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The 2002 Detroit Red Wings were the last team to win the Presidents' Trophy (best regular-season record) and the Stanley Cup in the same season.
The 2008 Red Wings have the task of duplicating that feat. They start their run to a Cup title with a first-round series against division rival Nashville. On paper, this appears to be a mismatch, but we all know that hockey games aren't played on paper. It would be too hard on the skates.
The Red Wings are still heavy favorites, but is this a slam dunk?
Offense: Detroit has firepower, balance, and grit up front. Detroit was the only Western Conference team to top three goals per game. Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg each topped 90 points. The Red Wings had ten players in double figures, and only two of them were defensemen. The depth will be tough for Nashville to counter, but the Predators can score. J.P. Dumont, Jason Arnott, Alexander Radulov, and Martin Erat all topped 20 goals. They even got 14 goals (and a sparkling minus-31) out of Radek Bonk this year. The Preds can score goals, but their offense doesn't match Detroit. The Red Wings get eleven more shots on goal per game than their opponents, and they're a virtual lock to generate more and better scoring chances in this series because of the puck possession they'll have. Edge: Detroit
Defense: Obviously, the Red Wings have a solid defensive team. It's more than just Niklas Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski. Niklas Kronvall topped 20:00 of ice time per game and posted a plus-25. Chris Chelios is so old that he was an old player ten years ago, but he is still a strong defender, and you'd never know he was 45 when you watch him play. Nashville doesn't match up very well here. Ryan Suter is probably Nashville's best young defenseman, but he's not consistent enough. Marek Zidlicky and Greg De Vries had nice seasons, but they're not the the caliber of the top guys on Detroit. Lidstrom and Rafalski alone give Detroit the advantage here, and it's an even larger gap if Detroit gets anything out of Kronvall, Chelios, Brett Lebda, or Andreas Lilja. Edge: Detroit
Goaltending: Dominik Hasek isn't as dynamic as he was in Buffalo, but his veteran savvy and playoff experience are a tough combination. That said, Hasek's save percentage this year (.902) was his worst since 1992-1993 in Buffalo (.896). He relied on the guys in front of him (not that this is a bad thing, because the guys in front of him are really good) more than anything else. Meanwhile, Nashville appears to have found their answer in goal. Dan Ellis was 17-6-3 in his last 24 decisions, and he allowed one goal or less in eight of his last 15 starts. Included in that were back-to-back shutouts of Columbus that totaled 79 saves. Because of Hasek's reliance on his teammates and Ellis' superb finish to the season, I think the Predators actually own a slight edge in goal. Edge: NashvillePrediction: Unfortunately for Nashville, they don't have more than a puncher's chance in this series. They have some goal-scorers, but they don't have enough on the blue line to keep up with Detroit's superior talent and depth. Ellis is good enough to keep this team in games, and he might be able to steal one or two in this series. However, there's no question Detroit's skaters are better in practically all areas, and their ability to take care of Hasek will be the key to their series win. If Hasek slips enough, the Predators have sufficient skill to make this series very interesting. It will, however, take a near-colossal failure by Detroit for Nashville to win four of seven. Pick: Red Wings in 5.
