Opinion

With all due respect to Jim Mora—playoffs?!—the ‘real’ season starts this week in both the NBA, and the ninth major...hockey.  
 
Time to fire up the clichés: 
‘We don’t care who we play’, 
‘We’re not just happy to be in the playoffs’, 

Eleven years ago the Capitals made their only trip to the Stanley Cup Finals.  You can see Captain Dale Hunter taking the puck to the net.  The Caps lost the series 4 - 0 to the Red Wings. 

Can the Capitals make a second venture to the finals?  Good question. The journey will start with the Rangers on Wednesday night (4/15/2009).  Game two is also at the Phone Booth (Verizon Center (formerly MCI Center)) on Saturday at 1pm. 

Did you ever have that moment during a game, one that either aggravates or elates?

Did you ever wonder, when reflecting on that moment, what the reaction must have been from the opponent’s fans?

Wonder no more because ‘Ol Revo has an idea.

As your Flyers community leader, I figured, of course I felt compelled to bring everyone my opinion on this Keystone matchup part II. But, as usual I always like to above and beyond for everyone who reads my article.

In this first-round matchup preview between The Flyers and Penguins, me and co-CL Alan Bass will give you the comparisons of forwards, defense, and goaltending, then finishing with our series prediction.

Let's drop the puck, shall we:

Forwards:

No doubt has the 2008-2009 Penguins Hockey season been a shocker. Where at one point, it didn’t seem they’d ever get a playoff spot. Yet they came back to prove to us all that they are still the team that played in the Stanley Cup last year.

This whole season included a lot of good, bad, and ugly. As the playoffs approach, a review of these games (wins, losses, goals etc.) and players seems almost necessary.

The year is over and I'm sure management in Montreal have a lot of questions. What a circus this year was, more than it usually is! Strange accusations, players under-performing, criticism, trade rumours.

I'm sure fans and players are happy the year is over and the team is making the payoffs. So here is my Montreal Canadiens Annual Review, just quick notes about the players.

Offense:

Alex Kovalev: 78 GP, 26 goals, 39 assists, 65 points

Last Friday night the St. Louis Blues clinched their first postseason slot since 2004.  All around, St. Louis fans could be heard saying "I don't care where we finish, as long as we don't have to play Detroit."

Well, Blues fans got their wish Sunday as the team finished the regular season with a 1-0 shutout of Western Conference doormat Colorado.

In doing so, the team vaulted into sixth place and earned a first round match-up with the Vancouver Cauncks—a team who is equally as hot as the Blues down the stretch, and with arguably the leagues best goaltender.

It seems as though every time the Boston Bruins meet the Montreal Canadiens, it is surrounded by a playoff atmosphere. Perhaps it is the age old rivalry itself that ignites these players to go that extra mile and makes every clash between these Original Six teams one to remember.

Whatever the reason, whenever these two teams meet in the playoffs, the battles get grittier, the saves get bigger, the goals get better, and the term "blood, sweat and tears" becomes more literal than metaphorical.

The Blackhawks came a long way this year from last.  Typically awards are given to those who scored the most goals or were the most popular players on the team.  I have chosen to pass out awards for the intangibles provided as well as awards for those who need to show us more.

The Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens seem to meet every postseason.

But then again maybe they should, because you never know what will happen when these two fierce Original Six rivals come together in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

However, this season the Bruins have the upper hand by claiming the top seed in the East. 

The Habs are the team who seem to be in disarray.  The Habs lost their last four regular season games. And Boston has beaten the Habs quite convincingly having taken five out of six games during the regular season.