The Red Wings. A definite maybe

As everyone knows, the Boston Bruins polished off the Detroit Red Wings in their opening round Stanley Cup playoff series 4 games to 1. This hardly came as a surprise in most parts. After all, the Bruins had the best regular season record, while the Wings needed a semi-hot streak towards the end of the season to merely MAKE the playoffs as a #8 seed. Throw in Boston having home-ice advantage, for what it's worth these days, and the Wheeled Wingers were a long shot indeed to get past the Beantowners.

Most, likely even Detroit fans, will concede that Boston was a better team going in. They were bigger, stronger, deeper, and certainly had more Stanley Cup playoff experience. After all, just last year they made it all the way to the Finals before being nipped by the Chicago Black Hawks, and the year before had won the Cup. In the category of "been there, done that (recently)", the Bruins definitely qualified.

Sure, the Red Wings suffered a rash of injuries during the year to some star players, else they may have finished higher in the standings and avoided the Bruins in the first place. Perhaps they could have had a more favorable match-up against another team in the opening round, and possibly moved on. But that's all hindsight and shoulda, coulda, wouldas. In other words -- a definite maybe.

And let's get real. Not counting owners getting a few more home dates if their team proceeds to the next round, and the major cha-chings that come with them, every team has the same ultimate objective. Win the Cup. To do that, any team has to successfully slog through four series'. Only one will achieve the magic number of 16 playoff wins and hoist Lord Stanley's beloved trophy. So whether or not the Red Wings might have avoided the Bruins in the opening round becomes a moot point. Eventually, they were likely going to have to face them anyway. Most times, to be the best, you have to beat the best, as it should be.

Yet NHL playoff hockey is an unpredictable thing, and sometimes strange things happen. Not that long ago, the LA Kings, merely a #8 seed (like the Red Wings this year) going into the playoffs, got hot and rolled to the Cup.

The point is -- any given NHL game, playoffs or not, is akin to a crapshoot. Obviously, all the players are phenomenally skilled or they wouldn't be there. Major league baseball, the NBA, and the NFL are similar in that respect. The last guy on the bench is REALLY good, because he beat out ferocious competition just to earn his spot on the roster.

But NHL hockey seems to be an animal unto itself when it comes to the slightest of margins. Shooters rattle pucks off goalposts. A half inch one way or the other, and maybe the red light comes on -- which might decide the game. Conversely, when hopelessly out of position -- sometimes goalies can fling up an arm or leg to make a miraculous, if lucky save. Routine wrist shots from 40-50 feet away might be deflected into the goal, while a slap shot blast from 10 feet is slightly off the mark. You never know.

Back to the Bruins and Red Wings. Yep, Boston handily won the series 4-1. For that matter, they outscored Detroit 14-6 during the course of those 5 games. Both those stats seem to dovetail nicely with the eventual outcome.

Yours truly closely followed that series. So why is it I always thought during every one of those games that the Wings were "right there" with the mighty Bruins, and a lucky break, bounce, or deflection here or there might have resulted in different final scores? For the most part, the Wings gave Boston all they could handle.

Then again, over the long haul, few would doubt Boston was clearly the superior team, and dispatching the Red Wings was to be expected.

The Bruins may or may not go on to win the Cup. Three more series' await them and funny things can happen. The winnners of the President's Cup for accumulating the most points in the regular season don't have a very good track record when it comes to going on to win the Cup. Since the 1985-86 season, 28 years ago, only seven teams that racked up the most points in the regular season went on to win the Cup. For that matter, 3 of the last 4 have been knocked out in the opening round.

But not the Bruins this year. They move on to face the Montreal Canadiens in round 2. What will happen there is anybody's guess.

As for the Wings? In Detroit, hope springs eternal. They just might be contenders next year. (Where have we heard that before? Ah yes, those loveable Lions).

Thing is, despite a couple aging superstars and a couple of free agent signings earlier in the year that didn't yield much production, the Wings have a nucleus of talented young players. They're fast, they're hungry, and they play hard. Will they come together, and have the "right stuff" to mature into champions in the next few years?

A definite maybe. But let's not forget. All the other teams are grooming their young studs as well.

How it will all turn out next year, and further into the future -- is anybody's guess.

To use an old cliche -- that's why they play the games......