The NHL second round is in full swing and these playoffs are
still wide open with no team asserting much dominance. Let’s catch-up.
Pittsburgh Penguins leads Washington Capitals 2-1
Recap: The Capitals took Game 1 thanks to T.J. Oshie’s hat
trick in overtime, but the Penguins took the thanks two games on the back of
rookie goalie Matt Murray, who made 70 saves on 73 shots in those two games.
Momentum: The Capitals probably have some tight-butts right
now. They cruised in the regular season, scoring at will and getting great
goaltending from Braden Holtby. Now, they’re getting shutdown by a guy no one
had heard of before the playoffs and Holtby has been average at best. We all
know the knock on the Capitals. This core has never made it out of the second
round. All the pressure is on them and they need to win Game 4 if they want to
have any hope. Going down 1-3 to a team as good as Pittsburgh, with a core who
actually has a Cup, is not ideal and the Caps have never shown the type of
resolve to dig themselves out of such a hole.
Outlook: I think the Caps are still the better team. I
certainly didn’t see this coming with Murray, but such are the playoffs. The
Pens have gotten a lot of help from their secondary scoring in this series, and
it’s fair to wonder whether or not that will continue. It’s also fair to wonder
if Sidney Crosby will continue to struggle. This series is going seven and I
still favor the Caps.
Tampa Bay Lightning leads New York Islanders 2-1
Recap: The winning team in each game has scored 4+ goals. So,
score a lot and win.
Momentum: The Lightning have it. They lost Game 1 when Ben
Bishop looked human, but that was never going to continue. He bounced back in
Game 2, although the defense in front of him certainly tightened up as well.
The Islanders had Game 3 won until Tampa Bay scored in the final minute with
the goalie pulled and then won OT after a questionable hit by Brian Boyle.
Outlook: The Islanders have to get more from John Tavares
and the top line. Tampa’s defense has smothered them and unless they breakout,
the Islanders aren’t long for these playoffs.
San Jose Sharks leads Nashville Predators 2-1
Recap: The home team has yet to lose.
Momentum: Even though the Predators won Game 3 and have Game
4 at home, I still give momentum to the Sharks. They were the best road team in
the league during the regular season. Things didn’t go well in Game 3, but this
team is still in a really good position to win this series.
Outlook: Pekka Rinne finally looked like Pekka Rinne in Game
3 and the Predators defense as a whole looked a lot better. Can they keep
scoring 3-4 goals a game? I have my doubts.
St. Louis Blues leads Dallas Stars 2-1
Recap: The Stars somehow won a low scoring Game 1. The Blues
scored ten goals in the next two games to take the series lead.
Momentum: All St. Louis. Prior to this series, I said the
Stars scoring would slow down and the Blues would grind out games. It turns
out, their scoring has slowed down and the Blues have picked it up. The Stars
are a mess in goal and defensively.
Outlook: This Blues team is playing with a ton of confidence
after defeating the Blackhawks in round one and are an extremely scary team
right now. They’re also a bad match-up for Dallas. Unless Tyler Seguin returns
and lights a fire under Dallas, they aren’t long for the playoffs.
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