Let's make this quick like a bunny. Here are some thoughts on the second round.

BUFFALO-BOSTON

Dominik Hasek by Meredith Martini

In a series that's clearly going to be a goaltending duel, always go with the better goaltender. Byron Dafoe is good, but he's not Dominik Hasek. Then again, having Michael Peca doesn't hurt either.

This was a hard-hitting series from the start. The Sabres wanted to punish Ray Bourque and did just that, battering the Hall of Famer at every opportunity. The accumulation of blows took its toll. Bourque began to show his age as the series progressed.

The most impressive thing about the Buffalo victory is that the Sabres did it without their leading goal scorer, Miroslav Satan. Good ol' Mephistopheles missed the entire series with a foot injury.

TORONTO-PITTSBURGH

This series swung on Game Four. The Penguins were forced to play without Alexei Kovalev, German Titov, and Aleksey Morozov, yet still carried the game to overtime before Sergei Berezin bagged the winner for Toronto. If the Penguins could have found a way to pull out the win, they would have grabbed a swank 3-1 series lead and would have gained a huge emotional lift in knowing that they could beat the Leafs without three of their top forwards. But they couldn't quite pull it off. Instead, the Leafs got the win, tied the series, and claimed momentum. The Penguins were never really the same after that. The cause was hindered even more by Kovalev having to sit out Game Five, as well, with his foot injury. The Penguins were 0-3 in the playoffs without Kovalev.

DALLAS-ST. LOUIS

Mike Modano by Meredith Martini

The Blues gave it a good go, and I thought they might be able to pull off the upset, but they lacked the scoring depth to really challenge the Stars. Pierre Turgeon and Pavol Demitra can only do so much. The Stars received the usual great efforts from Mike Modano, Joey Nieuwendyk, and Derian Hatcher. It was only a matter of time before they prevailed.

It's kind of tough to pick a turning point since things weren't decided until Modano's OT goal in Game Six, but the Blues should have won Game Two. They had a 4-3 lead entering the third and let it slip away, losing 5-4 in overtime on a lethal shot by Nieuwendyk. The loss put the Blue Note down two games to none. That's a mighty rough hill to climb for a team that relies mainly on two defensemen.

COLORADO-DETROIT

This was a great series. You know the best part? The Red Wings lost. (Sunshine) you, Detroit!

See, the Avalanche aren't scared to drop the first two games of a series at home and then rattle off four straight wins against the two-time defending Cup champions. They were just making it fun.

Peter Forsberg and Patrick Roy simply took the series over beginning with Game Three. Roy led the way by ripping his teammates for taking needless penalties and playing undisciplined hockey in the first two contests. He backed the talk up by putting on a ghetto clinic between the pipes the rest of the way.

As for Forsberg, he heeded Roy's advise and didn't lose his temper when the Wings got chippy. He stayed cool and focused on playing his game. And that was that. The Wings couldn't contain him. Forsberg closed with four goals and four assists in the final four games of the series. In the words of Fred Sanford, that's some super king sized production.

Oh yeah, (sunshine) you, Detroit!

Now let's take a quick look at the Conference Finals. Why? Because we can.

BUFFALO-TORONTO

Michael Peca by Meredith Martini

This goes back to that goaltending-duel thing. Curtis Joseph is amazing, but he's not quite Hasek. The Dominator's groin is a bit sore, but it shouldn't be enough to make a difference. And then there's Peca. Mats Sundin has a had a hard enough time trying to score in the postseason without having to face Mr. Selke himself. Peca will shut him down. And if the Leafs have to rely on the likes of Lonny Bohonos and Garry Valk to provide offense again this round, they're in trouble. Go with the Sabres in six. But really all this series is for is to decide which team gets the title of "Stanley Cup runner-up." Neither club is going to beat Colorado or Dallas.

Theo Fleury by Meredith Martini

COLORADO-DALLAS

This will be a swell series. Maybe not Colorado-Detroit, but swell nonetheless. Dallas could be the best team that's never going to win a Stanley Cup. I just don't know if they can beat Colorado with the way Patrick Roy is playing. The Avalanche also has three lines that can score and plenty of speed to stretch the big Dallas defense. They're tough to match up against. On any given night either Peter Forsberg, Joe Sakic, or Theo Fleury is capable of dominating a game. And Sakic is due to bust out after only scoring one goal against Detroit. Avalanche in six.

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