Sun Apr 6 23:59:56 2008

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Quest for Lord Stanley's Cup begins Tuesday

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New York, NY (Sports Network) - The NHL regular season came to a close on Sunday with a dramatic flourish for the second consecutive season, setting the stage for the league's 90th chase for the Stanley Cup, which begins on Tuesday.

The Western Conference playoff picture was not cemented until Colorado's 4-3 shootout win over Minnesota vaulted the Avs into sixth spot ahead of the Calgary Flames. Calgary now must face Pacific Division champion San Jose.

In the Eastern Conference, playoff seeding was also up in the air until a Flyers win over the Penguins cost the Pens the top seed while elevating Philadelphia to the sixth slot. A Devils shootout victory over the Rangers gave New Jersey the crucial home-ice advantage over their division rivals.

There may be a new champion crowned in June from the field of 16 playoff teams, but the defending champion Anaheim Ducks will have something to say on the matter.

It will be a daunting task, as no team has won back-to-back titles since the Detroit Red Wings accomplished the feat in 1997 and 1998.

In addition, three clubs from Canada (Ottawa, Montreal and Calgary) will try to be the first team located North of the Border to be Stanley Cup champions since the Canadiens took home their last title in 1993.

In the Eastern Conference, perennial rivals and a pair of members from the NHL's Original Six come together as the top-seeded Montreal Canadiens (47-25-10) square off against the eight-seed Boston Bruins (41-29-12) beginning Tuesday at Bell Centre.

The Canadiens finished as top seed in the conference for the first time since 1988-89. The Habs were a scorching 8-0 against the Bruins this season, outscoring their foes 39-16.

These clubs last met in the playoffs four years ago, with the Canadiens rebounding from a 3-1 deficit to take the series in seven. Boston has not bested Montreal in the postseason since 1994, in a seven-game conference quarterfinal. The Canadiens have taken 23 of 30 previous playoff pairings.

The Atlantic Division champion two-seed Penguins (47-27-8) and seventh-place Senators (43-31-8) square off for the second consecutive season in the first round starting Wednesday at Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh.

Last season, the high-powered Senators took the conference quarterfinal set in five games. Despite a 16-3 start to the campaign, Ottawa sputtered to the finish, yet still won three of four regular-season meetings. Pittsburgh, on the other hand, vaulted to the second seed in the East despite losing Crosby for a lengthy period to a high-ankle sprain.

The surprising Washington Capitals (43-31-8), who won 11 of their last 12 games and got some help late to capture the Southeast Division, face the sixth-seeded Flyers (42-29-11) in an intriguing matchup which kicks off Friday in the nation's capital.

Both teams won twice in the season series, with each club winning a pair of games on the other's home ice. These former Patrick Division rivals last met in the playoffs back in 1989, when the Flyers upset the division-winning Caps in six games. Overall, Washington has won two of the previous three postseason series, taking a three-game sweep in 1984 and overcoming a 3-1 series deficit to top Philly in 1988.

Each team has something to prove, as the Capitals had not reached the playoffs since 2003 and the Flyers look to continue their resurgence from the NHL's worst record a year ago.

There will be another chapter added to this Hudson River rivalry, as the fourth-seeded Devils (46-29-7) meet the fifth-seed Rangers (42-27-13) in the first round for the second time in last three seasons starting on Wednesday in Newark. Although the Rangers won seven of the eight regular-season meetings, the Devils grabbed the higher seed following a 3-2 shootout win on Sunday.

New Jersey won the previous playoff matchup in 2006 during a dominant four- game sweep, holding New York to just four goals. The veteran-laden Rangers look to exact revenge as they were victorious in the first three playoff meetings -- a seven-game tussle in the 1992 Patrick Division semifinals, the memorable seven-game 1994 Eastern Conference final, and the 1997 Eastern semis.

In the Western Conference, the top-seeded Detroit Red Wings (54-21-7), who won their sixth President's Trophy by sporting the the best overall record during the regular season, will take on a familiar foe in the eighth-seeded Nashville Predators (41-32-9) starting Thursday at Joe Louis Arena. Central Division rivals, these clubs met eight times this season, with Detroit winning five of those encounters.

The Red Wings have not missed the postseason since 1990 and will be vying for their 10th championship in the franchise's illustrious 82-year history. Last season Detroit reached the Conference Finals before bowing out to eventual Stanley Cup champion Anaheim in six games.

Meanwhile, Nashville, celebrating its 10th season of existence, is making an appearance in the playoffs for a fourth consecutive year, but has yet to advance past the opening round.

San Jose (49-23-10) is the second seed after clinching the Pacific Division title, its third in franchise history and first since 2003-04. The Sharks, who went 18-2-2 to end the season, are making their fourth straight trip to the playoffs, where they will face the seventh-seeded Calgary Flames (42-30-10) beginning Wednesday at HP Pavilion. Calgary took three of the four meetings during the regular season.

In an intriguing matchup between Northwest Division rivals, the third-seeded Minnesota Wild (44-28-10) will take on the sixth-seeded Colorado Avalanche (44-31-7) in a series set to open Wednesday at the Xcel Energy Center. The Wild, who captured their first-ever division crown, won five of the eight meetings this season. Colorado overcame injuries to Joe Sakic, Ryan Smyth and Paul Stastny, which kept the trio sidelined for lengthy periods of time, to return to the postseason after a one-year absence.

These two clubs met in a memorable opening round series back in 2003, when Minnesota upset the heavily favored Avalanche in seven games. Andrew Brunette, now a member of the Avalanche, scored the series-winning goal in overtime.

The fourth-seeded Ducks (47-27-8) will begin defense of their title against the fifth-seeded Dallas Stars (45-30-7). During the regular season, Dallas owned a 5-2-1 record against its Pacific Division opponent.

The Ducks are looking to become the first team to repeat since Detroit (1997-98), while the Stars are in search of their second title in club history. Dallas knocked off the Buffalo Sabres in six games to capture the 1999 Stanley Cup. The series is to set to begin Thursday at Honda Center.