Eastern Showdown

Tampa Bay vs Pittsburgh
Finally get some quiet time and I feel fine enough to type.

The Lightning - how did they get here?

First Round - 5 games over Detroit
Detroit was out-matched at every angle. Datsyuk never looked Datsyuk-like. In the games I watched, I might have seen one sick move and maybe one of his slick wristers. It isn't enough and wasn't. Tampa looked very good, but I dismissed a lot of the strong success because it was a thinned-out Detroit and their top players weren't effective. Looking back, they weren't effective because the likes of Hedman and the other defensemen are solid and speedy.

Second Round - 5 games over the New York Islanders

The Islanders were certainly more competition. They dismissed Florida in 6 games and although the Panthers had holes in their game, I didn't believe the Isles were deep enough to exploit them. They did and looked solid doing so.  Tampa, however, surprising me again with their ability to shut down the Isles and the Isles lack of forward depth was too much to overcome. Again, I blamed the competition more than crediting the Lightning. Looking back, the Lightning, without Stamkos and Stralman - big minutes and top skill guys - are still deep on talent for their system. Hedman is looking like Chara in his prime.

The Penguins - how did they get here.

First Round - 5 games over the New York Rangers
This went very much as expected. Lundqvist (as all goalies) wasn't enough to stop Pittsburgh three lines and the Rangers' lack of speed hurt them going both directions. Hard to know what Pittsburgh had going for them from this series. It was just a bad matchup. Looking back - nothing changes. Pittsburgh won in every area of the ice.

Second Round - 6 games over Washington

This was somewhat of a surprise. Mainly in how ineffective the Caps were at scoring. They generated chances and were able to counter the Pens' speed, they just couldn't put it in the net. Some of that is the solid play of Pittsburgh 2nd/3rd string goalie, Matt Murray. Some of it was just the inept plays by some of the Caps' go-to players. I don't how many times I watched the Caps blow a rush with a bad pass. Or blow a solid scoring opportunity with a shot on the ice to one of Murray's leg pads. The Caps powerplay which has run effectively through Ovechkin all season (and for years) couldn't get creative once the Pens started allowing Ovie the shot, they would overplay that shot and he basically had to place it high and to the corner every time - didn't happen. Pens win - handily!

After those two rounds, I was totally leaning to Pittsburgh for the Conference Finals win. I was believing in Tampa more but still unsure of their speed. If the Pens get the break and transition game working, they enter the zone with good control and they have a lot of finishers. This is still the case. However, after game one, I have to say, the Lightning have the speed to match all of the Pens' lines and Hedman is truly shining.

The next game will tell a lot. No matter who wins, it will be interesting to see if the Pens can have impact with their speed. Can Hedman and company continue getting their sticks on the puck, disrupting the Pens' offense? Both teams had chances but the Pens' chances were nothing like they have had in the first two rounds.

I am certainly respecting the Lightning. Their speed is solid. And they may be the best finishing team in the league. If Stamkos and Stralman return and don't mess up the flow - they might actually win the Cup this year.