Rob The Hockey Guy

Well after a stellar 6 for 8 success rate in round 1, Canuckz.com went a woeful 1 for 4 in predicting round 2 (our only correct prediction was bravely picking Chicago to beat Vancouver). With that said, lets set-up round 3, the conference finals:

Western Conference:

(1) San Jose Sharks vs (2) Chicago Blackhawks

Call me crazy, but I still don’t believe in the San Jose Sharks. Sure they got by the Red Wings last round and their most notable playoff chokers have seemingly found their form, but I think that will come to an end in this round. The Blackhawks have a certain moxie that will bother the Sharks. They will push and prod the likes of Thornton, Marleau and Heatley and bother Nabokov. Keith and Seabrook should be able to neutralize the Thornton line, so the key for Chicago will be to shutdown the Sharks second line with the likes of Campbell, Hjalmarsson and Sopel.

Prediction: Blackhawks in 6

(7) Philadelphia Flyers vs (8) Montreal Canadiens

For the first time, a conference final will be played between the two bottom seeds. The Flyers enter this round as a beat up team. They’ve lost Jeff Carter and Brian Boucher in these playoffs and many other players are playing hurt. Remarkably they’ve just kept on marching along. Meanwhile, the Habs have shocked the world with two huge upsets over Washington and Pittsburgh. The key for Montreal will be figuring out how to play without being underdogs. Philadelphia will have to find a way to solve Halak. In the end, I think Montreal is catching the Flyers at the perfect time.

Prediction: Canadiens in 6.