There's just a dozen games or so left for each team, and bubble teams know that they must make a final push for the playoffs. Any team that can put together a win-streak of five games from this point on can almost guarantee a ticket to the post-season. As well, teams that take advantage of the "four-point" games will clearly earn the spoils of victory.
Last week, the four-point story was between the Detroit Red Wings and the Calgary Flames. The two teams would battle for positioning for the 8th and final place in the playoff standings, with the Red Wings capturing a 2-1 victory over the Flames. With that win, Detroit has just a two-point lead over the Flames, and at the end of the season, if Calgary is out by two points or less, they can easily argue that this game was literally a season-changer. These games prove so critical that an 82-game season can be determined by one game.
This week, the story moves east to the US Northeast, where the Boston Bruins, currently holding down the final spot in the playoffs, face the three teams directly below them in the standings: Atlanta Thrashers, New York Rangers, and Tampa Bay Lightening.
The team just wrapped up a media-circus of a game against the Penguins. A few days back, Cooke knocked out their star player, Marc Savard, who has the best points-per-game average on the team. The team was looking for revenge. Now that this game has passed, the team must refocus on winning games and making it to the playoffs.
The final eight teams, including the Carolina Hurricanes, the New York Islanders, the Florida Panthers, and the Toronto Maple Leafs are all separated by just ten points. Let's not forget how poorly the 'Canes and the Leafs were before the trade deadline, and suddenly, the playoffs are actually attainable.
The Boston Bruins control their own destiny here. The team will face every team, except the New York Islanders at least one more time in their final dozen. Simply put, win these four-point games and no team has a chance at catching them. Lose even just three of the six, and the Bruins will miss the playoffs (yes a bold prediction). It also doesn't help that the other five games are against the Buffalo Sabres, the New Jersey Devils, the Washington Capitals (twice), and the Calgary Flames. The first three teams are leading their respective divisions.
As a prediction, Boston must win five, that's right, five of these six four-point games to make the playoffs. This will prevent them from having to win against the best teams in the East and prevents the chasing teams to gain any ground.
It is clearly too early to tell, but the final spot for the playoffs might come down to Saturday April 10, where Carolina and Boston meet to finish their season. Carolina, who was the worst team in the league before the Oilers crashed and burned, is now one of the hottest teams in the league. This team has captured a lot of momentum and recently had an 8-game winning streak, propelling them into a three-way tie for 11th, and just 6 points (3 wins) back of Boston.
Atlanta has also put on a mini-streak recently, currently with three consecutive wins and only behind by one point, although with one more game played. These two teams will meet Tuesday March 23, but prior, the Bruins will play the Rangers Sunday March 21, and the Thrashers will face the Flyers on the same day.
Normally, I do not follow the Eastern Conference races. It has never been this exciting, especially since Southeast Division teams are so far behind, but this year, it is hard to believe that all fifteen teams may be fighting for a playoff spot by April 1. This is the best drama any hockey fan could ever dream of.
Boston Bruins the key to the East Playoffs
There's just a dozen games or so left for each team, and bubble teams know that they must make a final push for the playoffs. Any team that can put together a win-streak of five games from this point on can almost guarantee a ticket to the post-season. As well, teams that take advantage of the "four-point" games will clearly earn the spoils of victory.
Last week, the four-point story was between the Detroit Red Wings and the Calgary Flames. The two teams would battle for positioning for the 8th and final place in the playoff standings, with the Red Wings capturing a 2-1 victory over the Flames. With that win, Detroit has just a two-point lead over the Flames, and at the end of the season, if Calgary is out by two points or less, they can easily argue that this game was literally a season-changer. These games prove so critical that an 82-game season can be determined by one game.
This week, the story moves east to the US Northeast, where the Boston Bruins, currently holding down the final spot in the playoffs, face the three teams directly below them in the standings: Atlanta Thrashers, New York Rangers, and Tampa Bay Lightening.
The team just wrapped up a media-circus of a game against the Penguins. A few days back, Cooke knocked out their star player, Marc Savard, who has the best points-per-game average on the team. The team was looking for revenge. Now that this game has passed, the team must refocus on winning games and making it to the playoffs.
The final eight teams, including the Carolina Hurricanes, the New York Islanders, the Florida Panthers, and the Toronto Maple Leafs are all separated by just ten points. Let's not forget how poorly the 'Canes and the Leafs were before the trade deadline, and suddenly, the playoffs are actually attainable.
The Boston Bruins control their own destiny here. The team will face every team, except the New York Islanders at least one more time in their final dozen. Simply put, win these four-point games and no team has a chance at catching them. Lose even just three of the six, and the Bruins will miss the playoffs (yes a bold prediction). It also doesn't help that the other five games are against the Buffalo Sabres, the New Jersey Devils, the Washington Capitals (twice), and the Calgary Flames. The first three teams are leading their respective divisions.
As a prediction, Boston must win five, that's right, five of these six four-point games to make the playoffs. This will prevent them from having to win against the best teams in the East and prevents the chasing teams to gain any ground.
It is clearly too early to tell, but the final spot for the playoffs might come down to Saturday April 10, where Carolina and Boston meet to finish their season. Carolina, who was the worst team in the league before the Oilers crashed and burned, is now one of the hottest teams in the league. This team has captured a lot of momentum and recently had an 8-game winning streak, propelling them into a three-way tie for 11th, and just 6 points (3 wins) back of Boston.
Atlanta has also put on a mini-streak recently, currently with three consecutive wins and only behind by one point, although with one more game played. These two teams will meet Tuesday March 23, but prior, the Bruins will play the Rangers Sunday March 21, and the Thrashers will face the Flyers on the same day.
Normally, I do not follow the Eastern Conference races. It has never been this exciting, especially since Southeast Division teams are so far behind, but this year, it is hard to believe that all fifteen teams may be fighting for a playoff spot by April 1. This is the best drama any hockey fan could ever dream of.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
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hockey, march madness, boxing, MMA, it's a sports heaven of a month.
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