Your Stanley Cup Final Four
Playoff hockey has always been known to be a time when literally anything can happen, and this year is not disappointing in that aspect one bit. With the “final four” determined, you could say the only team that has met expectations is the Chicago Blackhawks. Did we expect them in the Stanley Cup Finals? Of course. Did several people pick them to win it this year? Yup. Do we think winning it all will shut up some Chicago sports fan because at least ONE of their teams’ championship droughts would be overcome?
Umm … if you do then you’ve severely underestimate the persistence of Cubs fans.
So who else are we looking at?
Philly? They were also an early favorite to win the Cup … but this was before they started playing. The season has been tough on the Flyers, particularly in the net, to the point where I believe for one week their goalie line-up looked like this:
Starter – Some kid they pulled up from the Quad City Mallards
Backup – That guy (close eyes and point at stands at random)
Additional Backup, if needed – That guy next to him?
But even stranger than that is how Montreal has managed to finagle their way this far. The Canadiens were no one’s pick for anything. They were not only the 8th seed in the East, but also the 16th seed in the entire post-season line-up. They were actually 19th in the entire league this season and what have they done so far? Only knocked out the top-seed Capitals along with superstar Alex Ovechkin and then the 4th seed and defending champion Penguins along with superstar Sidney Crosby. I feel like they’re being given near-impossible tasks and somehow managing to still come out on top every time. I don’t know if I should compare them to Jesus in the desert or Wesley in the Fire Swamp (“But Habs, what about the ROUS’s?” “Russians of unusual scoring? I don’t think they exist.”)
And then there’s the Sharks. Why are we so surprised to see the Sharks make it this far? They were No. 1 in the West. They were last year’s President’s Trophy winners and missed it this year by only eight points. They beat the 8th and 5th seed teams. What’s so strange about that? Well for starters, this year’s Avalanche seemed just as worthy an opponent for a good old San Jose choke job as last year’s Ducks. And once they got past that obstacle they moved on to face the Red Wings, who haven’t looked like the Red Wings most of the regular season, but were looking exactly like the Red Wings in the final weeks leading up to the post-season, which tends to spell trouble for the Sharks at any point. Just goes to show what this team can do when someone lets Joe Thornton know that yes, there’s still hockey to be played in May.
So at this point the Stanley Cup Finals are looking rather up in the air and one of the strangest things is, if it comes down to a No. 1 San Jose vs. No. 8 Montreal showdown, I’m not even sure who to refer to as the “underdogs” so I will refer to Underdog …
Hey look! He’s wearing Habs colors. I guess that decides it. Canadiens have just become my most unlikely of picks for the 2010 Stanley Cup. And so before they continue on their next foe, I give them this bit of preparation:
What … is your name?
(The Montreal Canadiens)
WHAT … is your quest?
(We seek Lord Stanley’s Cup)
WHAAAAT … is your favorite color?
___________________
Pictures courtesy of Flickr
Leave a Reply
