By Denis J. Puska
The NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs are down to the final four as the conference finals are now set.

Chicago Blackhawks vs. San Jose Sharks:
In the West, it's the Chicago Blackhawks versus the San Jose Sharks. This match-up was expected with the top two teams all season meeting up. The Blackhawks have woken up since that first round disaster against the Nashville Predators where they almost got bounced out of Music City. But now this Chicago team could be headed to the Stanley Cup final for the first time since the 1990s and the debut of Dominic Hasek.

One of the keys in the series will be the scoring beyond the superstars and who can capitalize on that. Will the grinders or the third and fourth lines contribute offensive at all? On defense, both teams will have to be better inside their own end and must prevent the other from opening it up.

Goaltending is a unique battle of European goaltenders as Evegny Nabokov faces Anti Niemmi. The young Finnish goaltender has gotten better since the first round and Nabokov has been either really good or really bad and there has been no consistency.

Result: Take the Chicago Blackhawks to win the series in seven games. This one should be outstanding.

Montreal Canadiens vs. Philadelphia Flyers:

In the East, how about those Monteral Canadiens excusing both superstars from the post season dance. First it was Alexander Ovechkin from Washington and then Sidney Crosby and Pittsburgh. Sorry NHL and the NBC who needed those two stars to help with ratings.

This Canadiens' team reminds me of those magical ones from the past that featured the emergence of a goaltender. In the 1970s, it was Ken Dryden when he stonewalled the Chicago Blackhawks and in the 1980s it was Patrick Roy over the Calgary Flames.

Montreal has done all of the little things correctly and they believe in themselves. This is a team that has been playing playoff hockey since March and has lived up to the old saying ‘It's not how you start but how you finish.' I think the Cleveland Cavaliers need to look at this more closely.

The Philadelphia Flyers have had a flair for the dramatic rallying from a 3-0 deficit to beat the Boston Bruins. Even in Game seven the Flyers were down 3-0 and bounced right back to win. The difference in that series was coaching, and the Flyers outworked and out hustled the Boston Bruins.

This series should also be an outstanding one, but I think one of the differences here could be Jaroslav Halak who will be better than Michael Leighton. The Habs have one too many weapons, but you can't count the Flyers out.

Result: Yes for the first time in a while, there will be a Canadian team in the Stanley Cup final. Montreal over Philadelphia in six games. This series will be very close.

So my Stanley Cup Final features an Original Six match-up between Chicago and Montreal.

By Denis J. Puska
Let the official race to Lord Stanley's cup officially get underway.
After a terrific NHL season that featured many surprises and great stories, the Stanley Cup is now in sight for one of 16 remaining teams.
Puska the Prognosticator is back with my Stanley Cup predictions for Round One. So here we go:
Eastern Conference:
Washington Capitals vs. Montreal Canadiens: This is a mismatch on paper that unless the Capitals get over confident or their goaltenders have a major malfunction then they should win the series. Jaroslav Halak of the Habs needs to stand on his head and Brian Gionta and Scott Gomez must be great.
Result: Capitals in Five. Give the Canadiens one win on home ice.
New Jersey Devils vs. Philadelphia Flyers: This is another mismatch on paper that New Jersey should take rather easily. Martin Brodeur is a terrific post season netminder, but is this the best chance for Ilya Kovalchuk to win a Cup? Philly needs to outwork their opponent and their goaltending must come up big.
Result: Devils in five games.
Buffalo Sabres vs. Boston Bruins: This could be closer than any of the first round series. Ryan Miller must be in Olympic form and there needs to be a supporting cast. Boston's goaltending has to sort itself out with one person to carry the weight. Tim Thomas has proven to be solid in the post season but is the center stage time for Tuukka Rask.
Result: Buffalo in six but several of these games will go into overtime.
Ottawa Senators vs. Pittsburgh Penguins: Some may say the Sens have a decent change in this - I say that goaltending is their major weakness. Ottawa would have to get a split in Pittsburgh to have any shot at the series. The Penguins can't get over confident or this series could last longer than they had hoped.
Result: Pittsburgh in five. Ottawa does get a home-ice win.
Western Conference:
San Jose Sharks vs. Colorado Eagles: The San Jose Sharks have struggled in first round series and this is another land mine that they must avoid. Colorado had a great bounce back year with Joe Sacco behind the bench. The Avs are young and eager to prove that the regular season was no fluke, but do they have the offensive firepower to compete with the Sharks? The Sharks are just too deep of a team but seem to struggle in the first round of the series.
Result: San Jose in six games. Overtime will be prevalent in some of these games and Colorado will prove to be a hard team to get rid of.
Chicago Blackhawks vs. Nashville Predators: So some of the experts are predicting the Blackhawks to win the championship. As one broadcaster would say, not so fast. Chicago has a great team but tends to stumble in key moments. Goaltending for the Blackhawks has been inconsistent at times and should that happen then the series could be longer than the experts believe. Nashville has a bunch of great young players but don't have the firepower to compete.
Result: Chicago in five games.
Vancouver Canucks vs. Los Angeles Kings: Well this series is extremely difficult to call because my Canucks are pitted against one of the really good teams in the NHL, the Los Angeles Kings. I like the Canucks and the way they are playing right now. Many people think this team has a chance to go a long way. This is a great battle of offense and even better in net with Roberto Luongo and Jonathan Quick. The difference is Luongo and the Sedins. The Kings are a great team but missing a weapon or two to be really deadly.
Result: Vancouver in six games. This is going to be the better of the first-round series.
Phoenix Coyotes vs. Detroit Redwings: The Coyotes had an amazing return to glory and they have Dave Tippett to thank. This Phoenix team has plenty of confidence and can play well defensively. Their only downfall is youth and lack of playoff experience. Detroit barely got into the playoffs and has not been in rare form at all this season. I think the Coyotes speed will prevail and goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov will be the difference.
Result: Phoenix in six games.
Let me know what you think of my predictions. Email me at puskamediasvc@gmail.com.

By Denis J. Puska
It's been a Cinderella season for the National Hockey League's Phoenix Coyotes - some are even calling them the modern day version Slapshot.

During the summer nobody knew who would own ‘Da Chiefs', or in this case who would own the Coyotoes... now people just can't talk enough about them.

Some hockey fans are not happy that the Coyotes have gone out and spent money to bring in some experienced talent, since the team is owned essentially by the National Hockey League. However, it is still a business and you need to do what you can to be successful.

I have said this all along - if you put a winning team on the ice in Phoenix, the fans will come back. The fans were not happy with the past owners ran the product on the ice. There is a strong enough fan base in Phoenix that there shouldn't be any reason why there wouldn't be a full house. However, the Coyotes were horrible at times and some of their player personnel decisions were made to save the mighy dollar, not improve the product on the ice.

You also have to remember that the previous ownership group had a terrible lease agreement with the arena in Glendale Arizona. The arena management group had all of the cards in their deck and didn't care about what the team owners needed to help their bottom line.

In professional sports a good working relationship between the owners of the team and arena management can make all the difference in the success of the endeavor. I believe that you need both parties to work together. It's one of the reasons why many teams nowadays are opting to build their own facilities.

You don't have to look farther regarding the success of the Phoenix Coyotes than Head Coach Dave Tippett, who has certainly got to be candidate for NHL Coach Of The Year. Tippett was fired in Dallas and replaced by Mark Crawford. The Stars are a team going nowhere and significant changes were never made to give Tippett a better product to work with.

Tippett was brought to Phoenix to help coach the youngsters and that appears to be something he has thrived at doing. The biggest problem with the Coyotes over the past few seasons was Wayne Gretzky. Yes, he is considered the best player of all time, but I don't think he was an excellent coach. The fact that he had ownership interests in the team complicated the matter.

The Coyotes have one of the NHL's best goaltenders in Ilya Bryzgalov, who has a goals against average of just over two goals per game. He was sent packing by the Anaheim Ducks. They're probably thinking twice about the decision they made there.

They have also done it with some talented, not-yet-household-names like Wojtek Wolski, Matthew Lombardi, and Lee Stempniak, just to name a few. It's great to see Shane Doan finally be part of a winning team. He has been with that organization for a long time and he deserves all the credit for hanging around even in the bleakest of times.

The Phoenix Coyotes are on their way to the Stanley Cup playoffs and their opposition better not think twice about an easy victory. The opponent in the first round could be one of several teams and if the Coyotes use home ice to their advantage then they could go far in the post season.

By Denis J. Puska

There was some great news for the National Hockey League this week that will hopefully help to cure the problem of vicious blindslided hits.

League disciplinarian Colin Campbell has been given the power to hand out supplemental discipline for hits on unsuspecting players where the primary point of contact is the head. It was officially handed to him earlier in the week when the executive board of the NHL Players' Association announced that it supported the endorsement of the five player representatives on the competition committee. The league's board of governors had already granted its unanimous support.

This unanimous announcement could go a long way to help improve the overall game and protect the important people, its players, from short-term and permanent injuries.

I think the NHL should take the same step that some youth hockey associations have and assess an automatic five minute major for anything close to a blindsided hit or checking from behind/boarding. A game misconduct should be added so the player misses not only the rest of the game he is playing but the next one as well. I also believe that added to this should be a $20,000 to $25,000 fine at the NHL level.

If a player does it again, then the penalty should increase to three games and $50,000 and then the third offense should be 10 games and $100,000 fine - to be paid by the player personally, not funded by the team. That money should be then earmarked for a fund to be given to players who are permanently injured and don't have the means to cover their medical expenses.
If you stiffen the penalties and consequences for their actions then you will help soften and then hopefully solve the problem.

The real issue is the trickle down effect and the youngsters seeing these terrible incidents taking place and seeing it as okay - if my NHL idols do it then why can't I?

The sad thing is that it appears to be a lack of respect for players on the ice. The blindsided hits and checking from behind seem to be a coward's way of getting back at the other team and it's wrong. Yes, some players don't intentionally mean to do it and where they are going after the puck along the boards those types of things will happen in the course of play.

The next rule the National Hockey League needs to address is the icing calls. The touch icing incidents of players catching a rut and going into the boards are growing by large numbers. I don't like the no-touch icing at the NHL rule but I also believe that a modified icing call could be implemented.

The National Hockey League also needs to remove the trapezoid from behind the net. It was so great to see the goaltenders being able to play the puck during the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. I think that the trapezoid rule should also be modified or scrapped and go back to the original rules.
Don't get me wrong, the National Hockey League is still fun to watch, but clearing up these simple rules may make it more enjoyable for all fans, not only in North America but around the world.