalties as the opposition.

As for the other series I think I'm pretty happy with most. Not surprised by any really. I do hope that Anaheim can take the series lead and then put Detroit out in the 1st round.

I want the Blues to win because they have put together a pretty good team and I don't want the Kings going deep again.

I think the Penguins will rally behind Vokoun and take the series. They have too much talent not to win. I think they need to get gritty with the Islanders though. The experienced team should be able to do that to the younger team.

I'm laughing about the Senators being ahead in the series. Habs were so confident going into the playoffs and they are getting beaten up badly.

Capitals need to lose a LOT. That's all.

Strangely enough I want Toronto to win. Partially to shut up Bruins fans but also to give Toronto something to cheer about for another week. Then they need to get beaten by the next team they play against

So Penguins finally won their series tonight... holy crap that had me ready to faint. On the plus side, I was right on my guess of Pens in 6. That and the Kings series were the only ones I will be getting right it seems.

So we have Anaheim/Detroit, Boston/Toronto, and New York/Washington left for the first round. I'm looking forward to watching the Penguins/Senators series coming up next... this is not going to be easy.

Elara : I was waiting for your response to this thread. I was watching too and I was so nervous. I didn't think Pittsburgh would lose at home in 7 but better to wrap things up in 6.

As for Ottawa, I don't actually think they are going to be as tough as people think. Montreal was a beat up team that was off their game ever since the Lars Eller hit took place. I actually think the Sens will be easier than the Islanders

geeogree : If we can keep ourselves together, I agree with you. I have not been happy with how the Penguins have been playing so far, so I am hoping that it was just round one jitters or something.