Stanley+Cup+Playoffs+2009

__ The 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs __ The Stanley Cup Playoffs. Where the best of the best of the best come to play for the most prized possession in hockey. The Stanley Cup. The Stanley Cup Playoffs is where the top 8 teams from the east and west conference face-off against each other. Teams play harder, better, and faster in the playoffs. The first round was set. Boston Bruins vs. Montreal Canadiens, Washington Capitals vs. New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils vs. Carolina Hurricanes, and the Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Philadelphia Flyers. This was for the eastern conference. The first series I would like to talk about is Boston vs. Montreal. This series was full of hits, goals, and fights. These two teams are rivals. Boston swept the Montreal Canadiens in 4 games winning the series 4-0. The most interesting moment in my opinion was when Carey Price (Montreal goalie), threw his hands in the air, similar to what Patrick Roy did as his last game as a Canadien. It rose the question to the media, and the world, will Carey Price leave the Canadiens? The second series was the Washington Capitals vs. Carolina. This series was one of the most exciting series’ going to 7 games. Washington quickly went down 3-1 in the series and fought their way back to 3-3 with stellar performances by Alexander Ovechkin, Simeon Varlamov, and Alexander Semin. Alexander Ovechkin was scoring every game, Alexander Semin getting a point each game, and Simeon Varlamov the AHL goalie coming to play in the NHL who was stopping every single puck that came at him. In the end, Washington ended up winning game 7, giving them a spot in the Eastern Conference semi finals. The third series was New Jersey vs. Carolina. This was probably the most under rates series’. This series went to 7 games as well. In game 7 New Jersey had a lead going into the last minute of the game. Carolina than scored a goal with their goalie pulled to tie it up. But with 30 seconds left, Eric Staal came down the wing and took a harmless looking wrist shot, but it went in! The Hurricanes had won the series. The final series in the eastern conference was Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia. Pittsburgh took the series in 6 games, with amazing performances from Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Marc-Andre Fleury. In the west, the first round looked like this. San Jose vs. Anaheim, Detroit vs. Columbus, Vancouver vs. St. Louis, and Chicago vs. Calgary. The first series was San Jose vs. Anaheim. This was perhaps the biggest upset of the playoffs. Anaheim took the series in 5 games (4-1). Jonas Hiller (goalie) stood on his head in the series giving Anaheim that extra push in the series. The second series was Detroit vs. Columbus. This series was really no contest for the Wings. Columbus was an in-experienced team that had never made the playoffs. Detroit easily swept them in 4 games. The third series as Vancouver vs. St. Louis. Similar to Columbus, St. Louis was in-experienced. Vancouver, like Detroit, swept St. Louis. The final series was Chicago vs. Calgary. Similar to Columbus and St. Louis, Chicago was a young in-experienced team. But unlike the others Chicago found a way to defeat the hard-hitting Calgary Flames in 6 games. In the East, the eastern semi finals was set, with Boston vs. Carolina, and Washington vs. Pittsburgh. The Boston vs. Carolina series went to 7 games. Boston quickly went down 3-1 in the series but fought their way back to force game 7. Game 7 was extremely exciting. The game went to overtime, but grinder Scott Walker crushed Boston’s hopes, by scoring the winning goal in overtime. The other series (Washington vs. Pittsburgh) also went to 7 games. This was possibly the best series any one could ask for with Alexander Ovechkin vs. Sidney Crosby. This series lived up to it’s expectations with Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby playing their best hockey. But game 7 turned out to be a huge disappointment with Pittsburgh winning the game 6-2. In the West, the western semi finals was set, with Detroit vs. Anaheim, and Vancouver vs. Chicago. The series went to 7 games with Detroit winning in game 7. The Red Wings had a hard time defeating the aggressive Anaheim Ducks. But the high powered offense of the Wings found a way to beat the stellar Jonas Hiller. The other series was Chicago vs. Vancouver. At first Chicago could not find a way to beat Roberto Luongo, and was losing the series. But as the series progressed on, Chicago found a way to beat Luongo. In game 6 Chicago had a chance to win the series, and they capitalized with Patrick Kane scoring 2 goals leading Chicago to victory in 6 games. Now, for the conference finals. In the east, it was Pittsburgh vs. Carolina, and in the west it was Detroit vs. Chicago. In the east, Pittsburgh was taking on the underdogs the Hurricanes. People thought that the Hurricanes would give Pittsburgh a run for their money, but with Evgeni Malkin and Crosby putting on a show in all of the games, Carolina couldn’t handle Pittsburgh’s skill. In the west, the young Hawks were taking on the experienced Wings. The Wings took a 2-0 series lead, and everyone thought it was over for the Hawks, but in game 3 the Hawks fought back, and won game 3. But in the end, the Wings won it in 5. The Wings were too much to handle for the young Hawks. The Stanley Cup Finals. Pittsburgh vs. Detroit. This is a rematch of last year’s final. But this time, Pittsburgh will be ready. Last year, Pittsburgh was happy just to be in the finals, but this year they are ready to win. But on the other side, the Detroit Red Wings, probably the best team in the NHL, has come here several times, and will be ready for the high flying Penguins. In game 1, Detroit won 3-1 over Pittsburgh, and Pittsburgh is ready to fight back in game 2. But in the end, I predict the Wings will win in 6.