2008 Playoffs: Second Round Recap

Well that didn't take long! The second round of the NHL playoffs went by pretty fast as only one series failed to see a team go up 3-0. Ultimately there was only one series sweep, but the second round flew by nonetheless. Let's take a final look back at how I fared with my predictions (quite well if I may say).

Pittsburgh v Rangers

I said: Pens in 6
What happened: Pens in 5
Comments: I expected this series to be longer as I thought these the best two teams in the East. Every game in the series was close, but at the end of the day the Pens prevailed thanks to their special teams and goaltending. The Penguins' power play and penalty kill were both amazing throughout the series and that was the difference. Marc-Andre Fleury continued to be outstanding in net as well. In the end the Rangers just couldn't keep up with the youthful Penguins. It was nice to see Jaromir Jagr still has some gas left in the tank though.

Philadelphia v Montreal

I said: Flyers in 6
What happened: Flyers in 5
Comments: This was the Montreal team I had been waiting to see. I am going to give the Flyers credit for overcoming their game 1 collapse and still wrapping up the series in five games, but Montreal was never really in this series. Carey Price was a disaster for the Habs and he left them with almost no chance to prevail. Easy work for the Flyers in round 2.

Detroit v Colorado

I said: Wings in 7
What happened: Wings in 4
Comments: What a disappointing end to the season for Jose Theodore. He almost singlehandedly got Colorado past the Wild in round 1, and then singlehandedly lost round 2 for them against Detroit. I'm not trying to short change Detroit here, but the Avalanche had no chance in this series with the way Theodore played. Detroit could not have had an easier second round.

Dallas v San Jose

I said: Stars in 6
What happened: Stars in 6
Comments: The Sharks were lucky to get by Calgary, while the Stars took out the defending champs. Seemed like a no-brainer to me. Plus I just think Dallas is a flat out better team than the Sharks. Plus with Marty Turco and Brenden Morrow playing at the level they are right now things are looking really good for the Stars. The Sharks were lucky to push this series to a sixth game.