It was a shocking defeat for the Pittsburgh Penguins, who fell in Round Two to the Buffalo Sabres.
While the fall of the San Jose Sharks in the first round and the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second round were headline grabbing news, the third round will be likely more prominent for the Western Conference title bout.
The Calgary Flames will take on the Colorado Avalanche in what is sure to be one of the best series of the past few years. Colorado is attempting to repeat as champions while the Flames are trying to overcome two straight poor playoff showings after winning the WCHL Cup in Season 11.
The Eastern Conference showdown isn't as sexy, with the New York Rangers battling the upstart Buffalo Sabres, but it will still be interesting to see if an underdog once again finds a way to the WCHL finals.
Here are my predictions for the WCHL and ACHL conference finals.
Western Conference
(2) Calgary Flames vs. (4) Colorado Avalanche- Someone is going to have their eight game winning streak snapped in this series opener, and it will be interesting to see how each team responds in what is sure to be their first serious test of the post-season.
Calgary is on absolute fire, blowing through the seventh seeded St. Louis Blues and eighth seed Columbus Blue Jackets in a pair of four game sweeps, outscoring them by a 46-16 margin. Outside of a 3-2 overtime win in game three against Columbus, the Flames have barely been challenged, winning every other game by at least three goals.
Expect there to be plenty of activity around the Colorado Avalanche net this series.
Colorado is coming in a bit more battle tested having faced the fifth seeded Vancouver Canucks and third seeded Anaheim Ducks. Despite losing their first game against Vancouver 6-3, Colorado has still outscored the opposition by a 39-33 margin. Remarkably, Colorado is 7-0 in one-goal games, including an overtime win to finish off the Canucks.
If Colorado can keep the games close, they will take this series, as they have shown the ability to bend but not break most nights. Calgary on the other hand has far more firepower than any team the Avalanche has faced and in all likelihood; this could be a showdown for the WCHL Cup right here. If Calgary can get their offense clicking, they could prove to be too much for the Avalanche. Prediction: Calgary Flames in six games.
Eastern Conference
(3) New York Rangers vs. (7) Buffalo Sabres- Oddly enough; it's the Sabres who have had the better success to this point of the two teams in the Eastern Conference finals.
The Sabres knocked off the second seeded Carolina Hurricanes and the top ranked Pittsburgh Penguins, doing so with surprising ease in the process. Goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff made himself a Conn Smythe candidate in the Pittsburgh series, stopping 201 of 215 shots in the series for a .935 save percentage, despite being out shot 215-151, or an average of 11 shots per game. If the Rangers don't get to the 'Kipper,' they could easily face the same fate as the high-flying Penguins.
For the Rangers, while they surprisingly breezed through the defending Eastern Conference champion, and cross-city rival, New York Islanders in four games, they nearly didn't get out of the first round after having to work a game seven overtime win to get past the Philadelphia Flyers. Seemingly learning their lesson, the Rangers picked it up in round two and will need to carry that moment against the Sabres.
Odds are for this series that the winner of game one will take it all, as it seems like whoever gets ahead early stays ahead for the long haul. If the Rangers have settled in, they should be the better team, but never count out an underdog who has reached this far in the WCHL playoffs. Prediction: New York Rangers in seven games.
ACHL Playoff Predictions
Western Conference
(1) Abbotsford Heat vs. (4) Milwaukee Admirals- Milwaukee in seven games.
Eastern Conference
(4) Albany Devils vs. (6) Norfolk Admirals- Norfolk in seven games.
