Same name likely to be on the cup
If anyone was hoping to see a new WCHL Champion, they may be disappointed.
Of the eight teams still in the hunt, five have won a championship before. Those five are the Colorado Avalanche, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Rangers, Anaheim Ducks and Calgary Flames, and those five have combined to win the past seven WCHL Cups, with the Rangers having won the past two and still seeking the first three-peat in league history.
The Edmonton Oilers rallied from a 3-1 deficit against the Minnesota Wild to punch their ticket to the second round, while the Philadelphia Flyers and Ottawa Senators also join the ranks of teams seeking their first title.
If a Cinderella is going to emerge, this will be the round to do it. If not, it's going to be a lot of the same old, same old in store for rounds three and four.
Here are my predictions for who advances in round two:
Western Conference
(1)Anaheim Ducks vs. (7) Calgary Anaheim
That's because they are facing the Flames, and the Flames aren't just any 7th seed. After stumbling through the regular season in less than stellar fashion, the Flames rebounded nicely, dropping game one to the Nashville Predators before storming to four straight wins and a second round birth.
IfCalgary Anaheim
(5)Edmonton Oilers vs. (6) Colorado
Standing in their way is the Colorado Avalanche. If there is a WCHL team built for the playoffs, it's the Avalanche, who have parlayed mediocre regular seasons into lengthy playoff pushes year after year.Colorado
The Oilers need Vokoun to steal a game or two and rely on Jason Pominville and Brad Richards to post the numbers they have in the regular season. Failing that, the Oilers will fail to move onto round three.Colorado
Eastern Conference
(1)Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (7) Ottawa
Unlikely, but it's also unlikely the Penguins will cruise through these playoffs, especially against a solid team like the Senators. The Sens were one of the stingiest teams in the regular season, and they carried that over to the playoffs, where they limited the Carolina Hurricanes to just five goals in five games in the first round. Two of those games were shutouts and the Senators allowed only two goals in their four wins. Since they can't run and gun withPittsburgh
IfPittsburgh Ottawa Ottawa
(3)New York Rangers vs. (5) Philadelphia
Needless to say, the Rangers have a lot to prove.
So do the Flyers. After several seasons of coming close to cracking a WCHL final, the Flyers undertook a semi-rebuild and are just now starting to see the fruits of those labours. Knocking off the Toronto Maple Leafs in a tight seven game series was a big step forward, but afforded the Flyers no help in tangling with an equally tired Rangers team.
The Flyers will make their fan base proud, but they just don't have the guns and the goaltending to compete with the Rangers.New York
ACHL
Western Conference
(1) Norfolk Admirals vs. (4) Manchester Monarchs -Norfolk
(2) Chicago Wolves vs. (3) Portland Pirates - Chicago in five games.
Eastern Conference
(1) Wilkes-Barre/Scranton vs. (4)Binghamton
(2) Hershey Bears vs. (3) Hartford Wolfpack- Hershey in six games
If anyone was hoping to see a new WCHL Champion, they may be disappointed.
Of the eight teams still in the hunt, five have won a championship before. Those five are the Colorado Avalanche, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Rangers, Anaheim Ducks and Calgary Flames, and those five have combined to win the past seven WCHL Cups, with the Rangers having won the past two and still seeking the first three-peat in league history.
The Edmonton Oilers rallied from a 3-1 deficit against the Minnesota Wild to punch their ticket to the second round, while the Philadelphia Flyers and Ottawa Senators also join the ranks of teams seeking their first title.
If a Cinderella is going to emerge, this will be the round to do it. If not, it's going to be a lot of the same old, same old in store for rounds three and four.
Here are my predictions for who advances in round two:
Western Conference
(1)
That's because they are facing the Flames, and the Flames aren't just any 7th seed. After stumbling through the regular season in less than stellar fashion, the Flames rebounded nicely, dropping game one to the Nashville Predators before storming to four straight wins and a second round birth.
If
(5)
Standing in their way is the Colorado Avalanche. If there is a WCHL team built for the playoffs, it's the Avalanche, who have parlayed mediocre regular seasons into lengthy playoff pushes year after year.
The Oilers need Vokoun to steal a game or two and rely on Jason Pominville and Brad Richards to post the numbers they have in the regular season. Failing that, the Oilers will fail to move onto round three.
Eastern Conference
(1)
Unlikely, but it's also unlikely the Penguins will cruise through these playoffs, especially against a solid team like the Senators. The Sens were one of the stingiest teams in the regular season, and they carried that over to the playoffs, where they limited the Carolina Hurricanes to just five goals in five games in the first round. Two of those games were shutouts and the Senators allowed only two goals in their four wins. Since they can't run and gun with
If
(3)
Needless to say, the Rangers have a lot to prove.
So do the Flyers. After several seasons of coming close to cracking a WCHL final, the Flyers undertook a semi-rebuild and are just now starting to see the fruits of those labours. Knocking off the Toronto Maple Leafs in a tight seven game series was a big step forward, but afforded the Flyers no help in tangling with an equally tired Rangers team.
The Flyers will make their fan base proud, but they just don't have the guns and the goaltending to compete with the Rangers.
ACHL
Western Conference
(1) Norfolk Admirals vs. (4) Manchester Monarchs -
(2) Chicago Wolves vs. (3) Portland Pirates - Chicago in five games.
Eastern Conference
(1) Wilkes-Barre/Scranton vs. (4)
(2) Hershey Bears vs. (3) Hartford Wolfpack- Hershey in six games
