As I predicted, the Anaheim Ducks defeated the Detroit Red Wings in six games to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals.

What I didn’t predict, however, was how tough the Wings made it for the Ducks, how much luck played a part in this series, and how the Ducks nearly beat themselves.

I was expecting the Wings to be a tough opponent for the Ducks, but believed the Ducks supposed physical advantage and blueline depth to carry the day.

Instead, the Wings took away that physical advantage, and despite an injury-depleted blueline corps proved capable of playing stingy defense.

On paper, the Ducks blueline corps is better than the Wings. On the ice, however, it was a different story, as the Wings speedy forwards frequently made Anaheim defense (which consists of Pronger and Niedermayer, two Norris nominees and prior winners) look ordinary.

Both teams got lucky in this series. The Wings won Game One courtesy of two lucky bounces off Ducks d-man Francois Beachemin. The Ducks caught lucky breaks with their game-tying goals in Games Two and Five.

The Ducks inconsistency and undisciplined second period play made them their own worst enemy, unable to put together a solid performance for an entire game in this series. Against a team like the Wings, that nearly proved lethal.

Anaheim lived dangerously, but just when it seemed they might succumb to their foibles they’d regain the form that made them one of the top teams in the league and one of the favorites to go to the Stanley Cup Finals.

Give the Red Wings credit, for they’ve proven they can play a hard-hitting, solid defensive style whilst still proving opportunistic with their offensive game. This is a team that'll continue to be one of the top teams in the West.

But in the end, the Ducks did it with timely goal-scoring, solid goaltending from JS Giguere, and the ability to overcome their inconsistency to emerge as Western Conference Champions.

If the Anaheim Ducks should advance to the 2007 Stanley Cup Finals, they’ll have goaltender J.S. Giguere to thank for it.

In Game Five of the Ducks-Detroit Red Wings Western Conference Finals, Giguere flat-out robbed the Wings, who were clearly the better team in regulation but ultimately came up short, falling in overtime 2-1.

Giguere wasn’t perfect, as the goal by Detroit’s Andreas Lilja handcuffed him high to the glove side, but that was the only one he’d allow after that.

The Wings had their way with the Ducks for most of Game Five. They out-shot the Ducks by a wide margin, dominated them in the second period due in large part to the Ducks taking undisciplined penalties yet again and out-hit them, once again proving that the Ducks no longer have a physical advantage in this series.

Yet try as they might, they couldn’t beat Giguere. Sure, Nicklas Lidstrom rang one off the goalpost in the third, but it’s the ones that go between the posts and across the goal line that count. After the Lilja goal, Giguere was flawless. He did what a big game goaltender does when his team is over-matched by keeping them in the game and giving them a chance to win.

The Ducks got that chance within the final two minutes of the third, when Detroit forward Pavel Datsyuk took a bad penalty and Johan Franzen failed to clear the puck on the ensuing Ducks PP, a six-on-four with Giguere pulled for the extra attacker. Scott Niedermayer pounced on the loose puck and his shot struck Lidstrom's stick and ricocheted over Dominik Hasek's shoulder for the tying goal.

There’s still a perception that Giguere isn’t a “big game” goaltender. Yet going into overtime in this one, he’s the all-time winning percentage leader for goaltenders in playoff overtime, going into this one with an 11-1 record.

Make that 12-1 now, but it was arguably the easiest playoff OT victory for Giguere. His teammates needed “Giggy” in regulation, but they didn’t really need him in overtime, as they regained their poise and their game, resulting in Lilja’s turnover that resulted in Teemu Selanne’s winner.

The Ducks have the Wings on the brink of elimination because of J.S. Giguere.

The heading says it all, folks. There’s no better way to put it. The Anaheim Ducks nearly blew Game Four of their Western Conference Final against the Detroit Red Wings.

Sure, they emerged from the first period with a 3-1 lead, and ultimately won 5-3 to tie the series at two games apiece, but in the second period and the early minutes of the third the game nearly slipped away from the Ducks.

It was easy to see it in the second period, as the Wings came on with one of their most dominant periods in this series, second only to their blowout of the Ducks in the second period of Game Three two nights before.

And the scary part for the Ducks was, they gave it to the Wings. Served it up to ‘em on a silver platter.

After playing disciplined hockey in the first period, taking no penalties, the Ducks took five in the second, and that allowed the Wings, who had pressed the Ducks in the first and had stepped up the pressure in the second, to get back into the game with two powerplay goals.

The Ducks just sagged after that second goal, scored by the Wings Dan Cleary. They practically stopped skating, as the veteran Wings, sensing they had their opponent against the ropes, pressed the attack. Only goalie J-S Giguere, who was the goat on two of Detroit’s goals this net, kept the opportunistic Wings from taking the lead prior to the end of the second period.

Not two seconds into the third, and with his team already shorthanded,Anaheim forward Rob Niedermayer, who’d been jawing with the on-ice officials earlier in the game, took a cross-checking penalty, setting up a five-on-three powerplay advantage for the Wings.

That moment was the turning point of the game. Had the Wings cashed in, the Ducks already shaky confidence would’ve evaporated, and the series would’ve headed back to Detroit with the Wings holding a commanding lead and a chance to clinch the series.

But the Ducks killed off Detroit’s two-man advantage, and minutes later, with Cleary in the box for tripping, Ryan Getzlaf’s wrister from the point cleanly beat a screened Dominik Hasek, regaining the lead for the Ducks and holding up as the winner.

Give the Ducks credit, for they could’ve snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in this game. Instead, they rallied, drew inspiration from that key penalty kill and turned the tide of the game.

It was certainly a near thing, but with the series now knotted at two, there is no real certainty now as to which way this thing will turn. The Wings have proven much tougher than anticipated by both the Ducks and observers like myself, and suddenly the physical advantage that was supposed to tilt this series in Anaheim’s favor is no longer a factor.

Given the ebb and flow of this one, it’ll be interesting to see how both teams respond in Game Five.

Those of you following the Western Conference Finals saw it. Those of you who didn't, check out this link.

Basically, in Game Three of the WCF between the Anaheim Ducks and Detroit Red Wings, Rob Niedermayer and Chris Pronger of the Ducks both ran Detroit's Tomas Holmstrom into the boards, with Pronger driving Holmstrom's head into the glass, knocking the Wings forward silly and carving him for 13 stitches.

Holmstrom, to his credit, would return later in the game after getting stitched up and took his regular shifts in the third period. As I noted today in my "Fans Speak Out" message board, "Homer" is one tough hombre.

Niedermayer was given "five and a game". Pronger got nothing. The on-ice officials determined that Niedermayer caused the injury to Holmstrom. Replays, however, clearly showed Pronger to be the guilty party.

TSN's Bob McKenzie writes of the possibility Pronger might not be suspended by the league:

"If Pronger isn't suspended, well, that won't be a huge shock either. Holmstrom apparently did not suffer serious injury on the play, it's the Western Conference final and there have been hits like this one that have in the past gone unpunished."

If Pronger isn't suspended, that'll cause justifiable howls of indignation from Wings fans, but they should take heart in the fact that, as McKenzie also noted in his piece, the Wings "totally handing Anaheim its lunch on Duck ice" in Game Three with a convincing 5-0 victory.

Still, this was a cheap shot by Pronger, running a guy from behind and slamming his head into the glass. A lesser player than Holmstrom might've been more seriously hurt. Or Holmstrom could've been more seriously hurt if his head were at a different angle (looking downward) when Pronger drove his head into the glass.

Admit it, Ducks fans, if the roles were reversed and it were Holmstrom laying out Pronger with that kind of hit, you'd want him suspended.

I've been vehemently against these kind of cheapshots throughout this season when lesser players have done them. My attitude doesn't change when a genuine superstar like Pronger does it in the playoffs.

At the very least, he deserves a one-game suspension. Whether or not the NHL has the parts to levy that suspension upon the Ducks best player before what could be the pivotal game of the Western Conference Finals remains to be seen.

**UPDATE** The NHL had the parts after all, suspending Pronger for one game. Some folks might believe it should've been more but considering Holmstrom returned and didn't miss a shift in the third, and will play again in Game Four, the league wasn't going to suspend him for more than that.  A one-game suspension, a game which could determine the course of the series, is better than nothing.

The NHL’s Western Conference Final between Anaheim Ducks and Detroit Red Wings is now tied at a game apiece due to lucky breaks for both teams.

In Game One, the Ducks dominated the Wings but they lost that game 2-1 with both Wings goals bouncing in off Ducks defenceman Francois Beauchemin.

In Game Two, the Wings proved more opportunistic, when three goals coming from special teams (one shorthanded, two on the powerplay) gave them a 3-2 lead in the third period. Just when Detroit appeared in control of the game, however, a controversial video replay decision gave the Ducks the tying goal, setting the stage for their series-tying winner in overtime.

With both clubs checking so well and for the most part playing strong defensive hockey  there might be more lucky bounces that determines the direction of this series.

I don’t think we’ve seen the Ducks at their best in this series, but at the same time, the Wings have proven thus far to be able to withstand Anaheim’s punishing physical game.

Regardless of who wins this series (I picked the Ducks in Six), it’s not going to be an easy series for either team. Both will pound each other relentlessly and minimize scoring chances with their defensive play, particularly shot-blocking, which has become the great offensive neutralizer in this year’s playoffs.

In the end, this one could come to the quality of their goaltending, which teams wears down first from the physical play and which club catches the most breaks. 

My preview of the Conference Finals has generated plenty of responses, both on this blog and in e-mails, particularly my concerns about the Sabres and Red Wings.

Rather than respond individually, I'll elaborate here.

First, the Sabres. If you'd come to me a month ago and asked who I'd pick in a Sabres-Senators matchup, I'd pick the Sabres without batting an eye, but what I've seen in their series against the Islanders and Rangers has me concerned about their chances in the ECF against the Sens.

Put simply, they're not playing like the dominant club they were expected to be in this year's playoffs.

Not taking anything away from the Islanders and Rangers, two underdogs that elevated their respective games against a dominant opponent, but I don't think the Sabres have played like a Cup contender thus far.

Far too often in both series (but especially against the Rangers), the Sabres appeared disinterested, their skating was sluggish, their speed and offensive depth advantage almost invisible.

Now I realize the ice at MSG was a factor in a couple of those game, but the Sabres struggled against the Rangers in two of their three games in Buffalo. I don't know if perhaps they underestimated their opponents, but the Sabres got lucky more than once, most notably in the dying seconds of Game Five when they faced falling behind 3-2 in the series heading back to New York before Chris Drury came to the rescue.

If the Sabres struggled against teams with average defensive depth that picked up their respective games, how will the Sabres do against a Senators team that's more physical and possesses more defensive depth? One that's charged up to both disprove their critics and extract revenge against the very team that eliminated them a year ago.

As for the Wings, I admit that I'm pleasantly surprised by their physical play, but my concern is how well they'll do against a strong club that'll actually play hard against them for a full sixty minutes.

Yes, the Wings more than held their own agains the Sharks, but let's face facts here, when the Sharks played their game, they dominated the Wings. The problem was, the Sharks didn't do it consistently. They'd dominate the first period, take an early lead and then would inexplicably change their style, sitting on the lead by going into a defensive shell. Against a talented team like the Red Wings, that's begging for trouble.

Then there's their blueline depth, which was whacked by injury, losing Kronwall and Schneider. I expect the Ducks to constantly pressure the Wings defence corps at every opportunity, forcing them to chase dump ins and pounding them along the boards and in front of Hasek. If the Ducks play that style consistently throughout the upcoming series, it'll take its toll on the Wings blueliners.

Now of course, all of this might not come to pass. The Sabres could burn the Sens with their speed and the Wings could pluck the Ducks. All I'm doing is airing concerns that I feel are legitimate, concerns which could have considerable bearing on the outcome of the respective series.

EASTERN CONFERENCE: Buffalo Sabres vs Ottawa Senators.

Admit it, hockey fans, this is the match-up everyone was hoping to see, especially after the brawl these two clubs staged in a mid-February tilt. There’s bad blood between these two, which could elevate the intensity of this series.

The Senators hope to silence their critics one and for all by advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals whilst extracting some revenge against the Sabres, who upset them in last year’s playoffs. The Sabres want to finally bring a championship to their long-suffering fan and extend their post-season series winning streak against Ottawa to 4-0.

No offense to fans of the Anaheim Ducks and Detroit Red Wings, but this one has the potential to be the marquee match-up of this year's playoffs.

Both clubs have quality starting goaltending in Ryan Miller and Ray Emery, although the Sens can turn to Martin Gerber if need be. The less said about Miller’s backup, Ty Conklin, the better. Looking at their respective defenses, the edge goes to the Senators, but when it comes to offensive depth, the Sabres certainly have the advantage there.

There’ll be plenty of intangibles, of course, but ultimately this could come down to the Senators defence against the Sabres offense.

Prior to the start of this year’s playoffs, if you’d asked me who’d win a Sabres-Senators series, I’d say the Sabres without a second thought, but I’ve been struck by how much the Sabres struggled against the Islanders and Rangers, two teams that, quite frankly, they should’ve easily beaten.

Conversely, the Senators have looked poised and confident, especially in the way they handled the New Jersey Devils, and I think that’s a telling sign that this year’s Sens aren’t like the previous versions we’ve seen in the playoffs. SENATORS IN SEVEN.

WESTERN CONFERENCE: Anaheim Ducks vs Detroit Red Wings.

I’m not surprise to see the Ducks here, but I am surprised to see the Wings get this far. This one may not have the hype of a “Battle of California” series had the Wings not defeat the San Jose Sharks, but that doesn’t mean this series isn’t worth watching, although to be honest I doubt it’ll match the intensity of the ECF.

It’s going to be an interesting contrast of goaltending styles; the aging but still effective and unorthodox Dominik Hasek against the steady, no-nonsense style of former Conn Smythe winner J.S. Giguere. I wouldn’t bet against the ancient Dominator as I know he’ll rise to the occasion, but he could be facing a problem with the defensemen in front of him.

Defensively the Wings can still draw on perennial Norris contender Nicklas Lidstrom, the ageless Chris Chelios and the tough, under-rated Danny Markov, but their depth has been walloped by injuries and that could prove a significant factor as this series wears on. Conversely, the Ducks ice a healthy blueline corps, led by workhorse Chris Pronger and the smooth-skating Scott Niedermayer. The edge definitely goes to the Ducks here, and that could prove wearing on Hasek as the series grinds on.

Both clubs match up well offensively, with both teams getting offense from throughout their forward lines. The Wings have also proven they can handle the physical going, but they’re in for a real test against Anaheim, arguably the most physical team in the league.

The Ducks have also proven capable of adjusting their game to fit their opponent and beating said opponent at their own game. If you try to play it tight defensively, the Ducks will squeeze you even harder. If you try to open it up, they’ve got plenty of firepower to match. And if you get dumb and try to play it tough, they’ll beat the stuffing out of you.

In the end, it’s this adaptability of the Ducks and the Wings injury-depleted blueline that tilts this series in favor of Anaheim. DUCKS IN SIX.

Last round: 2-2. Overall: 7-5.