Sunday, May 28, 2006
Oilers Return to Final
For the first time since 1990 the Edmonton Oilers have advanced to the Stanley Cup final. They defeated the Mighty Ducks in five games {somebody predicted such...see previous articles :)} and will play either Buffalo or Carolina for the Stanley Cup. At times throughout the series the Oilers were under the seige of Ducks attackers, but in the end the superb goalkeeping of Dwayne Roloson and the opportunism of Oiler scorers was enough to pull out the win.
With the victory the Oilers become the first #8 seed to make it to the final, though this can't exactly be described as a fluke like we've witnessed in past years. Most other "cinderella" teams rellied on stifling defensive systems to grind out games 2-1 and hoped their goaltender stole the series for them. The Oilers have implemented defensive systems, and Roloson has been Conn Smythe worthy, but they have generally managed to play the same type of game that they used in the regular season. Scoring depth has been a catalyst for success, as Edmonton usually "plays to win" by outscoring the opponent, unlike recent finialists Calgary ('04), and Anaheim ('03), who played "not to lose" by implementing the trap.
That being said, I'm not one of the people who complains about teams using the trap to win and about the fact that they're not being entertained. The coaches job is to win games, not entertain the other team's fans. His own fans are entertained by winning, not losing 6-5. The bottom line is win however possible. But the neutral observer should at least be pleased by the fact that Edmonton plays a more exciting brand of hockey.
Speaking of those past finalists, the '02 Red Wings were the last team seeded higher than #6 to represent the west in the final. Home ice advantage seems to have become far less important than it used to be. Anaheim in'03 as the #7 seed went 6-1 on the road to get to the final, while #6 seed Calgary went 8-2 in their three conference rounds. Edmonton went 6-3 as the visitor.
With the victory the Oilers become the first #8 seed to make it to the final, though this can't exactly be described as a fluke like we've witnessed in past years. Most other "cinderella" teams rellied on stifling defensive systems to grind out games 2-1 and hoped their goaltender stole the series for them. The Oilers have implemented defensive systems, and Roloson has been Conn Smythe worthy, but they have generally managed to play the same type of game that they used in the regular season. Scoring depth has been a catalyst for success, as Edmonton usually "plays to win" by outscoring the opponent, unlike recent finialists Calgary ('04), and Anaheim ('03), who played "not to lose" by implementing the trap.
That being said, I'm not one of the people who complains about teams using the trap to win and about the fact that they're not being entertained. The coaches job is to win games, not entertain the other team's fans. His own fans are entertained by winning, not losing 6-5. The bottom line is win however possible. But the neutral observer should at least be pleased by the fact that Edmonton plays a more exciting brand of hockey.
Speaking of those past finalists, the '02 Red Wings were the last team seeded higher than #6 to represent the west in the final. Home ice advantage seems to have become far less important than it used to be. Anaheim in'03 as the #7 seed went 6-1 on the road to get to the final, while #6 seed Calgary went 8-2 in their three conference rounds. Edmonton went 6-3 as the visitor.
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Awesome site dude...keep up the good work. Good work on the World Cup preview...Hope you put up some CFL previews soon
# posted by 
: May 29, 2006
: May 29, 2006 
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