NHL Roundup - Round One

Since I managed to go 3 for 8 in my first round predictions, I feel that some explanation was in order - and what better way then to give each matchup an overview to explain what happened and why I was wrong (or, in a couple series, why I was right)...

Western Division:
Detroit Red Wings / Edmonton Oilers
I said: Detroit
Who won: Edmonton
Why: Simply put, the Red Wings were too old and were overmatched - the Oilers played in a tough division, had better goaltending (Roloson really redeemed himself in this series) and were able to play for longer then Detroit was - whereas Detroit proved that they were overrated by a large amount - not a single team from their division made it to the second round - and had a hard time in OT, where playoff series are often won or lost. That said, though, I was surprised that Edmonton was able to knock them off; I figured it would be a long series but I didn't expect that Roloson would play as good as he did.

Dallas Stars / Colorado Avalanche
I said: Dallas
Who won: Colorado (4-2)
Why: Call it the fatal flaw of the shootout - Dallas was fantastic on it during the season but was horrid in OT in this series, which once again proves that playoff hockey is much, much different then the stuff you see in January. And once again, another Trade Deadline goalie - this time it was Jose Theodore - really managed to rise up and really play some fantastic goaltending; which managed to shut down a really productive Dallas offence. Granted, if there was shootouts in the playoffs, I still think that Dallas would have won this series, but there isn't - and there isn't any more games in Dallas until next season now.

Calgary Flames / Anaheim Mighty Ducks
I Said: Calgary
Who won: Anaheim (4-3)
Why: Well, I sort of called it:

Have you ever seen one player carry a team so much? It's like the Flames are winning these days in spite of a lackluster offence, all thanks to Mikka Kiprusoff's fantastic goaltending.

And that's what happened - in four of the seven games, they scored two or less goals (and lost three of those games) while they averaged a bit over 2 goals against a game - and the math finally caught up with them. At the same time, though, Bryzgalov did quite well, as did Selanne and Andy MacDonald, so the Ducks need some credit.

Nashville Predators / San Jose Sharks
Who won: San Jose (4-1)
I Said: San Jose
Why: It was like I said - as good as Mason may or may not be, he's not their #1 goalie for a reason and he showed exactly why not against a team whose offence has the most silverware this season in the league. Maybe next year, when Volkun is healthy, Nashville will have a chance - but not until then.

Eastern division
Ottawa Senators / Tampa Bay Lightening
I said: Ottawa
Who won: Ottawa
Why: It all goes down, once again, to the goalie - Ray Emery had a powerful series against a fantastic offence (really the only way that Tampa was a threat) where the Sens predictably were more offensive then The Aristocrats. And as much as I hate to say it, they still look the team to beat for the Stanley Cup this year.

New York Rangers/ New Jersey Devils
I said: New York
Who won New Jersey (4-0)
Why: It was all about Marty, who once again showed why he very well may be the best goalie since Ken Dryden - as a poster on an Internet forum said, "He's like a fucking brick wall, okay?", and he totally shut down the Rangers offence - who, without their #1 scorer (Jagr) was already in dire straits.

Buffalo Sabres / Philadelphia Flyers
I said: Buffalo
Who won: Buffalo (4-2)
Why: It was like I said - Robert Esche was not playing to par this year and he had to face a team that was absolutely fantastic in scoring and had solid goaltending - It did go further then I thought it would (Simon Gagne and Peter Forsberg can be thanked for that) but it still came down to, as it always does, Robert Esche letting in more goals then they could score.

Montreal Canadiens / Carolina Hurricanes
I said: Montreal
Who won: Carolina
Why: Well, read what I said the key to series was:

...plus you can never really count out Koivu these days, anyway.

Well, Carolina found a way to count him out - setback #1 for the Habs - and the series winner was scored on a goal that was about as flukey as Steve Smith netting one off of Grant Fuhr in '86. But then again, the Canes did have a great run as Cam Ward and Eric Staal had a breakout series and showed that they do deserve to be ranked as high as they were going in.

(Tomorrow - I break down the second round!)