The OG NHL thread: The Cup worth biting for

[Marks]

Yeah baby 6 out of 8 last round! Too bad I didn't write an exact # of games...I'll do that for round 2.

ROUND 2 PREDICTIONS:

LA vs STL - I'll take St. Louis to win it in 6 games. I much prefer LA (and hope they win) but I think they both have equally great goaltending, but St. Louis has a bit more offense which will be the deciding factor. Certainly going to be a low scoring series.

PHX vs Nash - I'll take Phoenix to win it in 7 games. I know Nashville is the favourite, but I seriously think it's Phoenix's year to make a serious run. It will all come down to Mike Smith, whether he can have another dominant round or not. Also Radim Vrbata needs to wake up, 35 goals in the reg season but just 1 assist (no goals) so far in the playoffs? Come on dude.

Wash vs NY - New York wins it in 6 (possibly 5, but I'll say 6). We have a Vezina favourite (an possibly even Hart) candidate goalie in Lundqvist against a rookie who just weeks ago was playing in the AHL in Holtby. I think Holtby's luck will wear off and NY will light Washington up like a Christmas tree. Especially if Gaborik and the other Ranger scorers can wake up. But who knows, maybe Holtby will continue playing great, and Ovy, Semin and Backstrom will carry Washington to the East finals. But regardless, I have NYR in 6.

NJD vs Philly - I hate the Flyers. But I'll take them to win it in 5. I could even see a sweep happening, but I'll go with 5 games for now. NJ barely squeaked by a weak Florida team that barely made the post-season, so I don't expect them to beat a high scoring Philly team. But of course the deciding factor will be Bryzgalov...we know Philly can score, but the question is will Bryzgalov be able to stop a beach ball this series, something he couldn't do against the Penguins? If Brygalov continues to be a pasta strainer in net, and Brodeur remains solid...maybe NJ could advance to the east finals. But anyways, Philly in 5.