Stanley Cup Finals preview

By Rick Morris

After three consecutive Sun Belt vs. Canada matchups that did nothing to engage the interest of American sports fans with at least a casual interest in hockey, this year's Stanley Cup Finals deliver the NHL's dream matchup: the new face of the NHL, Sidney Crosby, and his team with a legacy of Cup championships from the early 1990s against the franchise deemed "Team of the 1990s" by The Hockey News, the ultimate love-them-or-hate-them team in the sport. If this Pittsburgh vs. Detroit clash fails to engage the public's interest, the league is going to have to take a long look in the mirror to find out what can be done to resuscitate interest in the U.S. -- because this showdown is as good as it gets. Putting the first two games of the Finals on an invisible channel nobody gets certainly doesn't help matters.

Before any analysis commences here, check out this great piece from frequent Lounge guest and NHL.com columnist John Kreiser and this column from Lounge friend Russ Cohen of Hockeyology.

These are clearly the two best teams in the NHL right now and it's not very often in any sport that the absolute best duo squares off at the end. Take last year for example: it was by no means certain going into the Finals that Anaheim and Ottawa were the two best teams because Detroit arguably was at least on a par with the Sens. Actually, by the time the Finals were over and Ottawa got squashed, it was apparent to most that the Ducks had actually beaten the second-best team of '06-'07 in the Western Conference Finals. But this year Detroit set a team record with nine consecutive playoff wins en route to a 12-4 playoff record and Pittsburgh bested them with an almost unheard-of 12-2 mark. These two are the best, folks, plain and simple. Given the magnitude of what Dallas accomplished in knocking off two of what were perceived as the West's "Big Three" (Anaheim and San Jose) prior to facing the Wings, the Stars would definitely displace the Wings as the clear-cut best team in the West had they won -- but, notwithstanding a heroic-but-doomed comeback once down 0-3, they did not.

Despite the fact that the Finals feature the league's two best teams of 2008, the goaltending picture in this series is unlikely to say the least. Marc-Andre Fleury was a super-high upside prospect coming into the league, but took his time developing over these past few years. Even now, he's been at an elite level for such a short time, essentially the latter part of this season, that it's hard to ascertain whether he's at the point of realizing his potential. Detroit's Chris Osgood is somebody who this columnist previously proclaimed a hugely underrated and underappreciated backstopper and he has vindicated that proclamation, even if it's been aided by some of the greatest help a goalie could ever receive from his blue line. The guess here is that anyone waiting for either of these goalies to wilt in this series will be disappointed -- and Dom Hasek is about as likely to suit up in this series as Gordie Howe is.

The Wings have a huge edge on the blue line, with "Norris" Nick Lidstrom anchoring what is arguably the greatest defense core of the Hockeytown era -- and that covers tremendous ground. For the Pens, Sergei Gonchar has proven this year that he is much more than a forward stationed on the blue line and the commitment to defense has been impressive for Pittsburgh in this postseason. But realistically, this position presents the biggest gap in talent between the teams.

As great as Detroit is offensively, this squad doesn't even begin to approach the firepower of the legendary '02 team (the apex of the team's pre-cap success) and is not on a par with Pittsburgh's "O." The Crosby-Malkin-Hossa power play combo rates right up there with any in the history of the league and it's up to the Wings to stay out of the "sin bin" because even their amazing penalty kill unit would be stretched to the limits by the Penguins' capabilities.

One of the key questions in this series is whether the Wings will have the services of newly-minted dominator Johan Franzen, who against all odds emerged as an unstoppable goal-scorer down the stretch and in the playoffs. "The Mule" continues to be plagued by post-concussion symptoms but is hopeful of playing later in the series. The team will not risk his health under any circumstances. The guess here is that he'll be in for the latter part of the series and if so, he'll make a tremendous difference. Detroit is already thinner than Pittsburgh offensively and they struggled a bit offensively at times in the Western Conference Finals. As strange as it would have sounded mere months ago, Franzen is of huge importance to the Winged Wheel inasmuch as G.M. Ken Holland rolled the dice and elected not to try to pick up another top-two line forward at the trade deadline.

Two interesting notes that won't get much media play: Cleveland sits almost right in between the two cities and is a sort of "demilitarized zone" for two decent-sized fanbases -- and in a league powered by expansion into brand-new arenas, these Finals feature two of the league's dinosaur facilities.

Now, the prediction: an anticipated return of Franzen late in the series will, with the help of the league's best blue line (sorry, Anaheim) that features among other things bone-rattler Nik Kronwall, help Detroit to win its fourth Stanley Cup since 1997. Red Wings in 6.

For the record, first-round predictions were 6-2, second-round prognostications were 1-3 and third-round picks were 2-0.

Stanley Cup Conference Finals predictions

By Rick Morris

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS
Pittsburgh over Philadelphia in 6

WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS
Detroit over Dallas in 6

STANLEY CUP FINALS
Detroit over Pittsburgh in 6

After starting out 6-2 in the first round of the playoffs, I slumped to 1-3 in the second round. The common denominator in both rounds was that I was wrong about Dallas and Philly both times. Both teams have red-hot goalies who could make a tremendous difference in a series, and frankly, I think they're the best two goalies remaining at this time (notwithstanding Chris Osgood's excellent season and 6-0 record since taking over in the first round of the playoffs). I discussed these series as length with SportsTalkNetwork.com hockey analyst Kyle O'Rourke on our program THE GOON SQUAD last night and we split on the West finals. I had been leaning towards Dallas because of their incredible run against the powerful Anaheim and San Jose squads thus far in the postseason. They look like a team of destiny. And yet, I find myself leaning towards the Winged Wheel because teams with an easier track to the Finals have tended to advance there more consistently over time -- and their high-end players (i.e. Lidstrom, Zetterberg, Datsyuk) are better than Dallas' top guns with the exception of Marty Turco. It's hard for me as an admitted diehard Wings fan to reverse my initial gut feeling that Dallas would move on without facing accusations of homerism -- but I'm not going to reverse my final position on this merely out of fear of what others might say. Take the East, for example, which features the Penguins, and I as a native Clevelander have been born and bred to loathe all things Pittsburgh. But I think the Pens' dominant offense and underrated defense will combine to overwhelm the Flyers in the end. I pick this series to go six just because I don't want to risk completely underestimating Philly, but I don't think they can hang in the end. That would set up the Wings and Penguins in the Finals. Can my heart handle it? It's going to have to!

For more thoughts, check out the analysis of our pal Russ Cohen at Hockeyology.

Stanley Cup Playoffs -- Predictions Part II

By Rick Morris

6-2 record in the first round this year, but in all fairness it was mostly chalk advancing.

EASTERN CONFERENCE
SECOND ROUND
Montreal over Philadelphia in 6
New York Rangers over Pittsburgh in 7

CONFERENCE FINALS
New York Rangers over Montreal in 6

WESTERN CONFERENCE
SECOND ROUND
Detroit over Colorado in 6
San Jose over Dallas in 5

CONFERENCE FINALS
Detroit over San Jose in 7

STANLEY CUP FINALS
Detroit over New York Rangers in 6

NOTES
I stated that Anaheim was the team to beat going into the playoffs, followed by Detroit, followed by San Jose. The Ducks' shocking collapse leaves the Winged Wheel atop the charts in my book right now. The revival of the Avs rivalry will be epic. As for Dallas, I'm really sticking my neck out, but I believe their first-round blow-through was flukish. Montreal should skate circles around the Philly blue line and I believe the Rangers' experience will win out in the closest second-round series.

Fun Timewasters: Video Clips

By Rick Morris

From time to time, we try to accommodate our Lounge content consumers who just want some fun, light entertainment. Hence this edition of our Video Clips series, entitled "Fun Timewasters."

These are simply some video clips that you can enjoy and consume in the form of good, mindless entertainment. On with the show!

In honor of "Big Ben" Wallace bringing back the 'fro just in time for he and Lebron James to lead a spanking of the overrated Wiz in the playoffs, we honor the man with the greatest 'fro ever, Billy Preston (sorry, Oscar Gamble!). After elbowing Gilbert Arenas in the head at some point during the series, I'd like to see Wallace stand over him and croon, "Don't you remember I told you? I'm a soldier. In the war on poverty!"



Now that's old school! No pyro, no promos, just pro wrestling 1930s-style! Ed "Strangler" Lewis brings the noise.



If it's springtime, it's that time of year when our thoughts turn to brutal mayhem in hockey rinks during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. To celebrate, I bring to you the top five Bob Probert fights of all time!



The Barack Obama-Pastor Wright 12-inch dance remix.



Our Senior Editor Jason Jones says Rashard Mendenhall is actually the best running back in next weekend's NFL Draft. Judge for yourself.



This isn't a new clip; it's from a few years ago, but I don't care, I'm posting it anyway. It might well be the best feel-good video clip I've ever seen. Jason McElwain outdoes every sports movie ever with an out-of-this-world performance.

Stanley Cup Playoffs -- Predictions Part I

By Rick Morris

We will be updating Stanley Cup Playoff predictions on the blog subsequently as the different rounds ensue.

EASTERN CONFERENCE
FIRST ROUND
(1) Montreal over (8) Boston in 5
(2) Pittsburgh over (7) Ottawa in 5
(3) Washington over (6) Philadelphia in 7
(5) New York Rangers over (4) New Jersey in 7

SECOND ROUND
(5) New York Rangers over (1) Montreal in 6
(2) Pittsburgh over (3) Washington over 6

CONFERENCE FINALS
(2) Pittsburgh over (5) New York Rangers in 6

WESTERN CONFERENCE
FIRST ROUND
(1) Detroit over (8) Nashville in 5
(2) San Jose over (7) Calgary in 7
(6) Colorado over (3) Minnesota in 6
(4) Anaheim over (5) Dallas in 5

SECOND ROUND
(1) Detroit over (6) Colorado in 6
(4) Anaheim over (2) San Jose in 6

CONFERENCE FINALS
(4) Anaheim over (1) Detroit in 6

STANLEY CUP FINALS
Anaheim over Pittsburgh in 6

EASTERN CONFERENCE THOUGHTS
Some of these first-round series really evoke memories of days gone by. Montreal and Boston have one of the most heated rivalries in any sport and if you don't believe me, check out the vicious smack between their fans on some message boards. Boston's way too banged-up to even make this a series, though. The Sens can't stand up to the Pens right now, either; I see Ottawa and Boston as being the only teams with NO chance of coming out of the East (with the Flyers just barely avoiding being placed on that level). Jersey and the Rangers will evoke memories of the mid-90s when they get it on and I think the winner of this series will be well-positioned going forward. Ultimately, the skill level of Pittsburgh makes them the favorite out East in my mind and I think that Montreal is as unimposing a #1 seed as we've seen in either conference in a long time. Parity is the watchword here.

WESTERN CONFERENCE THOUGHTS
As a diehard Red Wings fan, it pains me to say that my team is not the favorite notwithstanding the Presidents' Trophy, but I believe as I did at the trade deadline that this team is one big-scoring forward away from getting past Anaheim. Basically, the Ducks, Red Wings and Sharks are the top teams in that order, with everyone else save Nashville having at least a chance at some kind of run. The West may very well hinge on which of the "Big Three" teams will have to play each other in the second round (assuming they all advance that far, which I think they will), although I don't have it shaking out that way presently. With names such as McCarty, Foote and Forsberg migrating home, the Wings and Avs seem destined for one more battle for old time's sake this spring and it would be an awesome reinvigoration of what was sports' best rivalry back at the turn of the decade. The Ducks' hot play down the stretch with most of last year's core finally intact indicates that they are still the team to beat, although Detroit's ability to come close to matching blue-line-for-blue-line will make for a fascinating twist on what might become the game's next great rivalry.

If you are participating in a fantasy league for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and you bloody well should be, we urge you to check out our draft board on our fantasy blog. In terms of combined quality and quantity, this two-month journey is the greatest event on the sports calendar each year and we advise you to check it out if you are in the fortunate 1% of Americans receiving the Versus channel!