geekent’s stuff’n things

First, the results of my predictions on round 1:

East
Boston vs. Montreal — I said; Boston in five | actual; Boston in four
Washington vs New York — I said: Washington in six | actual: Washington in 7
New Jersey vs. Carolina — I said: undecided in seven | actual: Carolina in seven (winning the game with two goals in the last 2 minutes)
Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia — I said: Pittsburgh in six | actual: Pittsburgh in six

West
San Jose vs. Anaheim — I said: San Jose in four | actual: Anaheim in six
Detroit vs. Columbus — I said: Columbus in seven | actual: Detroit in four
Vancouver vs. St. Louis — I said: Vancouver in five | actual: Vancouver in four
Chicago vs. Calgary — I said: Chicago in six | actual: Chicago in six

ROUND TWO

East
vs.
Carolina and New Jersey were incredibly evenly matched, and my experience with Carolina in the regular season was otherwise nil, so I’m still not sure how this plucky team will fare, nor how Boston, who handled Montreal like they were a team of 12 year olds and retirees, will fare against real competition. Despite the stat of the winner of every NJ/Carolina playoffs competition heading to the finals, given Boston’s track record, I’m going to call Bruins in six.

vs.
The match-up we’ve been waiting three years to see, a full on Ovechkin/Crosby playoffs competition. Washington got off to an awful start but three straight wins over an increasingly disheveled New York has them on the warpath. Of course, Pittsburgh is seasoned after making the finals last year, so it’s going to be tight. Washington has had an interesting season and their young goalie (who turned 21 during game 6) Varlamov is an unflappable gem, but then Fleury is on his game as well. Caps in seven.

WEST
vs.
I botched the calls on both of these teams in the first round. The Wings and Ducks are both seasoned champions (Detroit last year, Anaheim the year before) so there’s veteranage on both teams. The Ducks are playing giant killer this year, but Detroit has the talent to breeze through this if Osgood stays focussed. Detroit in six.

vs.
I must profess a cheat having already seen the first two periods of Game 1, where I was absolutely surprised to see a rusty Vancouver take a 3-0 lead, and amass over 14 minutes in power play time. Chicago was having a hard time breaking the Canucks D, and if they’re going to succeed then they need to stay disciplined, but next year maybe, they’re out this year. Vancouver in five.

Early Finals Prediction(s)
#1) Boston and Detroit - looking at the stats from this year, I’d say this was the best bet all season long
Match-ups I’d like to see
2) Vancouver and Washington - to me, this is a no-lose final, and while Vacouver is hungry, Washington’s an outside call.
3) Detroit and Pittsburgh - a repeat of last year’s final, although I think Detroit would still manhandle the Penguins.