Totally Random NHL Playoffs

Totally Random NHL Playoffs

Ok Hockey fans, it’s what you’ve all been waiting for all year.  This is my annual Totally Random NHL playoffs.  As is always the case, factors such as merit, talent, home ice, history and team quality have absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with the picks here.  Picks are completely random.  Of course, when you pick randomly, you can get different results each time you run the tournament.  The way around this is to have an official tournament and it is run once and only once. 

It is sad that my Bruins executed one of the epic end-of-season fade outs of all time as they completely died and threw away a fairly solid playoff position.  Now they will be watching on TV or, I suppose, sunning themselves on a beach somewhere.  And without Montréal in the playoffs as well, I have no one to truly hate except for the Rangers and Flyers and. . .well you get the idea.  Red Wing fans were resigned to missing the playoffs for the first time in forever.  They had come to terms with it.  What they didn’t count on was the Bruins complete ineptitude down the stretch.  My Bruins finished where I thought they would at the start of the season.  But my hopes and expectations were lifted for the first 2/3 of the season.  Then, splat!  With all that said, let the luckiest team in the random tournament win.

Round 1

In the west the Stars, Blues, Predators and Kings advance.  Yes, the Sharks manage to disappoint yet again.  Between the Sharks and the Capitals, I don’t know who is worse.  It would be great to see a Sharks Capitals final because at least one tortured fan base will be happy while the other will be even more tortured.  But alas for the random tournament, the Sharks bow out early.  The Blues and Blackhawks played a classic 7 game series which came down to a 4-3 game 7 win for the Blues.  Bye-bye Blackhawks. . .finally.

In the East the Capitals survive a little scare to beat the Flyers in six games.  The Penguins, Panthers and Lightning join the Capitals with the Lightning and Penguins requiring seven games to do so.   This was a good round for me because both the hated Rangers and Flyers bit the dust.

Round 2

After sweeping the Wild in the first round, the Stars are themselves swept by the rampaging Blues.  The Kings take out the Predators in six games to bring on a Blues, Kings showdown in the West.

Meanwhile the Capitals have the best record in the NHL.  It doesn’t matter.  The Capitals do what they always do in reality.  They choke going down to the Pens in six.  Meanwhile the Islanders only manage one token win against the Lightning who easily advance to take on the Penguins.

The Semi-final

Just when Blues fans got excited, the Kings did it again.  Yes it’s another great playoff run for them as they down the Blues in five.  The East has a far more exciting series with the Lighting defeating the Penguins 2-1 in Game 7 to advance to the Stanley Cup.

Kings v Lightning for the Cup

The Random Stanley Cup Final is a dud.  Those Kings just cannot be stopped in the playoffs.  They blow the Lightning off both their home ice, and Tampa ice sweeping them 4-0.  Yes, the Kings have done it again, saving their best for the playoffs.  Congratulations to the Los Angeles Kings for winning the Totally Random NHL playoffs.  And the rest of us groan.  Not again, we say.

In the real world, I have picked the Ducks to walk away with the goods this year.  Time will tell.  The NHL playoffs are always exciting and the closest thing in American sports to a random tournament.  You never know.  That’s what makes them