The Vancouver-Chicago rivalry is probably the most entertaining rivalry hockey has seen post-lockout. Forget about Capitals-Penguins. This isn’t just about two players, its about hatred given and received by both teams. Both teams are stacked with Superstars (Toews, Hossa, Kane for Chicago, and Daniel, Henrik and Luongo for Vancouver.) But the best part is that they’ve been meeting in the playoffs for seven game series every year. Both teams are basically stacked at every position, which makes it even more fun to watch. They’ve each been to the finals the past two years, so it’s going to be interesting to see how close series is, especially after Chicago focused on experience this summer instead of speed and skill
2) SAN JOSE VS DETROIT
Even though the Sharks have gotten so close, they have yet to get to the finals in team history. And it seems as though any trip in the playoffs means a meeting with the Wings. This year looks to be no different, with one key addition to the Sharks blueline, and a key departure to that of the Wings. San Jose got Brent Burns this past summer, and also forward Martin Havlat. Detroit lost Brian Rafolski to retirement, which has not helped them, but they are looking at Ian White to take on a defensive responsibility, and help out the team as much as possible. This year, both teams should be stronger then last year, meaning I expect the Western Conference champs to be, or meet one of these two teams in the conference finals. It is a great rivalry that the players really get into, and especially after last years Sharks got so close to the finals, they will be thirsty to drink from the cup.
3) PANTHERS VS LIGHTNING
The past few years have been very good for the Florida rivalry, with Stamkos vs Vokoun. But this year will be much more entertaining, with Florida filling up their roster with players like Brian Campbell, Tomas Kopecky, and Tomas Fleishmann. The Lightning are still going to be in the playoff hunt, with Stamkos, St. Louis and Lecavalier staying put. This rivalry has always had tons of goals, with both teams being based around the forwards, and goaltending being mediocre. The series should be much closer then it has in the past, with Florida evening out their roster over the summer.
Article by Noah Goren.
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