Who I'll Be Rooting For in the Playoffs*

*Shamelessly ripped off from the future Mrs. Lehtonen at Fire Wagon Hockey.

Putting it mildly, our Thrashers more than likely won't pull it out this year. Thus, here's who I'll be rooting for in the playoff season and covering a bit here at the Chronicle.

Eastern Teams

I generally dislike the Eastern Conference aside from Our Team, the Washington Capitals, the Buffalo Sabres, and the Pittsburgh Penguins (I can't help it; I like Malkin, and that Hossa guy is playing for them) so my preferences are:

1. Washington Capitals
2. Pittsburgh Penguins
3. Buffalo Sabres
4. .................
5. ..................


Western Teams

This is more like it. I hate the perennially fearsome Detroit Red Wings, but I like a lot of Western teams. Probably because the Thrashers don't really have to worry about them. Some of them are genuine favorites though. My preferences run like this:

1. San Jose Sharks
2. Calgary Flames
3. Minnesota Wild
4. Vancouver Canucks
5. Anaheim Ducks

The Sharks are my favorite playoff-contending team as well as my favorites to win the Stanley Cup. I suspect the Red Wings will choke and that the Dallas Stars won't have what it takes. There's simply no way an Eastern team is going to win it this year. The most exciting Stanley Cup match-up would be the Pens and the Sharks.