So I did a mediocre 5 for 8 on my first round picks. Time for the second round.

Western Conference

For some reason I like the Avalanche in this one. I think this team is gaining momentum and re-discovering their identity. If Theodore can outduel Osgood/Hasek in this series, Colorado can take it.

Joshua’s Pick: COLORADO IN SEVEN

Sarich’s big hit on Marleau was a big turning point for the Flames in game 3, but Marleau’s response to it may have also been a turning point for the Sharks in the series. His willingness to pay the price along the boards and get right back into the game shows his commitment and leadership: a true character player. I’d also like to see some iso-cam footage of Ryan Clowe from that series to figure out how he kept finding so much open space in the high-slot. Turco will make the Sharks work hard for their goals, but they’ve got the firepower, and now I truly believe they have the leadership as well.

Joshua’s Pick: SAN JOSE IN SIX

Eastern Conference

Got to take my Habs in this one. It could be a rough series, which plays to Philadelphia’s advantage. If Montreal can stay disciplined they will get the powerplay opportunities they need to put the Flyers away. Price has shown some rookie traits, but has kept his composure well despite the mistakes. I can see him getting more and more confident the longer the playoffs go.

Joshua’s Pick: MONTREAL IN SIX

This one could go the Rangers way because of two players: Lundqvist and Avery. A pest like Avery is great for getting in the heads of an opponent; if he can get into the head of a seasoned vet like Marty Brodeur, he has the potential to wreak havoc with a young team like the Penguins. Henrik Lundqvist highlights the one huge strength that the Rangers have in this series: solid goaltending. Despite those factors, I think the Penguins are gaining the poise and confidence to carry them deep in these playoffs. They have too much skill for the Rangers to handle.

Joshua’s Pick: PITTSBURGH IN FIVE

Things could be worse. Tomorrow is the final day of first round NHL playoff action, and up to this point the Flames are still alive. Games four and five were winnable hockey games for us, so we could be in better shape than we are, but given the pre-series outlook, a seventh game can hardly be considered disastrous.

So what does game seven mean? For Calgary, a loss would not be catastrophic. Disappointing, yes, but most pundits didn’t expect the season to last this long. The Sharks, on the other hand, have been perennial playoff blunders, seemingly unable to reach their potential on the NHL’s biggest stage. It’s safe to assume that big changes could be afoot in San Jose should they fall to the Flames tomorrow night. The same cannot be said of their counterparts. A first round departure would likely result in the typical minor off-season tweaks for which Darryl Sutter is known. But let’s not dwell on the “what if we lose” scenario. Instead, let’s ask “what do we need to do to win?”

Here are my keys to victory on Tuesday night:

• Shut down the stars - when the Sharks have been successful, it’s been on the efforts of Thornton, Cheechoo, and Marleau. The Flames can win this game if they continue to pay close attention to shutting those guys down.
• Keep the shots down - it’s hard to win games when you’re getting outshot 40-15. Make life easy for Kipper by keeping the shots down to low 20’s.
• Energy through all the lines - all four lines need to contribute, as they did last night. Guys like Lombardi, Nystrom, and Vandermeer providing a spark could be the difference.
• Let’s get physical - as we saw in game three, big hits can swing the momentum of a game. Laying the body to the Sharks early and often will set the right tone for the Flames.

There’s too much snow to golf, so let’s keep playing hockey!

Some of your CalgaryFlames.net bloggers are a little obsessive about hockey, especially come playoff time. Of course, if you frequent this site, you’re probably of the same persuasion, so you can relate well to our passion. Have you ever thought of those who don’t share in the joy of hockey but still must endure those of us who do? Most of us are reminded frequently of our obsessive behaviour by our wives, but even our wives don’t have to put up with seven hours of game analysis on a daily basis. Enter our friend, Michael, who is in the vast minority at our workplace in not being a hockey fan. Michael laments the playoff obsession in a clever commentary over on his blog (yep, that’s me supporting the local Hurricanes in the photo).

Michael’s comments cause me to reflect on life in our office as a non-fan. Michael, I’ll try to take it down a notch or two, channeling more to the blogs and less public chat with my fellow fans. Just for you.

No promises, though. This is playoff season, after all.

What a night, eh? I’m glad we don’t play again until Tuesday so that I can enjoy this victory for an extra day before getting caught up in the emotion of another game.

After a Habs loss and three Sharks goals in the first 3:33 of the Calgary game, I was ready to start drinking a little harder. Indeed, Trevor and I were counting the Flames out of game three. A friend of mine who happens to be a Flames fan transplanted to Vancouver watched the game with us in our hotel out here on the coast. A diehard he must be, for he kept the faith, regardless of the bleak outlook. What’s worse than the 3-0 deficit is that the transplanted Vancouver Canuck supporting Brit we brought along with us insisted “you guys will come back from this.” What does he know, right? He’s a limey, and this is hockey; he doesn’t know what he’s talking about.

And then the hit. And then THE HIT! You know the ones I’m talking about. First Dion Phaneuf introduces Patrick Marleau to the end boards, cutting him above the right eye. Good tough Canadian boy that he is [nod to Don Cherry here], he gets it taped shut and heads back out on the ice. Soon after he starts up the ice, into the trolley tracks with his head down. Corey Sarich makes Marleau pay for it, crushing him with one of the biggest hits I’ve seen this season, bloodying the Shark captain’s nose.

I know you want to see it again:

Go ahead, rewind it and watch it a few more times. Savour this beauty of that bone crunching and momentum changing hit. I can wait.

That hit got the crowd back into the game, and by extension, it got the Flames back into the game. Once they scored that first goal, they knew they could win the game. Once again it was Owen Nolan pulling the trigger on the big goal (you’ll recall he scored the goal to eliminate the Oilers from playoff contention).

So who do we call the hero of this game? Is it Sarich for his timely hit? How about Nolan for the winning goal and two assists? Maybe Cujo for being perfect in relief for Kipper? I think the answer here is that Calgary is most successful when no single player is the hero. Heroic efforts from several players contributing to the collective is what makes any hockey team truly great. If Calgary’s key players can share the hero role around like this some more, this will be a very winnable series.

Any what of Kiprusoff? I would contend that he didn’t stand much of a chance on those three goals. That said, I think Captain Hook was wise to pull his star goalkeeper after that third goal. Allowing a goaltender to be shelled behind a weak defensive effort can hurt his confidence and potentially catapult him into a rut. Sitting Kipper down before things got ugly somewhat allows Mikka to save face and rebound with confidence in the next game. Meanwhile, a new goalkeeper provides a different look for the Flames, causing a situation that the Sharks may not have been fully prepared for. I can’t see why Keenan wouldn’t go back to Kiprusoff in game four, but regardless of who starts between the pipes, I think it’s clear that Calgary has two goalkeepers who can rise to the occasion.

Now get some rest, and bring back these heroics again on Tuesday. I’ll be watching from Vancouver, wishing I was in the Sea of Red.

If you don’t know the quote, check out this clip from Strange Brew:

So how is this relevant to us today? Well, check out this painful highlight from game 1 of the Caps/Flyers series:

Now, almost as painful as the fact that Thoresen took a slap shot that they feared had ruptured a testicle is the fact that the Capitals tied the game while he was writhing in pain on the ice. But no, the sacking hurts more … you guys know what I’m talking about.

Here’s the best quote to come out of that one, though: “[my girlfriend] is happy that my nuts are okay”. I’m sure she is. And I’m sure we’re all happy to hear that Patrick gets to keep both of his berries, swollen as they may be.

One night down in the NHL playoffs, and what a start it’s been. Let’s take a look around the league at the series that opened this evening:

• It’s been 19 years since Gary Roberts won a Stanley Cup with the Flames, and he looks like he wants to win another. It also looks like he enjoys playing the Senators. Adding his performance to those of Crosby, Malkin, Sykora, and Hossa and these guys really have the firepower to make this a short series.
• Didn’t see much of the Rangers/Devils game, but it looks like Sean Avery is having an impact in this series already.
• Minnesota/Colorado made for an exciting start to the playoffs; A penalty shot and eventual overtime make for plenty of drama. If I had to pick an Avalanche player to score in OT, Joe Sakic would be my pick every time.
• Big play from Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff came to play tonight. The final few seconds of the game seemed to last an eternity as the Flames fought to keep a tying goal off the board. As Eklund said in his predictions, when Iggy and Kipper are involved anything can happen. If the Flames can play full series like that it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them win this series. So far it’s been a much better start than last season in Detroit.
• And in the WHL: The Calgary Hitmen and Lethbridge Hurricanes moved a step closer to meeting in the conference finals. Each with 3-1 leads in their respective series now, my dream series is starting to look like a reality. And yes, I’ll think about the road trip to support the ‘Canes in Calgary in that series.

… my wife really hates this time of year.

Defined: exclamation. God be praised (uttered in worship or as an expression of rejoicing)

Application: TSN reporting that Mick McGeough will not be among those officiating in this year’s playoffs after announcing his retirement earlier this season.

There’s a pretty good list of officials there, including Devorski, McCreary, Van Massenhoven, and Marouelli, all of whom I feel are generally very fair and consistent.

Aside from McGeough, there’s only one referee who I dread: Kerry Fraser. Being a veteran NHL official he will be calling games in the 2008 playoffs. I can only hope the number of these games that include the Flames is minimal. Either way, he’s probably easier to deal with than McGeough. With Fraser you just anticipate that he’ll tend to call an unbalanced game against the Flames. McGeough is impartial, but you never know what he’s going to call either way.

Farewell Mick and enjoy your retirement. I know I will.

Western Conference

An upset isn’t out of the question in this series. Nashville has shown this year that they can compete with the big boys. As the season has progressed Detroit has looked increasingly vulnerable as well. The Wings could be prime for an upset, but I think their vetran experience will be enough to earn the win in this round. I doubt they’ll have enough left in the tank to go beyond the next round though.

Joshua’s Pick: DETROIT IN SEVEN

Ouch. I was really hoping for a Minnesota regulation win on Sunday to prevent this match-up. Calgary has been inconsistent all year, so it’s tough to tell what team is going to show up for the playoffs. San Jose, meanwhile, has closed out the season on a tear. Eighteen wins in their final 21 games is evidence that this team means business. I think Calgary will bring a strong game, but at the same time, I think San Jose is too hot to be stopped by the likes of the Flames right now.

Joshua’s Pick: SAN JOSE IN SIX (but I’d like to be wrong)

This one could go either way. These teams weren’t separated by very much this season. I like Colorado on a resurgent performance from Jose Theodore. Minnesota has pretty good fire power, but then so does Colorado. I think this will be an entertaining series to watch with plenty of scoring.

Joshua’s pick: COLORADO IN SEVEN

It looked like life was going to be sweet for Dallas in the Brad Richards era, but it turns out he’s becoming a bit of a flop.  Unless Richards plays like he did in 2004, I don’t see the Stars going very far against a very deeply talented Ducks team. Mike Ribiero can’t carry this team very far in the playoffs. There’s a reason Anaheim won the Cup last year, and Dallas is about to find that out.

Joshua’s Pick: ANAHEIM IN FIVE

Eastern Conference

I love this series already. Yes, I will now disclose my allegiance to Les Canadiens. In September I proclaimed that “this will be a tough year to be a Canadiens fan”. Wow, was I ever wrong! Much like last year, the Habs were dominant on the powerplay, but Alex Kovalev has been a totally new man this season. Montreal has capitalized on Ottawa’s downfall to win the Northeast division, and ultimately the conference. If I recall correctly, no two teams have ever met each other more times in the playoffs of any professional sport, and that includes some recent Montreal upsets in recent years, along with some bad blood (recall McLaren’s elbow on Zednik). Add that to Montreal’s 8-0 record against Boston this year, and this series has some real intrigue. I’m a little concerned about injuries to Komiserik and Koivu, but am still going to let my bias show and pick Montreal to go 12-0 against the Bruins this season. Price and Kovalev to dominate the B’s.

Joshua’s Pick: MONTREAL IN FOUR

Two teams moving in opposite directions makes this an easy series to pick. Ottawa has been awful down the stretch, and the loss of their captain makes a bad situation worse. Pittsburgh is relatively healthy, incredibly skilled, and cruising right now. I’m going to give Ottawa a single win here based on the skill they’ve got on their roster, but I almost feel like I’m being generous.

Joshua’s Pick: PITTSBURGH IN FIVE

Daniel Briere was a nice acquisition for a team that really turned the corner this year. But he’s no Alexnder Ovechkin. The Caps’ turn-around this year has been amazing to watch, and I dare say anyone who doesn’t support Carolina has probably enjoyed watching Washington over the second half of this season. Ovechkin plays with a whole lot of passion, and I think that’s what’s driving this team right now.  That can be hard to stop.

Joshua’s Pick: WASHINGTON IN FIVE

Sutter coaching and Brodeur goaltending will beat Ranger star-power. These guys aren’t far apart though, and several games will probably go to overtime.

Joshua’s Pick: NEW JERSEY IN SEVEN

Disagree? Let’s hear it in the comments.

Once again, here are my quick hits from last night’s game.

• Quote from Roberto Luongo: “I don’t really care … My season ended (with the Edmonton loss) Thursday as far as I’m concerned.” That attitude would really irritate me if I was a Canuck fan. Or if I was Trevor Linden.
• I know it was a nothing game for Vancouver, but a 7-1 win is still pretty sweet.
• I kind of feel bad for Nystrom. 2 goals and an assist and he has to take a backseat to both Linden and Iginla.
• Glad Iginla potted #50.
• If I lived in Vancouver, I’d probably want to get on to golf season earlier, too.
• Very classy showing of the Flames to stay on the ice after the game to congratulate Linden.
• On that note, congratulations to Trevor Linden on an outstanding career. I liked him a lot better in a Canadiens uniform, but still respected him in a Canucks uniform. I hate it when classy guys like that play for my rivals, because it’s just so hard to dislike him.
• Have I mentioned lately that the Oilers suck? Thanks for Thursday night, though. We’ll send you some golf passes!
• I know we had pretty good success against San Jose this season, but the still scare me with the run they’ve been on lately. I would’ve preferred playing Minnesota in the first round.
• Nystrom, Boyd, and Moss should get some more ice time in the playoffs.

It’s go time now, boys. Time for the stars to step up and make us a contender. Let’s fire up the playoff pools, boys!

Good: The Flames win.

Better: The Flames win against the Oilers

Best: The Flames win against the Oilers to eliminate them from playoff contention