Predictions for the Conference Finals

Senators celebrate

TSN.ca Staff

5/9/2007 11:38:11 AM

So I went out on the limb and got singed in the Conference Semi-Final between the Sabres and the Rangers.

I don't like to say I got burned.  The prediction of a Ranger upset in 7 almost came true. Of course that number 7 figured prominently in the Sabres series win. There was just a little over 7 seconds on the clock when Chris Drury tied up Game 5. The Rangers were 7 seconds away from heading home to Madison Square Garden with a 3 game to 2 lead. Henrik Lundqvist did stand on his head and holes were exposed in Buffalo's game. Still the Sabres won and you can't argue against the depth Lindy Ruff has at hand.

Sabres fans are going to think I have something against their team but I like the Ottawa Senators in the Eastern Final. They've showed something they haven't in past playoff years. They've got team grit. The Sabres can expect to be hit often. Bryan Murray also may be the best in the league at managing his bench right now.

If you can only catch part of a game in this series make sure you are around for the second period. The Sabres and Sens seem to turn it up in the middle frame. During the playoffs Buffalo has outscored the opposition 14 to 7 in the second period while the Sens have enjoyed a 14 to 5 advantage. They had similar success during the regular season.

Out west, I feel confident in predicting this is going to be the 1st time the Ducks and Red Wings will meet in the playoffs and the series won't end in a sweep. It's the fourth meeting in the post season for the two clubs. Detroit leads the head to head battles with two series victories.

The Red Wings did a great job taking away time and space from the Sharks. They'll really be put to the test with the "Big Two" on the Duck blue line and their ability to quickly move the puck up ice. Expect a traffic jam in front of the Red Wing net as well. It might be enough to make Dominik Hasek "Cup Crazy!"    

Rest is nice but too much downtime can be a problem in the playoffs. For the second straight year the Anaheim Ducks hit the conference final after a rest of seven days. The extra time off did them no favors last year when they lost to Edmonton in five. Randy Carlyle is again trying to structure as many game type situations in practice to keep his team sharp. The Ducks will need a spark to reignite the playoff fires. Maybe Todd Marchant will provide it. He's been out of the lineup since April 6th because of sports hernia surgery. He's emotional charged and ready to get back into the lineup.

Chris Chelios has clicked the game meter over 240 times in his playoff career and depending on the length of the series with the Ducks could tie Patrick Roy for the all time lead. He's seven back of Roy's record.

There are just 4 teams left in the playoffs and Dominik Hasek has at one time or another played for 3 of them. So that's why they call him the Dominator.

For TSN.ca, I'm Dan Pollard