The Devils and the Kings: A Stanley Cup Finals Preview

            So, the New Jersey Devils are back in the Stanley Cup Finals, for the first time in nine years. The last time that they were here, they won a tough series against a similar upstart team to this year's edition of the Los Angeles Kings. Yes, the Devils defeated the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in 2003, although it took a full seven games – and that, following a tough, grueling seven game series to get past Ottawa in the Eastern Conference Finals!

            The Devils got in with a very sweet series victory against their bitter cross-river rivals, the New York Rangers. That, too, was a tough series, but the Devils did manage to win it in six, thus avoiding a dangerous game 7.

            Now, they have to face the team that no one wants to face, the red-hot and surging Los Angeles Kings. The Kings have had an up and down season. They were among the favorites going into the season, and early on, they indeed did truly look like a powerhouse team to be reckoned with.

            Something happened along the way, however, and the Los Angeles Kings slowed down, almost to a crawl. In fact, they went from being among the leaders in the West, and even in the league, overall, to almost falling short of qualifying for the playoffs altogether. Hey managed to hang on to that precious 8^th seed, however, and it can be argued that no team in history has ever done as much with it as the Kings have managed to do, going from an underdog not expected to survive past the first round, to a powerhouse juggernaut of a team that is expected to steamroll their way past opponents. Now, that's saying something.

            The Los Angeles Kings used their speed to fluster each of their opponents, and in the process, became only the second team in NHL history to knock off the top three seeds in the Conference en route to the Stanley Cup Finals, and the first ever eight seed to accomplish the feat.

            But it is not just that the Kings keep on winning that is making news and grabbing attention. It is how they are winning.

            Los Angeles surprised many when they won Game 1 at Vancouver in the first round, but it seemed truly shocking when they followed that up with a Game 2 victory. When they won Game 3, the series seemed all but over, and then they dropped Game 4. Maybe Vancouver would have a chance at home in Game 5, and what looked like it would be a runaway series would suddenly be much tighter, right?

            Wrong. The Kings handled that pressure beautifully, and showed composure in hostile Vancouver, which was ready to see their beloved Canucks make another run at the Cup, that they just narrowly lost out on last postseason. They were not ready to call it quits, but the Kings forced it on them, and moved on to the second round.

            Any assumption that the series against Vancouver had perhaps somehow been a fluke went out the window in that round, when the Kings took on the St. Louis Blues and swept them aside, winning each game by at least two goals, and making short work of the highly regarded Blues. Suddenly, the Kings looked like a very scary team, and it was not a surprise that they were considered the favorites against the Phoenix Coyotes.

            Both Los Angeles and Phoenix were making their first appearance in the Western Conference Finals (the Kings had made it that far back in 1993, with the "Great One" Wayne Gretzky leading the way, but that hardly counts for the modern lineup, does it?), so the experience factor was not necessarily an edge for either team. Both teams also had high expectations going into the season, and seemed finally to be fulfilling their potential going into the series.

            However, Los Angeles looked so dominant in the series, that perhaps the questions will remain for the Coyotes. For the Kings, by contrast, there was nothing to be said, but heaps of praise towards the team.

            Going into the Stanley Cup Finals, now, the one question with some measure of legitimacy is whether or not the Los Angeles Kings got perhaps too much rest, that maybe such a long period of lull with stifle their momentum a bit. That remains to be seen, of course, but Los Angeles surely is flying high with confidence right at this moment.

            As for New Jersey, the Devils had to get past a tough series against the Florida Panthers, which they more survived then won in any sort of dominant fashion. It was very close, and the Devils truly did face the prospect of elimination.

            Yet, they got past that, and went on to steamroll past the Philadelphia Flyers in much the same way that the Flyers had crushed the Devils a couple of years back.

            It was onto the Eastern Conference Finals, a series that, frankly, I mentioned far too much in this blog (can you tell I was following it closely?). Let me not expend on it too much now, either. The Devils won, winning the last three games after falling behind two games to one.

            Both teams have good speed and strong momentum going in. Both teams also were not expected to go very far in the playoffs going in, and both have surpassed, even far surpassed, most people's expectations of them. That bodes well for this series, which really will be one of the more intriguing match ups that we will have seen.

            I will not deny that my heart is pulling for the Devils. How great would it be for Martin Brodeur to hoist the Cup one last time, and to get one more ring on his finger to add to his already unbelievable legacy. He already has more wins than any other goalie in history. More shutouts, too –both regular season and playoffs. So, the Devils can likely count on first rate goaltending.

            While it is a scary prospect to play the Los Angeles Kings, knowing what they have done to each of their opponents so far, the Devils should be brimming with confidence, as well. The Kings enjoyed a remarkable run, beating some incredible teams along the way. But they also have not faced a team with the experience that the Devils have. The Canucks made it to the Cup Finals last year, but the loss might just have gone a long way towards hurting their confidence. For the Devils, they are not haunted by past failures, having perhaps overcome and exorcised the one last ghost in their closet, or monkey off their back, by defeating the Rangers in the Eastern Conference Finals. If they win this, it will be another Cup, another championship, and this one will be the most unexpected of them all. But the pressure should not be overbearing, because, again, they already exceeded expectations. If anything, perhaps now the pressure is on the Kings, who seem almost unbeatable.

            So, who do I predict? Let me just say, outright, that I believe the Devils will provide the Kings with a stronger challenge in these playoffs then they have yet seen. Is that going to be enough? Time will tell. But, going into the series, it will be enough for me to defy logic and go with my heart. Devils in six.