Stanley Cup Playoffs Recap

        Last night was an evening hockey fans in Los Angeles won’t soon forget. Though it took 45 years to accomplish, their Kings finally managed to bring home their first Stanley Cup.  In a city whose attention span is often dominated by their talented basketball and baseball teams, it was a pleasant change of pace to see those same fans swept up in the race for the cup. As a hockey fan, I can only hope this helps raise the popularity of the NHL out west.

        Darryl Sutter joined the Kings as head coach December 17, 2011 and was instrumental in their run. After briefly coaching/managing the Calgary Flames, he took over in Los Angeles and helped guide them to a 25-13-11 record while securing a playoff appearance as the 8th seed. He altered their philosophy into a more aggressive team as shown by their tremendous forecheck throughout the playoffs, and it may well have made the difference between a championship, and a 46 year drought.  The Kings became the first 8th seed to ever win a Stanley Cup after most predicted them to lose in the first round against the President Trophy winning, Vancouver Canucks. I was among them, as I actually predicted a sweep. After barely sneaking into the playoffs and with little offense all season (they were the second lowest scoring team in the regular season) I thought a star powered team like Vancouver's would make short work of the Kings. But in keeping with the backwardness of this years playoffs, the tables were turned and Los angeles took four out five from the Canucks, and had hockey fans worldwide worried that Vancouver might be in store for more riots.

        With Jonathon Quick at the helm, the upsets kept coming. They swept the second seeded Blues and made it to the Western Conference Finals, where they again won easily, beating the Phoenix Coyotes 4-1. Riding Quick's superb goaltending and their leader Dustin Brown, they were headed to the Stanley Cup Finals, where they hoped to end their 45 year championship drought. There they faced an upstart New Jersey team with strong goaltending of their own. Their run was a true team effort, from the veterans like Mike Richards and Jeff Carter, to the young guns in Dwight King, Trevor Lewis or Kyle Clifford. Willie Mitchell (35), their eldest member, and Rob Scuderi (33) helped to provide a strong resistance against their opposition's star players. Scuderi was one of the few Kings who had won a Stanley Cup before, his last one coming in 2009 with the Penguins. Offensively, Dustin Brown and Anze Kopitar led the NHL playoffs in scoring with 20 points apiece; both players had identical numbers with 8 goals, 12 assists, and were each +16. These numbers show how low scoring the playoffs were this year as in recent years the highest scorer has had 30+ points.

        For the Devils, Marty Brodeur, despite his age (40), was his usual self. His impressive numbers (2.12 GAA, Sv% of .917, 1 shut out, and 14 wins) had him just two wins shy of another Cup. Brodeur truly is the inspiration to the cliche that "age is just a number." If this was indeed the end for the future hall of fame goaltender, its been one hell of a career. Iyla Kovalchuk lead New Jersey in scoring with 19 points, but appeared to be battling a severe injury all playoffs long. The Devils forecheck, like the Kings, was excellent and helped create offense, but it wasn't enough to overcome Los Angeles' phenomenal goaltending. The biggest story for the Devils this offseason will be trying to re-sign their captain and star player, Zach Parise.

        Ultimately their can be no question as to who the centerpiece was in the Kings success. Jonathon Quick, the Conn Smythe Trophy winner, played so well and with such consistency, that it was almost unfair to their competition. He had a GAA of 1.41, a Sv% of .946, 3 shut outs, and 16 wins. Los Angeles beat the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd seeds en-route to their championship which is truly an amazing accomplishment.

        On the other end of glory are the Devils, who fought their way past expectations to give the Kings a run for their money. They beat the Panthers, Flyers, and Rangers in what was a very impressive run. Much like with Los Angeles, they were a team few had moving past the second round, which just goes to show that we can never count a team out. It seems as though we're reminded of that idea every year by some lesser seeded contender, yet if their is one certainty in all of this, its that we will forget it again next year and the year after that. Recently it seems as though we've been talking about underdogs more than usual. Be it Dallas' run to an NBA Championship last season, the Giants stealing yet another Lombardi from the heavily favored Patriots, or St. Louis, battling their way just to get into the playoffs, only to make for one of the most memorable World Series runs I've ever seen. I guess thats the just the beauty of sports.