Alright, it's prediction time again.

[nfreeman]

...but I am taking the Sabres in 6.

 

A few specific predictions:

 

1. We won't play the rope-a-dope. Carolina's D is good but not as good as Ottawa's. We'll be able to get our 5-on-5 forechecking game and our PP going again. Accordingly, I expect the game to be played as much in their end as in ours.

 

2. Roy-Max-Vanek will be a good line and both max and vanek will be substantially more effective than in the 1st 2 series.

 

3. While the games won't be shootouts, there will be a pretty good amount of up-and-down skating -- more so than in the Ottawa series.

 

4. the lines will be:

 

briere-JP-Hecht

drury-grier-Kotalik

roy-max-vanek

gaustad-pyatt-pominville

 

5. Briere's line will be our leading scoring line. Briere will tie with Stahl for leading scorer in the series.

 

6. if connolly comes back, vanek gets benched unless he plays really well in games 1 and 2, in which case pyatt or pominville will get benched.

 

7. if we lose a game and either vanek or pyatt doesn't play well, Mair will play the next game.

 

8. Kotalik will score a couple on the PP but not during 5-on-5.

 

9. Campbell will be more of a factor skating it up ice and into the offensive zone, as well as from the point on the PP.

 

10. Gaustad and Brind-Amour will have a few wrestling matches.

 

11. shots on goal will be pretty even in the high 20s.

 

12. Miller and Ward will both play well, but Miller will play a little better.

 

13. we will split the 1st 2 in Raleigh, win the next 2 in HSBC, lose game 5 in Raleigh and then close them out in game 6 in HSBC.

 

Go Sabres.

[Orange Seats]

Sabres in 6.

 

Specifics:

 

Sabres split first 2 games in Carolina.

Powerplay fares much better against Carolina than it did against Ottawa.

Mair returns in game 4, scores full strength goal.

Miller gets 1-0 shutout in nailbiting Game 5 in Carolina thanks, in part, to Sabres outstanding D and some amazing saves. Canes play 3rd period frustrated, get sloppy and take a lot of aggressive pentalties. Win boosts Sabres to take series at home in game 6.

 

Game 1 - Carolina

Game 2 - Buffalo

Game 3 - Carolina

Game 4 - Buffalo

Game 5 - Buffalo

Game 6 - Buffalo

 

Its going to seem like trouble at first as the teams trade W's, fair weather fans will start to jump ship. But the team stays strong and takes the last three in a row.

[JujuFish]

I as well think it will be Sabres in 6.

 

As for the west, I'll go Edmonton in 7.

[blugold43]

DISCLAIMER: i freely admit i am a sterotypical hysterical championship-starved buffalo fan.

 

having said that...sabres in 5, or maybe 6 if we get some bad bounces.. i think we have already beaten the two toughest teams we will play.

[Taro T]

Sabres in 6.

 

Oilers in 7.

 

I feel pretty confident about the 1st one. Hope I'm wrong about the 2nd one because I do not want the Sabres to face Peca and Rolosen and Canadian refs fighting for the honor of Canada IF the Sabres get past the Canes.

[sabre31_98]

My predictions have been completely wrong for each series so far. So, that being said, I will pick Carolina in 6. That should ensure that Buffalo wins the series.

 

"Let's Go Buffalo!!!" (at the 18:00 mark)

[wudden]

My prediction... Sabretooth is going to break the glass in game 4 with his pounding on the glass... its bound to happen eventually, why not now? :-P

[blakesabres39]

Buffalo in 5 games

 

Tough call out west but will go with Anaheim in 6.

 

 

LETS GO BUFFALO

[dundy249]

I predict that in no way will the Mapleloafs win the cup!

 

 

THANK GOD

[deluca67]

Just because things always work out this way. Sabres vs. Peca in the Finals.

 

Buffalo in 5.

 

Oilers in 6.

[Stoner]

My prediction? I do have a palpable feeling of uncertainty here. The week off has deadened my hockey senses, and the opponent is not one that riles us up, like the Flyers or the Senators. I don?t know what to expect from the Canes, except their best, which is pretty damn good. And there is that old familiar Buffalo feeling of low self esteem that is kicking in and saying that we?ve had a nice season and now it?s time to step aside. The weather. Starting on the road. An afternoon start on brutal NBC. Some queasy feelings surround this one. And, oh yeah, Carolina has the ?star? coach and a bunch of 30-somethings looking for a Cup before they die. We?ve been down this road before, and we?re always taking the wrong fork.

 

Not this time, though. And here?s why:

 

Number one, chemistry. As I?ve pointed out, the Sabres have been a ?team? for a lot longer than the Canes have. When last we saw the NHL before this season, the Sabres were coming together late in the year and finishing above .500. Then a lot of the kids played together, and played well, in Rochester. You all know the story. The 2003-04 Canes really had nothing going for them and are not even recognizable any more. From the goal on out, they were slapped together during Hockey Vacation. Continuity has to count for something.

 

Number two, youth and stupidity. I have to believe this is a young man?s game and that, this far into the playoffs, the boys will have a step on the men. And as Lindy Ruff has said, the Sabres might just be too young to understand the pressure and realize what they are doing. Can the same be said for the guys who must realize they are taking perhaps their final run at a Cup or for the coach who is ?playing? for that huge contract in the fall?

 

Number three, coaching. Lindy Ruff has Buffalo, and no doubt his daughter, on his brain (unintended reference, sorry). Peter Laviolette doesn?t know where he?s coaching next year. It has to mean something! Has to!

 

Number four, Ryan Miller. He?s been a phenom in the making for years. He?s been the starter all year when healthy, and he?s been wonderful almost all year, especially in the playoffs. He?s playing for someone, too, and he has that look in his eye. No offense to Cam Ward, but he couldn?t win the starting job. Yes, he has stepped in and played well for a stretch of games in the postseason, but that doesn?t trump what Miller has done all year. No way.

 

Number five, Rod Brind?Amour is afraid of the Sabres. OK, his comments about the Sabres being the team to beat and his recollection of his reaction to playing the Sabres earlier in the year (?wow?) might just be psychological ploys. They say there?s a bit of truth in every joke, though, and the truth here is this: the Carolina lockerroom knows it has its hands full.

 

Number six, karma. The Hockey Gods have smiled on us, Tim notwithstanding. This is our time! It has to be! The Hurricanes and their coach can get their Cup next season, wherever they happen to be. We?re just not losing to a team that has trouble selling out playoff games and that has a beat writer named Luke Decock. Sorry. And all those transplanted Buffalonians will help take the edge off the Cane crowd.

 

Number seven, weather. It's going to be gorgeous for Games 3 and 4 in Buffalo. Pre-game tailgating. Party at the arena. People in shorts. Walking out, bathed in warm air and shouts into the night and car horns. We split in Carolina and take control in Buffalo.

 

It?s not much to go on, is it? These teams are even on the ice. It comes down to murky intangibles off it. Yes, the gruel is thin, but when I stir the pot and study the entrails, they say Sabres in six.

[blugold43]

i just think we have the HUNGRIEST and most relentless team among those remaining.