Carey Price's form was uneven in the first round, although the Canadiens rookie goalie did post two shutouts. (Paul Chiasson/Canadian Press)
Backgrounder
The Second Round
Hockey Night In Canada analyst Scott Morrison breaks down the second-round matchups in the East
Last Updated Wed., Apr. 23, 2008
Scott Morrison, CBC Sports
EASTERN CONFERENCE
MONTREAL (1) vs. PHILADELPHIA (6)
Montreal:
STRENGTHS: In many ways being forced to seven games by the Bruins showed the Canadiens' strength of character. They saw how rookie goaltender Carey Price could deal with pressure and adversity. They saw their big players, such as Saku Koivu and Alex Kovalev, lead the way in Game 7. While Price struggled at times, he is the real deal. Canadiens got production from a variety of sources, including their checking line. Mike Komasarik played well at the back end and the penalty killing was solid.
WEAKNESSES: The best power play during the regular season became the worst in the playoffs. The Canadiens had gaps in their offence, meaning the likes of Kovalev and the brothers Kostitsyn had a bookend series, good the first and last games. Price proved beatable. As good as he was, he faltered late in a couple of games and they allowed a limited Boston offence to at times put up big numbers, though Price posted two shutouts. For stretches, the Habs were outplayed by the Bruins and had major defensive breakdowns. As coach Guy Carbonneau put it, he had veteran players making big-time mistakes and his best players weren't his best players on some nights.
KEY PLAYER: Koivu. He truly is the leader of that team. He provides another dimension, improves their work in the faceoff circle and allows Christopher Higgins to be comfortable back on the wing.
Philadelphia:
STRENGTHS: The Flyers, in large part, proved in the Washington series that they can shut down the dangerous snipers. Kimmo Timmonen and Braydon Coburn were really good and goalie Martin Biron erased some doubts about himself, especially playing back-to-back games to finish the series. Mike Richards looks like he deserves every year in his contract and how can the Flyers not find a way to sign Jeff Carter? Coach John Stevens did a nice job of assembling a game plan to best neutralize a very dangerous Washington team and those same plans will be needed against Montreal. More good news for the Flyers is that Daniel Briere had a good series and will be inspired against Montreal and their angry fans.
WEAKNESSES: The power play produced at times, but not often enough, especially if the Canadiens find a way to solve their issues. Holding leads proved a problem in the first and sixth games against the Capitals and could have cost them a chance of advancing. The loss of Mike Knuble to injury will continue to hurt the team. They also relied on a small handful of players to provide the bulk of their offence.
KEY PLAYER: Carter. He has the opportunity to slide in the door and be effective in a shutdown role, but also contribute to the offence. This is the chance for him to attach zeroes to his next contract.
Penguins captain Sidney Crosby was a thorn in the side of the Senators in the first round. (Mike Carlson/Associated Press)
PITTSBURGH (2) vs. NEW YORK (5)
Pittsburgh:
STRENGTHS: They are obviously well-balanced offensively with Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Marian Hossa, Ryan Malone and Peter Sykora among others. Like we've said before, not too many teams have two great offensive lines. And they have lots of sandpaper beyond that. Sergei Gonchar has been a rock on defence and Marc-Andre Fleury was terrific in net, giving up just five goals. Special teams were also outstanding and when they had the Senators down, they put them out of their misery, another good sign. They showed plenty of poise against Ottawa and a willingness to rough it up when necessary.
WEAKNESSES: There weren't many against the Senators, though at times they proved vulnerable in their own end. The biggest factor looking ahead is that because they took care of business so quickly in the first round, sweeping Ottawa, they will have an extended layoff and may lose the edge, at least to start their series. On the plus side, of course, Crosby has had more time to heal, as has Gary Roberts.
KEY PLAYER: Roberts. He is very much the leader of this team and established the physical presence early in the Ottawa series.
New York :
STRENGTHS: Their overall defensive play is tremendous and Henrik Lundqvist was great in goal against New Jersey. When the Rangers struggled early, coughing up the puck and being uncharacteristically sloppy in their own end, Lundqvist gave them a chance and the Rangers proved opportunistic. Jaromir Jagr looked like his old self, as did Scott Gomez, whose speed was a difference maker. Sean Avery, love him or not, makes an impact on games and makes big-time plays. He is a key to this team's success. They also showed they have great depth, can play it tight if necessary, but have a better attack than what we saw during the regular season. The layoff is just about right.
WEAKNESSES: They had moments when they were sloppy in their own end far too often against the Devils, but beyond that there wasn't too much to dislike about their game.
KEY PLAYER: Avery. He scores key goals, bugs the opposition and influences games. If he doesn't cross the line he is a very effective player, whose finger prints are usually all over a series.
2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs
Stanley Cup final
DET vs PIT
Conference finals
DET vs DAL
PIT vs PHI
Conference semifinals
DET vs COL
SJS vs DAL
MON vs PHI
PIT vs NYR
Conference quarter-finals
DET vs NSH
SJS vs CAL
MIN vs COL
ANA vs DAL
MON vs BOS
PIT vs OTT
WSH vs PHI
NJD vs NYR
