I grew up in one of the biggest sports towns in America: Chicago. Chicagoans will get rowdy over any and every sporting event. Even if the team hasn’t won any pennants in over 100 years (cough, Cubs, cough). My mom’s sport of choice was hockey and she transferred that love down to me. I love the fast-paced games, the energy of the fans and the fights. Oh man, do I love those fights.
And the men; the men are very nice to watch.
Wednesday, April 15 begins the long, long tradition of fighting for the Stanley Cup. The Cup isn’t just a trophy. It represents a champion’s sacrifice and hard work. It is adorned with hundreds upon hundreds of past winners’ names. And it also is a fabulous substitute to drink beer out of.
So, whether you are an avid viewer or don’t know icing from passing, here’s what you need to know before watching the big games!
The Teams
There are 16 teams in contention for the Cup: 8 from the Eastern Conference and 8 from the Western Conference.
The Eastern conference teams playing in the playoffs consist of:
Ottawa Senators (7th)
Montreal Canadiens (2nd)
Detroit Red Wings (6th)
Tampa Bay Lightning (3rd)
Pittsburgh Penguins (8th)
New York Rangers (1st)
New York Islanders (5th)
Washington Capitals (4th)
The Western Conference teams playing are:
Minnesota Wild (6th)
St. Louis Blues (2nd)
Nashville Predators (3rd)
Chicago Blackhawks (4th)
Winnipeg Jets (7th)
Anaheim Ducks (1st)
Vancouver Canucks (5th)
Calgary Flames (8th)
The Wildcards
In each division there are two wildcard teams, or the next two teams after the first 6 with the next best scores. And the thing with these underdog teams is that they are paired with the best teams, basically to knock ‘em out right away. So team in standing number 8 will play team in the number one spot in that conference and team 7 would play the 2nd best team.
This year, the wildcard teams from the Eastern conference are Ottawa and Pittsburgh. In the west it’s Minnesota and Winnipeg.
The Favorites
According to NHL.com, 7 out of 14 of their staff members predict that the Blackhawks will win it all, with three of them saying Duncan Keith will win the Conn Smythe trophy and three saying Jonathan Toews, the captain, will win. The Conn Smythe is basically the MVP award and it goes to a player on the winning team.
At SportsIllustrated.com, the consensus was the New York Rangers.
My prediction? Obviously my boys from the Madhouse on Madison: The Blackhawks. Not because they are my favorite team, although that bias is there. But they are a team that knows how to come back from a losing streak. They have had a less than stellar record the past few weeks, ending in a loss against the Colorado Avalanche, who had a worse record than the Hawks. But going into the playoffs, the Blackhawks have one of their star players, Patrick Kane, coming back from an injury that has had him out for about 7 weeks. The Blackhawks are itchin’ for the Cup, and I feel like this might just be their year. For the third time in 5 years.
Overall, the Stanley Cup playoffs are the epitome of excitement. If you want to see any rabid fan, including me, yell at their TV and jump up and down like a child, the Stanley Cup playoffs will surely bring you that. And if you remember anything from this article, it’s that anything is possible and everything’s at stake. Because it’s the Cup.