matchup armchair FINAL
May 20th, 2008 by Ian11-3 overall, very nice so far. i picked the Pens for the Final when this whole parade started but i had them facing the Sharks when the time came. then after how sluggish the Sharks looked against the Flames and how sharp the Stars looked against the Ducks i changed my mind and started believing that it was going to be the Wings going there from the West. that doesn’t help me win my pools since i had to shift gears too late though.
i really do think this is going to be a classic Final. these 2 teams look very similar to me, they both have elite offenses full of elite names. in fact i say this series will come down to who has the better D options.
i’m a Sid fan, i really am, but the Red Wings are going to be the 2008 champions. you probably didn’t hear it here first but still, you heard it here. i’d very much like the Pens to win this but i just don’t see it happening. i’ll give the elite offensive edge to the Pens simply because Sid and Gene are phenomenal talents but at the same time, Zett and Datsyuk are no slouches. there was plenty of talk this season about how both Zetterberg and Datsyuk are viable Hart trophy options and they are … even though they aren’t nominated. i even like Fleury more than Osgood but still, it won’t be enough. the difference in this series is in D depth. Lidstrom, Kronwall, and Rafalski are among the best 2 way D’s in the game, particularly Lidstrom. against that the Pens can only throw Gonchar (who i love), the promise of Whitney and Letang (who haven’t shown enough for me) and several options who seldom cross the opposing blueline (not that defensive D aren’t valuable).
the Wings don’t allow shots so they can afford not to have a superstar goalie. they’re having their blueline patrolled by superstars and that’s where the difference will be. this will be a hard-fought, interesting series with the Wings coming out on top in game 7 at home surrounded by adoring fans.
sorry to say it but Sid will have to start his dynasty NEXT year.
Posted in armchair