Gretz Round 1 - 7th Heaven

[JiriHrdina]

Good seasons by T-bay and Carolina. Congrats to the Pens/Panthers.
49 LIGHTNING 2 PANTHERS 5

51 PENGUINS 3 HURRICANES 2

[OILFAN #81]

And then there were 10. Congrats to Lightning and Hurricanes on great seasons.

Gretzky Matchups Round 2:

1 Florida vs 7 Atlanta

4 Washington vs 6 Pittsburgh

Should be fun!

[Goffie]

7th Heaven!!!

PENS WIN!! PENS WIN!! PENS WIN!!

The fans in Pittsburgh can breath a sigh of relief, the Pittsburgh Penguins have not only won the first playoff game in franchise history, they have won their first ever series as well. Olaf Kolzig was the star of the series, standing on his head making 38 saves in the win. Jason Spezza who was reunited on a line with Martin Straka scored 2 second period goals one set up by Straka, to give the Pens the 2-1 lead heading into the 3rd frame, although being outshot 28-15. The Canes continued to press the Pens outshooting them 12-5 in the final frame, and tieing the contest 2-2 when Mccauley scored at the 9:45 mark. Sami Kapenen proved to be a worthy deadline pickup as he blasted a onetimer from the point past a screen Craig Anderson; who played solid in place of an injured David Aebischer; at the 17:08 mark of the final frame giving the Pens the series win.

Kolzig was estatic after the game:
"We knew it was gonna be a battle right to the end, and I am just happy to help my team win. We felt we had a team that could go far this year and we hope to build off this win and carry momentum into round 2."

Spezza was also very pleased:
"We have a great bunch of guys in this room who work hard game in and game out. I am very glad to be a part of this team and I only hope this run can continue."

GM Goffie added:
"Hats off to the Canes on a great series, it went down to the wire as I expected it too, and I gotta give it too Doug credit cause he really understands the sim and player chemistry and he knows how to get the most out of all his players. The Canes were a top team in the CPHL all year. Looking forward to doing battle with the Canes again next year"

[droopydrew19]

A tough hard fought series ends with the Bolts taking out Weight and Kovalchuck but being on the wrong end of the power play advatage.

All in all the guys have nothing to hang their heads over. They took the top CPHL team to the brink and never gave up.

It was a big turn around season for last years worst club. The playoffs this season will be a stepping stone to future success.

Look for the Lightning season in review in the coming days.

Gongrats Dave.

[Flickered Flame]

Great job by Drew! Pushing the Kittens to 7 games is a great season. Congrats to Doug on the Canes season as well.

Nice to Sami Kapanen put the Pens through to the next round. Dave gets through the first round...can he get by the Thrashers?

[the_only_turek_fan]

Tragic loss for Tampa Bay. I really thought you had him!

Good work with that team Drew and good luck next season!

[MJK]

Well lookie there...I actually won! I am very surprised and thought the Lightning deserved it more. I have several players who have yet to show up and this series was decided on special teams. If it wasn't for my PP, I would have bn done. Changing lines in game 2 almost lost me the series and I firmly believe that. I had a plan and got away from it after a loss in the very first game...dumb!

Well done Drew! Your team has come a long long way!

[Sylvanfan]

Congrats to Dave and Jeff for getting through to round two. Maybe the old battle of Cornerbrook will be the Rock vs. the Arctic this year in the conference finals.

Tough losses for the Lightning and Canes, but still the Canes have made 3 straight playoff appearances and the Lightning were dead last in the league last year. Both teams had solid seasons for sure.

[HelloHockeyFans]

Great first round matches... congrats to the winners! And a special congrats to Droopy Droops for taking the Panthers to the brink.

[Mango]

Nice job by the Bolts and the Canes! You really pushed two elite teams to the limit. Congrats to the Pens and Panthers for moving to the next round.

[MJK]

Originally Posted by HelloHockeyFans

Great first round matches... congrats to the winners! And a special congrats to Droopy Droops for taking the Panthers to the brink.

Man, are you a broken record or what?

[HelloHockeyFans]

Originally Posted by MJK

Man, are you a broken record or what?

Oh, the drama

[Prototype]

Droop for GM of the Year... he's got my vote.

[MJK]

Originally Posted by Prottotype

Droop for GM of the Year... he's got my vote.

There are several great candidates. You shouldn't give your vote before it is all over becuase what Neil has done with that Atlanta team is amazing. Don't forget, Cheese completely destroyed it leaving only prospects. To turn that into a solid playoff team in one year is outstanding.

Hesla and the Caps are another one...he had a great season and if he can beat the Penguins he can beat anyone. A somewhat easy first round matchup, time will tell if his team can handle a solid one like the pens.

Both the Caps and Thrash are also extremely active and should both be considered fron runners in addition to TB and Droopy. Gotta give credit where credit is due.