The Sports Inquirer

Backhand Slapshot: NHL First-Round Playoff Preview (San Jose vs. Los Angeles)

Music to listen to: Blood On The Motorway by DJ Shadow In this all-California series, you have two franchises that have underachieved in the past few years. The two squads will face each other for the first -time ever in the playoffs and the Pacific division rivals will try to fare better in this postseason…
Backhand Slapshot: NHL Playoff Preview (Chicago vs. Vancouver)

Music to listen to: Pro-Test by Skinny Puppy If the Chicago Blackhawks find a way to repeat as Stanley Cup Champions in 2011, the first thing that each member of the organization should do is write a hand-written thank you letter to the Minnesota Wild because if the Wild hadn’t beaten the Dallas Stars in…
Backhand Slapsot: NHL Playoff Preview (Tampa vs. Pittsburgh)

Music to listen to: Something to Believe In by Poison This is the most difficult playoff series to predict, at least in the East. On one side you have the Pittsburgh Penguins, who have been missing the best player in hockey (Sidney Crosby) and a top-10 player (Evgeni Malkin) for the majority of the second…
Backhand Slapshot: NHL Playoff Preview (Boston vs. Montreal)

Music to listen to: Do Me by Bell Biv DeVoe If there’s a playoff series that represents old school hockey its the seemingly annual matchup between the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadians. Both franchises have had legends of the game wear their uniforms and represent arguably the best ever in their positions. Patrick Roy. Bobby…
Backhand Slapshot: NHL Playoff Preview (Buffalo vs. Philadelphia)

Music to listen to: Ghetto Life by Rick James While many argue that the biggest rivalry among the Original Six franchises, Boston and Montreal, will meet in this year’s playoffs, the biggest rivalry among teams that entered the NHL in the first “expansion” era in 1967 has been Philadelphia against Buffalo. The two franchises met…
Backhand Slapshot: First-round breakdown (Washington vs. New York)

Music to listen to: At The Movies by Bad Brains (1) Washington Capitals vs. (8) New York Rangers The Rangers needed a loss by the Carolina Hurricanes in the final day of the regular season to back into the final spot of the playoffs while the Capitals have overcome a mid-season swoon to finish with…