Eastern Conference Analysis

To hockey fans this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs have been wildly unpredictable, to say the least.  No one would have expected that the two biggest names in hockey—Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin—would be sent home packing during the first two rounds.  And certainly no one would have predicted that two of the teams fighting desperately just to make the playoffs at the end of the regular season would be the last two teams left in the East by the time the Eastern Conference Finals rolled around. 

Nevertheless, the Philadelphia Flyers and the Montreal Canadiens, the seventh and eighth seeds respectively, battled impressively when the odds were against them during the first two rounds, and their hunger just might earn one of the two a Stanley Cup.  The two underdogs are so evenly-matched, however, that it is difficult to determine which one of the two is likely to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals.  Philadelphia currently leads the series two games to one, with Game 4 of the Conference Finals presently underway on NBC. 

FLYERS

The Flyers’ defensive-mindedness has proved crucial to their success this postseason. Philadelphia’s defensive prowess stems largely from the presence of Chris Pronger, whose 6’6” stature makes him a formidable force to face on the blue line.  The two-time Olympic gold medalist and former Hart Trophy (league MVP) winner also puts up substantial offensive numbers, having scored thirteen points so far this postseason.  So, when combined with the contributions of forwards Danny Briere (18 points), Mike Richards (18 points), and Claude Giroux (14 points), it is no wonder that the Flyers’ well-rounded effort has advanced them so deeply into the playoffs. 

During the opening round, the Flyers steamrolled over the New Jersey Devils, whose lackluster playoff performance has become somewhat standard for the Jersey boys of late.  Philadelphia handled New Jersey with ease and only lost one game to the Atlantic Division Champions before eliminating them.  (The Devils, in fact, have finished first in the Atlantic Division for four out of the last five seasons, yet they have not advanced beyond the first or second round of the playoffs since 2002-2003, their last Stanley Cup-winning season.)  The Flyers primarily focused on shutting down Devils superstar Zach Parise (you might remember him as Team USA’s hero who propelled the team into overtime in the USA-Canada gold medal game), as well as curbing the production of Patrik Elias and recently-acquired megastar Ilya Kovalchuk.  The Flyers held the three New Jersey forwards to a combined total of three goals, shut down the Devils’ power play, and capitalized on their own power play, enabling them to dominate their rivals and to advance to Round 2.

The Flyers have always been considered one of the most physical teams in the league because of their tendency to sign big, powerful players who are not afraid to throw their body weight around.  Nevertheless, Philadelphia’s toughness is not solely physical:  their grit and tenacity have also been integral to their playoff run.  Due largely to the Flyers’ mental resolve, the most surprising and remarkable event overall thus far this postseason has been their comeback after trailing the Boston Bruins three games to zero in the second round.  After the Bruins won their third game in a row, everyone (myself included) considered the series finished and began anticipating what would likely be a Boston-Pittsburgh Eastern Conference matchup.  The Flyers had other plans, though.  They set out to show just how underestimated they were, and they eked out victory after victory, winning most games by only one goal.  By the time Game 6 ended I began to realize that my constant, over-confident assurances to my New England sports-loving cousin, a Massachusetts native, just might be a little ill founded.  The Flyers closed the series with a final 5-4 triumph over the stunned Boston Bruins and their equally bewildered fans at TD Banknorth Garden.  At least the Devils didn’t feel so bad about themselves.

CANADIENS

The Canadiens (or Habs, if you prefer) largely can attribute their third-round presence to outstanding goaltending.  Despite the fact that Habs netminder Jaroslav Halak has faced the most shots (507) of any goalie during the playoffs, he still has one of the highest save percentages.  He has made the necessary saves when it has mattered the most, yet does not fail to dazzle the crowd with chains of jaw-dropping saves that leave people wondering why no one has seen or heard much about this man before now.

Although Montreal’s roster consists of several regularly-contributing players, the team has been able to rely on the consistent spectacular performance of two forwards:  Mike Cammalleri and Brian Gionta.  No one in the league is close to matching Cammalleri’s thirteen playoff goals, which he often scores in pairs and in pivotal games.  Aside from his goal-scoring brilliance, Cammalleri just seems to be everywhere at once.  While watching games I have a hard time keeping track of where Cammalleri is, so I can only imagine how opposing goaltenders must feel.  The same never-ending energy can be said for the 5’5” winger Gionta, whose speed, quick hands, and great play-making instincts have enabled him to net eight goals so far.  Even though Gionta gets knocked around a bit because of his small size, it doesn’t prevent him from battling with players who are sometimes over a foot taller than him.  His fearlessness and feistiness have won the Habs many a game, most recently the team’s Game 7 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins. 

Due to their last place seeding, Montreal faced two very difficult series, matching up first against Washington Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin and then against Pittsburgh Penguins superstars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.  During the first round, Montreal quickly fell to the first place Capitals three games to one.  The Habs had great difficulty controlling Ovechkin, who scored five goals and five assists, as well as Nicklas Backstrom, who netted five goals and four assists of his own.  Nonetheless, with the likes of Cammalleri and Gionta, as well as Andrei Kostitsyn and Tomas Plekanec, the Habs fought back, taking advantage of any opportunities Washington gave them and handing the Caps an early playoff exit. 

The Habs had little time to recover from their exhausting seven-game series, however, before the second round commenced and they took on the better-rested Penguins.  They gave up six goals to the Penguins in the opening game of the series, but once again exhibited their never-ending resilience.  The Habs definitely had their work cut out for them against the defending the Stanley Cup Champions, and, while Montreal did suffer from sloppy, inconsistent play on occasion, the team was able to stymie Crosby and the rest of the Penguins.  Their 5-2 Game 7 victory over the Penguins marked the last game ever played in Pittsburgh’s Mellon Arena.