If you thought the Eastern Conference was hard to pick, the West may be even harder.
#1 Colorado Avalanche vs #4 Minnesota Wild may look easy on paper, but the Wild come in looking for the upset. Goaltending, like every series, will be a key factor. Since joining the Wild in March, Ilya Bryzgalov hasn’t lost in regulation in a Minnesota sweater.
In 11 games, Bryzgalov went 7-0-3 with a 1.78 goals-against average and three shutouts. If the Wild want any chance at the upset, it starts between the pipes. Countering in the Colorado corner, Semyon Varlamov looks to keep the Avalanche level-headed and the score low.
The Avalanche will be without star forward Matt Duchene, 70 points in 71 games. It sounds like the Avalanche are prepared to sit Duchene the first round for a knee injury. If they need him late in the series or find themselves in a hole, he may make an appearance.
#2 St. Louis Blues vs #3 Chicago Blackhawks is one that could go either way. Both teams are just about as equal on paper as any matchup this postseason.
Both offenses have no problem scoring, the defense is stellar, and their goaltending superb.
Ryan Miller and Corey Crawford will be busy between the pipes all series long.
The key for Chicago this series is to avoid overtime. The Blackhawks went 1-7 in games decided in overtime and 6-8 in the shootout.
Chicago has retained the majority of its roster from their Stanley Cup Championship run last year. That being said until someone takes them down, its hard to bet against Chicago.
#1 Anaheim Ducks vs #4 Dallas Stars
The Stars just barely snuck into the postseason, edging the Phoenix Coyotes for the final playoff spot. They’ll have their hands full against the #1 seeded and Pacific Division champion, Anaheim Ducks.
Led by head coach Bruce Boudreau, the Ducks were one of the top offensive teams in the League. A dominant duo of forwards Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, and their great depth at forward, helped the Ducks secure the Division this year.
The Stars, led by forwards Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn, are also one of the top-scoring teams in the League and this series could feature plenty of goals.
Coming down to the goalies, Jonas Hiller may or may not be starting for the Ducks, if he doesn’t get the nod, Anaheim will go with Frederik Andersen. Countered by Kari Lehtonen, he’ll have the tough job of keeping the Ducks scoring at a minimum.
I don’t think Lehtonen can hold the Ducks to just 2 goals a game, I can see Anaheim scoring 3+ each game.
Ducks may have a long wait for the Sharks-Kings series to end.
The final matchup out west will definitely be an exciting one. In the battle of SoCal vs the Bay, the #3 San Jose Sharks vs #2 Los Angeles Kings. This series will be physical and action packed.
Last season when both these teams met in the semifinals it took seven games, it’s tough not seeing this series go seven games again.
The home teams went 4-1-0, during the regular season, with the Sharks owning the lone blemish, a 1-0 loss at SAP Center on Jan. 27.
Jonathan Quick has had the Sharks number this season going 2-0-0, including a shutout, and a .930 save percentage. He’ll need everything he has to handle the high octane Sharks offense. Antti Niemi was a different story. He went 2-2-0 with a .910 save percentage.
This series will come down to the goaltending. I don’t see how this series doesn’t go seven games.