Stanley Cup 2011 Predictions

My predictions for the 2010-2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals (Round 1)
Washington (1) vs. NY Rangers (8) = Washington in 5 -- RESULT: WASHINGTON in 5
Philadelphia (2) vs. Buffalo (7) = Philadelphia in 6 -- RESULT: PHILADELPHIA in 7
Boston (3) vs. Montreal (6) = Montreal in 6 -- RESULT: BOSTON in 7
Pittsburgh (4) vs. Tampa Bay (5) = Tampa Bay in 6 -- RESULT: TAMPA BAY in 7

Eastern Conference Semifinals (Round 2)

Washington vs. Tampa Bay = Washington in 5 -- RESULT: TAMPA BAY in 4
Philadelphia vs. Boston = Philadelphia in 5 -- RESULT: Boston in 4

Conference Finals (Round 3)
Boston vs. Tampa Bay = Boston in 6 -- RESULT: BOSTON in 7

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Western Conference Quarterfinals (Round 1)
Vancouver (1) vs. Chicago (8) = Vancouver in 5 -- RESULT: VANCOUVER in 7
San Jose (2) vs. Los Angeles (7) = San Jose in 7 -- RESULT: SAN JOSE in 6
Detroit (3) vs. Phoenix (6) = Detroit in 4 -- RESULT: DETROIT in 4
Anaheim (4) vs. Nashville (5) = Anaheim in 7 -- RESULT: NASHVILLE in 6

Western Conference Semifinals (Round 2)
Vancouver vs. Nashville = Vancouver in 5 -- RESULT: VANCOUVER in 6
San Jose vs. Detroit = Detroit in 7 -- RESULT: SAN JOSE in 7

Western Conference Finals (Round 3)
Vancouver vs. San Jose = Vancouver in 6 -- RESULT: VANCOUVER in 5

LORD STANLEY'S CUP
Stanley Cup Finals
Boston vs. Vancouver = Vancouver in 6 -- RESULT: BOSTON in 7

Wow, didn't see this one coming. Vancouver was clearly the more skilled team. Boston has a bit more grit, and a stronger defense, but not nearly the offense. Thomas became the difference. A couple of bad games by Luongo, and a consistently solid performance from Thomas, and the Cup is Boston's. Congratulations Bruins!

Hockey Thoughts

We've had some time to live with the changes in hockey over the last few years, and I have some thoughts.

Rule Changes
I was very much in favor of the new rule changes in hockey after the lockout. Trapping schemes were a drag, and there was way too much clutching and grabbing going on. I thought the officials had been doing a good job of clamping down on this kind of stuff, but sadly I think they're back to allowing it again...and, what's worse is that it's very inconsistent. I still think they need to take the instigator rule out, or at least only enforce it in cases where a player goes WAY out of his way to instigate a fight AND it's not sticking up for one of his fellow players.

The change I'm really not sold on is the shootout. I agree that ending a game in a tie is not a real satisfying outcome. However, a shootout has very little to do with which team played a better game. It has to do with which players are good at breakaways and which goalies are good at stopping them. To me, this is even less satisfying than a tie. Having said that, I'm not sure there is a better solution. The best solution for fans would be to have them keep playing until one team wins. But that's not very realistic for these guys who are playing 82 games a year, often two nights in a row. Still, there has to be a better solution than the shootout.

Fighting
Please, oh please, don't ever take fighting out of hockey. Call it a brutish sport, call it a sad commentary on society, call it whatever you want. The sad fact is, fighting makes hockey better. Yes, there are fans who like fighting more than the rest of what happens on the ice. But more than that, it plays into a team's strategy. Any real hockey fan can cite myriad times that a good fight, won or lost, has changed the momentum - and often the outcome - of a game. We need to finally get rid of this ridiculous instigator rule once and for all, and let the players decide the game...with their fists, or with their goals. It's all part of the sport, and we shouldn't dumb it down for "possible new hockey fans" that don't "get it" in the first place. LET THEM FIGHT!