Thanks for Four Years of Awesome
So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish
Blogged Around Philly: Farewell Edition
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So, dear Chicago, it is down to you, and it is down to me. Two teams, two cities, one badass trophy. With the Stanley Cup Finals set to begin tomorrow night, we thought we'd take a look at head-to-head matchup between Philly and Chicago to see how things would likely play out.
Goaltending
Goal-scorers tend to get most of the accolades, but when it comes to winning in the playoffs, nothing is more important than the netminder. Interestingly, both teams will be starting Joe No-Name in goal.
The Hawks' Antti Niemi has been solid all season, but is still seeking validation outside Chicago, despite posting better numbers than should-be-Vezina-shoo-in Ryan Miller at the same point in his career. If he wins this series, that won't be an issue anymore.
For the Flyers, it'll be Mike Leighton. This guy was on waivers just six months ago; that means the Carolina Hurricanes—who wallowed in mediocrity this season—didn't even want him as their backup goaltender. But, the Flyers seem to have struck gold with Leighton, whose stats in the playoffs are just plain gaudy: 6-1, with a 1.45 goals against average, and a .948 save rate.
Advantage: Pick 'em. Both goalies are playing above their actual talent level because of the solid defenses in front of them. At the risk of spouting a Maddenism, the team that gets more shots on goal should win the series.
Nickname
Chicago is The Windy City, and it lives up to every bit of that moniker, especially during the heart of hockey season. Philadelphia is the City of Brotherly Love, which, while charming, doesn't exactly scream bad-assitude. And as far as living up to the nickname, ummm....
Advantage: Chicago.
Captains
The Flyers' Mike Richards would be the front-runner for the Conn Smythe Trophy ... if the Blackhawks hadn't been their opponent in the finals. Chicago's 22-year-old captain Jonathan Toews has been nothing short of stunning this postseason. For all the talk of Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby going into the playoffs, Toews has been the "You can't control him, you can only hope to contain him" player that carries his team. That said, Richards is about as good a forward on the forecheck as there is in the NHL.
Advantage: Philly. It's Richards's defense and (God we hate to say this) intangibles that are the tiebreaker here.
Signature Sandwich
Philly's cheesesteak is, as Marcus Mumford put it, is one of the least healthy and yet still unsatisfying food items you can consume. Honestly, we have no idea why anyone eats these. Chicago's Italian beef sandwich is, basically, a cheesesteak sans cheese and plus peppers. But given that you can add cheese to your Italian beef or peppers to your cheesesteak, this one is a total wash.
So we'll have to make this decision by going to sandwich number dos: Philly's roast pork and broccoli rabe versus the Chicago-style hot dog. While Chicago version of a hot dog does everything it can to mask the fact that you're still eating a hot dog, Philly's "second sandwich" is just about perfect in every way.
Advantage: Philly.
More matchup analysis after the jump.
Third Lines
When it's two very good teams going head-to-head, the stars often get the first and last goals of the game. But it's the role-players who get those middle-period goals, who draw the late-game penalties, and who get those freak overtime goals that win games—and playoff series. Statistically, the Blackhawks should own this matchup. Except...
Advantage: Philly. The Blackhawks' third line features Marian Hossa. Hossa reached the Stanley Cup Finals with the Penguins in '07-08, and then left the Penguins to join the team that beat them in the finals, the Detroit Red Wings—because he wanted to win a Stanley Cup and thought he had a better chance to do it in Detroit. Last season, Hossa and the Red Wings lost...to his former team, the Penguins. The guy is kryptonite. Not because he's a bad guy. He's just doomed.
Affiliation with Guys Named Rocky
Chicago owner Rocky Wirtz runs a billion-dollar liquor distribution empire and has overseen the revival of the Blackhawks franchise after assuming control of the franchise following the death of his father, Bill Wirtz, who had run the team for over 40 years.
Philadelphia's Rocky Balboa is one of the most beloved underdogs of all time. Too bad he's not real.
Advantage: Chicago.
Defensemen
In this matchup, it'll likely be the defensemen who determine which side will hoist the Stanley Cup—for two reasons. First, with the two unknown quantities in goal, it's up to the defensemen to keep their netminders from being put to the test in the first place. And second—and probably more importantly—it's up to them to set the pace of the game. Chicago will want to collect every loose puck and transition smoothly from defense to offense. If they do, Philly simply can't keep up. The Flyers will want to make the game as physical and ugly as possible.
Advantage: Philly. Chris Pronger will decide this series. You won't see it on the stat sheet, but it'll happen.
Skyline
Philadelphians love our skyline. Chicagoans love their skyline. There's no way to be objective, and we'll all just have to agree to disagree. (Though I think we can all agree that both are better than New York's.)
Advantage: Pick 'em.
The Eyeball Test
From the (hockey-related) comparisons above, you'd think that we're going to pick the Flyers to win in a sweep, but not so. For all the matchups that should favor the Flyers, the Blackhawks have been the best, most consistent team in the playoffs. The Flyers will win all of the individual matchups if they play their best; but if they don't, the Blackhawks will capitalize. The Flyers are far more likely to make mistakes and commit untimely penalties.
Advantage: Chicago.
Our Pick
You'd think the Blackhawks, as the number two seed from the West, would be an obvious favorite over the East's seven seed. But, in terms of style of play and individual matchups, the Flyers were probably the worst draw for the Blackhawks out of any team from the Eastern Conference. The Flyers have defied the way matchups look on paper this whole postseason, and we don't see any reason why they'd stop now. So we're going with...
Flyers in seven games.
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