Morning Skate: April 13

The Morning After:
Yesterday’s results:
Rangers 4, Senators 2
Bruins 1, Capitals 0 (OT)
Sharks 3, Blues 2 (2OT)
Coyotes 3, Blackhawks 2 (OT)

RLD 3 stars of the night:
1. Martin Havlat, SJ (2 goals)
2. Mike Smith, PHX (43 saves)
3. Tim Thomas, BOS (17 saves, shutout)
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Tonight’s slate:
Devils @ Panthers, 7:00 ET, Game 1
Flyers @ Penguins, 7:30 ET, Game 2
Red Wings @ Predators, 7:30, Game 2
Kings @ Canucks, 10:00, Game 2

#6 New Jersey Devils @ #3 Florida Panthers
Game 1… 7:00 ET… TV: NHL Network (US), TSN, Local Networks

Season Series: Tied 2-2

Projected starting goaltenders:
NJ- Martin Brodeur (Career playoff stats: 99-82, 2.01 GAA)
FLA- Jose Theodore (Career playoff stats: 19-28, 2.82 GAA)

Injury report:
NJ- David Clarkson (lower body, probable), Anton Volchenkov (flu, probable), Jacob Josefson (wrist, out), Henrik Tallinder (leg, out)
FLA- Marco Sturm (lower body, questionable), Jack Skille (shoulder, out), Matt Bradley (upper body, out)

Game thoughts:
This is the last series of the first round to commence. For Florida Panthers fans, this is a night that has been 12 years in the making. The NHL’s longest playoff drought is no more, and the Panthers are out to prove all the pundits wrong that they belong in the playoffs. On the other side, New Jersey is back after a rare one-year hiatus.

The Devils are considered the favorite in this series; their offensive weapons and stingy penalty kill separate themselves from the Panthers on paper. However, these ‘Cats have a lot of fight in them and will play with a lot of energy tonight. Florida draws first blood because of that.
Prediction: Panthers 3, Devils 2
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#5 Philadelphia Flyers @ #4 Pittsburgh Penguins
Game 2… 7:30 ET… TV: NBC Sports Network, TSN, Local Networks

Series: 1-0 Flyers

Projected starting goaltenders:
PHI- Ilya Bryzgalov (Career playoff stats: 13-13, 2.56 GAA)
PIT- Marc-Andre Fleury (Career playoff stats: 41-29, 2.54 GAA)

Injury report:
PHI- Marc-Andre Bourdon (upper body, doubtful), Andrej Meszaros (back, out), Chris Pronger (concussion, out), James van Riemsdyk (foot, out), Blair Betts (knee, out)
PIT- Matt Niskanen (upper body, questionable)

Game thoughts:
The Penguins had Game One in the bag – and then they let it slip away. Their 3-0 lead vanished as the Flyers made yet another comeback on their cross-state rivals. For the Penguins, it’s the kind of loss that can have a follow-up effect. For the Flyers, it’s the kind of win that can be the start of something special.

I really wouldn’t be surprised to see Peter Laviolette’s club continue their Consol Energy Center dominance. At the same time I expect Pittsburgh to give their best effort tonight and knot this series. However, they need to play 60 minutes and need a better game from Kris Letang.
Prediction: Penguins 4, Flyers 3
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#5 Detroit Red Wings @ #4 Nashville Predators
Game 2… 7:30 ET… TV: CNBC, CBC, Local Networks

Series: 1-0 Predators

Projected starting goaltenders:
DET- Jimmy Howard (Career playoff stats: 12-12, 2.64 GAA)
NSH- Pekka Rinne (Career playoff stats: 9-10, 2.57 GAA)

Injury report:
DET- Darren Helm (forearm, out), Joey MacDonald (back, out), Patrick Eaves (concussion, out)
NSH- Hal Gill (lower body, questionable)

Game thoughts:
Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock says his team won’t try to get retribution on Shea Weber for his end-of-game incident with Henrik Zetterberg on Wednesday. You know it will light a fire in them, though. They were already going to play desperate, but that will only boost their competitive juices.

This game tonight is going to tell us a lot about this series. If the Wings don’t respond and the Preds gain a 2-0 series lead, it could be a quicker series than most expect. If the Preds fail to hold serve at home, it will force them to grab a win in Detroit at some point. It’s going to be a good one in Smashville. Detroit gets the bounces they didn’t get two nights ago.
Prediction: Red Wings 3, Predators 2 (OT)
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#8 Los Angeles Kings @ #1 Vancouver Canucks
Game 2… 10:00 ET… TV: NBC Sports Network, CBC, Local Networks

Series: 1-0 Kings

Projected starting goaltenders:
LA- Jonathan Quick (Career playoff stats: 5-8, 3.22 GAA)
VAN- Roberto Luongo (Career playoff stats: 32-28, 2.51 GAA)

Injury report:
LA- Kyle Clifford (upper body, questionable), Brad Richardson (appendectomy, out), Simon Gagne (concussion, out), Scott Parse (hip, out)
VAN- Daniel Sedin (concussion, doubtful), Keith Ballard (concussion, out), Aaron Volpatti (shoulder, out)

Game thoughts:
Los Angeles was our upset pick on Wednesday night, and they delivered a 4-2 win against the Presidents’ Trophy winners. How will Alain Vigneault’s club respond tonight? The tension in the arena will be immense, especially if the Canucks get off to a slow start. They can’t go down 0-2 and expect to beat Quick four times in five games.

One player to watch tonight is Mike Richards. He’s been playoff-clutch in the past and tallied three points in Game One. If he has another big game, the Kings could take another step closer to the upset. I’m tempted to pick them, but go with the Canucks tonight in a spirited contest.
Prediction: Canucks 3, Kings 1

Video of the day:


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