WESTERN CONFERENCE

Game 1: May 20 Philadelphia 3, Rochester 2 (OT)
Game 2: May 22 Philadelphia 5, Rochester 2
Game 3: May 26 Rochester 3, Philadelphia 0
Game 4: May 28 Rochester 6, Philadelphia 1
Game 5: May 30 Rochester 2, Philadelphia 1 (OT)
Game 6: June 1 Rochester 4, Philadelphia 2

(I predicted: Rochester in seven.) Right team, a touch easier than expected. And having attended Game Two, I'm shocked.

Game Three

Martin Biron by Meredith Martini

Well, Brian McCutcheon fibbed about one thing - Martin Biron started the game, not Tom Draper. He wasn't fibbing when he said Peter Vandermeer would get a regular shift, or that Domenic Pittis really needed to get going. All three things happened, as Biron not only started but pitched a 29-save shutout, and Pittis and Vandermeer scored goals 11 seconds apart midway through the first period en route to a 3-0 win over the Phantoms. Dean Sylvester, returned by Buffalo earlier in the day, potted an empty-netter late in the game to finish the scoring. Rochester returned to their hard-hitting, defensive ways for the first time in the series.

Game Four

Ooh, ouch. It's not a good idea to get the league's leading scorer going again, as the Phantoms found out. Domenic Pittis scored two goals and amassed five points as the Amerks routed the Phantoms to even up the series. Pittis and longtime linemate Craig Fisher received a new linemate in the ageless Randy Cunneyworth, and the combination clicked as Cunneyworth had what he believes to be the first five-point night of his lengthy pro career and Fisher turned in a two-goal, four-point performance as well.

Making his first performance was Jean-Marc Pelletier, who saw his first action in a long time when Brian Boucher was mercifully yanked in the second period. Boucher gave up all six goals.

Game Five

Craig Fisher by Meredith Martini

Now the two teams decided to really get serious and not score. Really. Francis Belanger's power-play goal some five minutes into the third period was the first goal of the game and the only one the Phantoms would score. But Domenic Pittis needed just 99 seconds to tie the game up, and so we went to overtime. The overtime didn't last overly long, only about three minutes, when Craig Fisher may or may not have kicked the puck into the net. But there's no instant replay in the AHL, unlike in baseball (however, baseball doesn't have crying.) The referees thought Fisher touched the puck with his stick prior to it going in the net and no film indicates with certainty that he didn't, so the game ended. Brian Boucher returned to stop 35 shots, while Martin Biron kept on truckin' with 38 saves.

Game Six

The Rochester Americans returned to the scene of their earlier crimes, but found redemption. Alexander Boikov scored his first professional playoff goal less than two minutes into the third period and he and his teammates made the lead stand up as the Amerks came all the way back from a 2-0 games deficit. Craig Fisher and Dean Sylvester staked the Amerks to a 2-0 lead, but Paul Healey scored twice in 1:45 to tie the game in the second before Boikov gave Rochester a permanent lead. Domenic Pittis had three points, including an insurance goal. The Amerks not only protected their lead, they did it with four defensemen - Dean Melanson was lost earlier in the game to injury. Not only did Martin Biron shut the door on Philadelphia, he set up Sylvester's goal. Multi-talented, that guy.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Game 1: May 19 Providence 6, Fredericton 3
Game 2: May 21 Providence 6, Fredericton 3
Game 3: May 23 Providence 5, Fredericton 3
Game 4: May 25 Fredericton 4, Providence 1
Game 5: May 27 Fredericton 4, Providence 0
Game 6: May 29 Providence 6, Fredericton 1

(I predicted: Providence in five.) Right team, a touch harder than I thought. Underestimated a team playing its last ever home game.

Game Four

Fredericton is doomed. They know it. And moving to Quebec City is only half the problem. The Bruins, of course, are the other half. But unlike the Hartford Cub Pack (hey, the way they rolled over and died I'm not sure Wolf is appropriate) the young Habs have enough pride in them to salvage one more game for the home crowd. This was it.

Providence's Cameron Mann opened the scoring in the second period, but it was just minutes later that the kiddie connection, Montreal's last two No. 1 picks, tied up the game as Jason Ward fed Eric Chouinard in front of the net. Then it turned into the Martin Gendron show, as the Habs captain turned in a nice natural hat trick to round out a home win. Jose Theodore was back in the net for Fredericton after resting his sore groin and stopped 34 shots.

Game Five

Jonathan Delisle by Meredith Martini

For only the second time in this entire season, the Providence Bruins were shut out. Jose Theodore stopped 49 shots, many of the difficult variety, as the Canadiens staved off elimination in front of their home crowd. Jason Ward scored the only goal that mattered on the power play for Fredericton, followed by Martin Gendron, Jonathan Delisle and Aris Brimanis with less meaningful markers. The game also ended in mucho-ugly fashion, with Providence's Peter Laviolette and Joel Prpic picking up gross misconducts and Fredericton's Gerry Fleming attacking the Providence equipment manager with a stick. Too bad there were no adults in the building.

Game Six

And the Bruins, who didn't want to come home for Game Six, made sure they didn't have to play Game Seven. Peter Ferraro scored just 12 seconds into the game and scored again later in the period, then the P-Bruins launched their patented second period onslaught against Jose Theodore and sent him to an early shower. Ferraro finished the night with three points, and Randy Robitaille had a pair. Recently unretired Steve King also scored a goal for Providence, while John Grahame faced only 17 shots from the young Habs, who withdrew from the series a little more gracefully than one would have thought given their recent history.

Other Notes...

Hamilton Bulldogs Director of Marketing Chris Kaplan was named the winner of the Ken McKenzie Award, given each year to the person deemed to have produced the best promotional/advertising/marketing campaign for their team. Kaplan had already won numerous local and regional awards for his work with the Bulldogs and gives seminars and counselling to the AHL teams on how to promote their teams.

The Montreal Canadiens decided to retain Michel Therrien and Gerry Fleming as coaches for the Quebec Citadelles. Oh, joy...

And now, for the big kahuna, the finals.

An irresistible force meets an unmovable object. The best offensive team in the league meets the best defensive team in the league. The best home team in the league meets the best road team in the league. Wow, how to choose, how to choose?

Both Rochester and Providence were unbeaten at home during the playoffs and were pretty darn good there in the regular season to boot. And both teams are pretty good offensively and defensively. So this comes down to two things - can you play on the road, and goaltending. Rochester clinched their series on the road and won in Hamilton as well as Philadelphia. Providence struggled in Fredericton and dropped one in Worcester. So, the Amerks have a slight edge there. But the net is the difference. Martin Biron is back to being the league's best, while John Grahame, who is by no means a slouch, still needs his teammates to score often. So...

Rochester in seven. Hey, I haven't been wrong about them yet.

CALDER CUP FINALS

 Game 1: Saturday, June 5 at Providence                                     
 Game 2: Sunday, June 6 at Providence                                       
 Game 3: TBD at Rochester
 Game 4: TBD at Rochester                                                        
*Game 5: TBD at Providence                                                       
*Game 6: TBD at Rochester                                          
*Game 7: TBD at Providence

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