It is half done.  The National Hockey League is winding towards the playoffs.  Here are my predictions for the playoffs and I will predict the winner.  There is still half a season left I will pick the 16 teams now.  I will also predict that two teams will make trades that no one thought would ever happen.  One team from the east and one from the west.  They will not swap players with each other they will address a need and both of these teams have some salary cap room.  The playoff predictions are:

From the Eastern Confrence-

Buffalo Sabres

New Jersey Devils

Atlanta Thrashers

Montreal Canadiens

New York Rangers

Carolina Hurricanes

Toronto Maple Leafs

Ottawa Senators

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Representing the Western Confrence-

Nashville Predators

Vancouver Canucks

Anaheim Ducks

Detroit Red Wings

Calgary Flames

San Jose Sharks

Minnesota Wild

Dallas Stars

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     Stanley Cup victor and the city that will host the parade will be from the result of an upset the Atlanta Thrashers.  Why?  The goalkeeping and the play of the offense will keep them in contention the remaining half of the regular season and then in the playoffs they have the team that is built to win close games.   The city of Atlanta will come to celebrate the victory as the result of winning the Cup in seven games over the Nashville Predators.  Nashville came oh, so close but 2007 was not meant to be for them.  The Conn Smythe trophy winner is Ilya Kovalchuk. 

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     The two teams that will make the trades are Detroit from the West and Buffalo from the East.  Detroit trades for a forward who can score and Buffalo trades for checking wing. 

  Edmonton Oilers-  in the third period were on the penalty kill; Detroit had a two man advantage.  With Mathieu Schneider and Nicklas Lidstrom on the points; the top of the power play on the blue line, Mathieu Schneider and Nick Lidstrom ran a pick play and then Schneider passed to Nick after the switch and Lidstrom shot the puck through Dwayne Roloson. Now there is nothing wrong with that.  What I saw last night because I watched all of the game; the Red Wings were dialed in and has methodically taken apart the Edmonton Oilers, with patience, coaching, and winning determination.  Manny Legace was good; he allowed Edmonton two goals instead of three, Manny Legace knows the offense of his team is putting the racing wheels on and getting on track. Now back to the power play and the pick of Schneider and Lidstrom.

  The penalty kill of Edmonton- was looking battered and bruised, and what did the Oiler player do when Schneider and Lidstrom switched, I saw this in "real time" and the replay showed it; the man on the penalty kill dove.  He took himself out the penalty kill and it was then 5 on 2.  And Lidstrom who cannot be held down for long rifled the puck like a bullet past the goalie, Dwayne Roloson, who looked shaky for the entire 60 minutes.  The dive led to fans booing the officials; who did do an abysmal job, but  this no-call they got right.  Video tape does not lie.  And when that happend I saw Edmonton finally get pinned to the mat as we all expected would happen; they pinned themselves.  Nicklas Lidstrom and Scheider did not help Edmonton call "uncle", the Red Wings helped themselves by taking advantage of the tired mistakes. 

  Edmonton Oilers dive for a win- Only to find the water is frozen.  The Red Wings have played 4 games of no nonsense hockey.  After the Red Wings won game one they did not over play.  As a matter of fact they let Edmonton do that so these Red Wings would not be "diving" out of the first round.   At the Joe for game 5 and back at Rexall Place in Edmonton, Alberta,  for game 6 the Red Wings are delivering three games worth of knockout punches.  "If the right don't getcha'  the left will." And Mike Babcock and his team are the patient Joe Louis; waiting and watching the opponents weaknesses surface; with gloves on ready to win the trophy, the Stanley Cup.