Stanley Cup Preview

After the first two rounds had lengthy series play and a lot of excitement, we saw the Canadiens and Sharks come out flat and were beaten rather easily by the Flyers and Blackhawks, respectively. Jaroslav Halak ran out of gas after his great run as the Flyers first and second lines got to him early in the series and set the tone. And speaking of tone, the Blackhawks were the tougher and more physical team out West as they swept the Sharks, who were coming off a great series win against the Red Wings. The Sharks continued to underperform when it counts most in the playoffs. Now we will see the underdog Flyers up against a surely favored Blackhawks team. Yet, as we have seen thus far expect the unexpected and this one could easily be a seven game thriller. Overall, my predictions have me at 10-4. Now time for all the marbles and the Stanley Cup trophy.

Stanley Cup Finals
2 Chicago Blackhawks vs 7 Philadelphia Flyers: The Blackhawks have an excellent young core that is led by Patrick Kane as they have maneuvered through the West. The Flyers rode the underdog role and eliminated "the underdog" of the playoffs, the Canadiens, to get here. With a win by either team, they will end droughts of 49 years for the Blackhawks and 35 years for Flyers. Ironically, Kane was the prize pick in 2007 and the Blackhawks got that top pick over the Flyers. Alongside Kane is another young star in Jonathan Toews and together could be the foundation for a bit of dynasty in Chicago. The Flyers have a tough defense led by Chris Pronger and have dealt with multiple injuries yet they continue to surprise doubters. Many may not even remember that it was a shootout win over the Rangers that got the Flyers into the playoffs. Mike Richards is the scoring presence on the Flyers and his play will be important for the Flyers' hopes of winning it all. As with past Stanley Cup playoffs, if your team has a hot goalie; that team can make a run. Michael Leighton has been clutch for the Flyers while Antti Niemi has been nearly as impressive and is probably a better goalie, which makes Leighton play that much more spectacular. One matchup that might be interesting and physical is Dustin Byfuglien against Pronger. Byfuglien is a large man and Pronger hardly runs away from a fight.

This looks like a potentially great series. The Blackhawks were a trendy pick to make this game while the Flyers were lucky to make the postseason. This will a physical series that will be determined by depth and goalie play in the end. PREDICTION: BLACKHAWKS IN SIX

The Blackhawks look too good from top to bottom. They are healthier and the Flyers will finally show enough cracks for a team to beat them four times.