NHL Finals Predictions

Let the comparisons commence. The NHL finals will be a repeat of the previous year's matchup for the first time since the 1983-84 finals, which was a repeat of the '82-83. Two two teams that clashed twice in a row were the incumbent New York Islanders and the up and coming Edmonton Oilers, led by, of course, Wayne Gretzky and his posse of young offensive superstars. The number of similarities are many.

1) 5 Stanley Cups

Like the Islanders, the Red Wings are going for their 5th Stanley Cup in recent years. While the Islanders won it four times in a row before their loss to the Oilers, the Red Wings won their first in 1997. Still, no one in the last 12 years has come close to matching the number of cups the Red Wings have won. The only team that has won more than one is the New Jersey Devils, who won in 2000 and 2003. Like the Islanders, the Red Wings are trying to continue a dynasty and win their 5th cup in the expansion era. 

2) Hall of Fame Defenseman

For the Islanders, it was Dennis Potvin; for the Red Wings its Niklas Lidstrom. Each has won multiple Norris Trophies for best defenseman in the league (Potvin had 3, Lidstrom has 6 and counting) and each was captain when the team won the cup. While there were many other strong players on each team, there is no question that these two players were the steady leaders and cornerstones needed to win Stanley Cups. 

3) Youth

The Penguins and Oilers were both led by young players in all positions. Gretzky, a 23-year old captain, received offensive help by 24 year old Jari Kurri, 23 year old Mark Messier, and 24 year old Glenn Anderson. On defense, 23 year old Paul Coffey became only the third defenseman to score more than 100 points in a season. And in goal, 22 year old Grant Fuhr stopped enough pucks to lead the team to its first cup. While the Penguins are not quite as young overall, their leaders are. Crosby, the captain, is two years younger than Gretzky was and he is helped by 22 year old Evengi Malkin, and 20 year old Jordan Staal. While the defense is led by veteran Sergei Gonchar, it is helped by future star 22 year old Kris Letang. In net, 2003 first overall pick Marc-Andre Fleury hopes to duplicate Fuhr's success in his second going in the Stanley Cup finals. 

The similarities continue but not it is time for predictions. Unfortunately, I once again went 50% in the last round, foolishly counting on youth over experience when choosing Chicago over Detroit. However, I do not learn from my mistakes and I am predicting the Penguins to take home the biggest prize in hockey for the first time since 1992. Unlike the Black Hawks, the Penguins have both youth and experience. They have made the playoffs for the last three years and made it to the finals last year. Just like the Oilers, the Penguins hope to show that they learned more from losing in the finals than the Red Wings did from winning. While the Red Wings have more depth from top to bottom, the Penguins hope their speed can overcome that flaw. Another thing the Penguins have going for them is the injuries to Lidstrom and Pavel Datsyuk, maybe the best two-way player in the league. If these two miss any games or cannot perform up to their best, the Red Wings will be in trouble. If the Red Wings do not get their essential players back, the series will be over in 6. If they do, I give it 7. The Penguins are young, hungry, and ready. Its the Red Wings' cup to lose but they will.

-A.S.