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Abel to Yzerman

Pick ‘em

by IwoCPO on 03/20/08 at 03:35 PM ET
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We’re down to approximately two weeks and three potential first round opponents.  Let’s play make believe for a minute and assume the teams that make up the top eight in the West will, in one order or another, stay the same.  That leaves the trio of teams tied with 84 this morning, and two others we’ll discuss for good measure.

If the playoffs started today….

(1) Detroit vs. (8) Denver
(2) San Jose vs. (7) Calgary
(3) Minnesota vs. (6) Vancouver
(4) Anaheim vs. (5) Dallas

Naturally, we like that; and we like it for a variety of reasons.  Yes, laying waste to the Dive sounds like a glorious way to begin the Spring.  Fun, most likely violent, and most certainly satisfying.  From our narrow-minded fan’s perspective, it is the matchup of choice.  More than that though, Denver’s the team we want to start with because they offer the best chance for a quick series.

Why?  Jose Theodore has to prove to me that he’s ready for the playoff pressure of a series between Denver and Detroit.  His second-half surge means little to me, just as his pre-Dive record and existence mean little.  Scared of Forsberg?  Don’t be.  In fact, his presence may actually benefit whichever opponent the Dive play first round patsy to.

Dater

He fires up the opposing team, and crowd, too much by trying to be Steve McQueen on the ice and going after anyone who hits him. What happens is, Player X from the other team lays a big hit on him. Foppa gets mad and either tries to run said player, or lifts his hands in frustration to the ref over a non-call. Then the home crowd gets into it, mocking Foppa for whining and the home team gets into it because they know they’re getting Foppa off his game mentally, so they keep hitting him.

So, by then, Foppa is rattled, the home crowd makes it a sport to mock him and goes nuts when the next home team player lays the next hit on him.

Can you think of anything more fun than that?

If you read the rest of Dater’s blog, as well as the Dive bloggers—a refreshingly and, at times, surprisingly honest lot—you’ll see that the general consensus is that Forsberg is a step slow, and plenty frustrated. Good.  Smyth is also slumping and their defense is still—even with Columbus’ version of Pronger, Adam Foote—weak.

So, yeah, Denver’s our preference for the first round.

Second?  Vancouver.  And, sentiment aside, they should be the first preference.  But you’re scared.  You’re frightened of Bobby Luongo and the memories he stirs of Roloson and Giguere and Kipper.  You’ve seen that flick before, the weak offensive team who can’t muster more than 17 shots/game backstopped by a superhuman bastard who turns away fifty. 

Luongo makes me sad.  I don’t like him personally.  I feel he doesn’t have my family’s best interests at heart and I don’t think I want them exposed to the kind of cruelty he can inflict on us.  I’d prefer he just went on his way, another direction, somewhere like San Jose or Minnesota.  The Wings realistically should have no problem with this one-player team, but history tells me to keep the bucket close.

Third?  Calgary.  While Vancouver makes me itch a bit due to the presence of Bobby Luongo, Calgary has an even greater effect because I believe (no…I know) Kiprusoff can stifle us just as painfully as Luongo can.  Then you throw in a dose of Iginla and my blood pressure begins to rise.  We’ve had success in the past, and continue to enjoy a level of it, shutting down a team’s star player.  But, Iginla’s having a different kind of year.  In my opinion, he’s a Hart finalist and I’d prefer if he just stayed the hell away from us too.

Wildcard:  Edmonton.  No. Thank. You.  They’re too hot.  They’re having way too much fun.  They’re too young to realize they have no business making the playoffs and definitely too young to realize they would have no business beating Detroit. We don’t need that team in our lives. 

Denver? Bring ‘em.  I like it.  Bubba?  Sure. Squeek in there boys.  We’ll take you too.  Vancouver?  Prefer to avoid, but we’ll take our chances.  Calgary?  Something nags at me about that matchup. 

If all goes according to plan, here’s how the second round should shake out:

Wings/Poultry
Minnie/NoCal

Just typing that pisses me off. If you expect to read anything coherent during a Detroit/Anaheim series, you’ll be in the wrong place.
 

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Welcome to Abel to Yzerman, a Red Wing blog since 1977.  No other site on the internet has better-researched, fact-laden and better prepared discussions than A2Y.  Re-phrase: we do little research, find facts and stats highly overrated and claim little to no preparation.  There are 19 readers of A2Y. No more, no less. All of them, except maybe one, are juvenile in nature.  Reminding them of that in the comment section will only encourage them to prove that. Your suggestions and critiques are welcome: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

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