The first round of the NHL is finished and what first round it was. To recap: there were 32 one goal games, 16 of them went to overtime (three double overtime games), and all the series but one (Nashville/Detroit series) went to overtime at least once. In the Phoenix Coyotes and Chicago Blackhawks series, all but game six (which was the clinching game for the Coyotes) went into overtime. In the Boston Bruins and Washington Capitals series, all the games were one goal games (four went into overtime, game two double overtime). It was a historic first round and I didn’t even mention the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers series, which had several records broken, one being 45 goals combined in the first four games of a seven game series, and 56 goals in total for the entire series, which went only want six games. Also, the defending Stanley Cup champions (Boston Bruins) and the runner up/two time President’s trophy winner (Vancouver Canucks) were both eliminated. Should be a great second round…maybe not as good but you never know. That’s why they play the game.
Eastern Conference Quaterfinals Results:
#1 New York Rangers beat the Ottawa Senators in 7 games
#7 Washington Capitals beat the Boston Bruins (defending Cup Champs) in 7 games
#6 New Jersey Devils beat the #3 Florida Panthers in 7 games
#5 Philadelphia Flyers beat the #4 Pittsburgh Penguins in 6 games
Western Conference Quarterfinals Results:
#8 Los Angeles Kings upset the #1 Vancouver Canucks (President Trophy winner) in 5 games
#2 St. Louis Blues beat the #7 San Jose Sharks in 5 games
#3 Phoenix Coyotes beat the #6 Chicago Blackhawks in 6 games
#4 Nashville Predators beat the #5 Detroit Red Wings in 5 games
Eastern Conference Playoffs (Semifinals):
#1 New York Rangers vs #7 Washington Capitals
New York and Washington spit there four-game regular season series
Prediction: New York in 7 games
#5 Philadelphia Flyers vs #6 New Jersey Devils:
Philadelphia and New Jersey split there six-game regular season series:
Prediction: Philadelphia in 6 games
Western Conference (Semifinals):
#2 St. Louis Blues vs #8 Los Angeles Kings
Los Angeles won the season series 3-1
Prediction: St. Louis in 4 games
#3 Phoenix Coyotes vs #4 Nashville Predators
Phoenix and Nashville split there four-game regular season series
Prediction: Nashville in 7 games
I got four out of eight series right in the quarterfinals, getting only one series right on the money (St. Louis over San Jose in five games).
New pick to win the Stanley Cup since the Vancouver Canucks loss in the first round.
Stanley Cup Match Up/Winner:
St. Louis Blues over the New York Rangers in 7 games
Thanks for reading and enjoy the second round of the NHL Playoffs.
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(Written By Eric Jacinto)
(Edited by Thomas Reed)