It's the series everybody is talking about, as Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin prepare to hit the ice in a one-on-one, steel cage battle for NHL supremacy. Wait. What's that? There's actually other players involved in this series? We take a look at the series after the jump.
One week ago, after the Washington Capitals ended their regular season with a desultory 7-4 loss to the Florida Panthers, things couldn't have looked better.
Thanks to a late season slump on the part of the New Jersey Devils, the Caps had slipped into second place overall in the Eastern Conference. Their opponent: the New York Rangers, a team that the Caps had dealt with rather easily, posting a 3-0-1 record against them during the regular season.
But if one thing is clear after the Rangers have taken a 2-0 lead in this playoff series, it's that these are not the same New York Rangers that the Capitals faced during the regular season -- not by a long shot.
Exactly 1,230 regular season games have been played. We're down to the best eight teams in each conference. The Stanley Cup Playoffs begin Wednesday night with four series lid-lifters.
In the Eastern Conference, the Boston Bruins rallied from a bit of a swoon around the All-Star Break to easily win the top seed. Even if you subscribe to the idea of Boston being favored because of their strong overall record, there are no sure things in these here playoffs. Who will threaten to knock the Bruins off their pedestal?
You're going to hear about Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin quite a bit during the NHL playoffs (probably more than you care to hear about them) but they are far from the only players in the NHL that could make an impact in the race for the Stanley Cup.
Here are four under-the-radar players that could play big roles for their teams this postseason.
Devils 4, Avalanche 0: After missing most of the season with an elbow injury, legendary goalie Martin Brodeur returned to the New Jersey lineup on Thursday and did not disappoint, posting the 99th shutout of his career in a 4-0 win over Colorado.
Brodeur turned aside all 24 shots he faced, while Jamie Langenbrunner, Zach Parise, Patrick Elias and Travis Zajac all scored goals in the win. The Devils have been one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference all season, and adding one of the best goaltenders of all-time back into the lineup makes them a dangerous team going forward.
A couple of weeks ago, TSN hockey analyst Gord Miller came to the conclusion that in order for the Pittsburgh Penguins to remain competitive in the NHL, they would have to deal the league's leading scorer, Evgeni Malkin, for a first-line winger, a No. 2 center, and "hopefully" a pick or a prospect. It was a laughable proposal.
On Sunday night, Rob Rossi, Penguins beat writer for the Tribune-Review, appeared on a weekly Pittsburgh talk show and suggested the team would be wise to put Sidney Crosby on the trade block this offseason. I guess this is what happens when you go from being two wins away from hoisting the Stanley Cup to being the No. 10 team in the Eastern Conference in a matter of one season.
FanHouse pulls the jersey over your head and brings you the best fights from the world of hockey.
If Sidney Crosby and Alexander Semin have shown us anything this season, it's that star players shouldn't fight. Detroit's Marian Hossa, one of the best two-way players in the NHL, confirmed this on Wednesday night when he decided to take on Nashville's Ryan Suter.
I'm just going to come right out and say it: Sidney Crosby is underrated. There. I said it. I said it because it had to be said. Somebody had to say it, and I'm saying it. The man the NHL force feeds down our throats on every broadcast, commercial and marketing campaign has become so overrated that he's actually underrated. And I'm completely serious.
With the NHL All-Star break officially over, 22 teams will be back in action on Tuesday night. Safe to say that the most anticipated match of the evening will take place in Boston where the Eastern Conference-leading Bruins will host the Washington Capitals. The Southeast Division-leading Caps are in second place in the conference, 10 points in back of the Bruins.
Though the Washington Capitals trail the Boston Bruins for first place in the Eastern Conference by nine points, it's impossible to ignore the fact that Washington has defeated Boston twice this season, most recently on Saturday night, when the Capitals held on for a 2-1 victory.
The margin of victory: a goal scored by Capitals winger Alexander Semin on an absolute cannon blast of a slap shot from the right wing. The goal was Semin's 18th of the season. He'd likely have a lot more if he hadn't already missed 18 games so far this season, primarily due to a nagging high ankle sprain.
After the game, Dmitry Shumin of Sovetsky Sport caught up with Semin in the Capitals locker room to ask him about the game-winning goal, his health and not getting selected for the Eastern Conference All Star Team.
WASHINGTON -- What a difference a week makes.
You're going to hear about Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin quite a bit during the NHL playoffs (probably more than you care to hear about them) but they are far from the only players in the NHL that could make an impact in the race for the Stanley Cup. 
Devils 4, Avalanche 0: After missing most of the season with an elbow injury, legendary goalie Martin Brodeur returned to the New Jersey lineup on Thursday and did not disappoint, posting the 99th shutout of his career in a 4-0 win over Colorado. 
A couple of weeks ago, TSN hockey analyst Gord Miller came to the conclusion that in order for the Pittsburgh Penguins to remain competitive in the NHL, they would have to deal the league's leading scorer, Evgeni Malkin, for a first-line winger, a No. 2 center, and "hopefully" a pick or a prospect. It was a laughable proposal. 
With the NHL All-Star break officially over, 22 teams will be back in action on Tuesday night. Safe to say that the most anticipated match of the evening will take place in Boston where the Eastern Conference-leading Bruins will host the Washington Capitals. The Southeast Division-leading Caps are in second place in the conference, 10 points in back of the Bruins.
Though the Washington Capitals trail the Boston Bruins for first place in the Eastern Conference by nine points, it's impossible to ignore the fact that Washington has defeated Boston twice this season, most recently on Saturday night, when the Capitals held on for a 2-1 victory. 
