Stanley Cup prediction

Let’s kick things off with a look back at my pre-season predictions, the worst I’ve ever offered. Though, to be fair to myself, I did have Pittsburgh finishing second in the East.

The good: The Western Conference. While I flip-flopped Detroit and San Jose at one and two, I had Minnesota third, Anaheim fourth, and Colorado, Dallas and Calgary in the post-season dance-- just in the wrong spots. I had the Kings in last place, and even called Edmonton’s goaltending switcheroo.

The bad: Buffalo, Florida, Carolina and Tampa Bay. I had all of them in the playoffs. Instead, the three teams I picked to finish 13th, 14th and 15th (Philly, Washington and Boston, respectively) will all enjoy the post-season, though not very long for two of them.

So, here’s the Stanley Cup pick, and we’ll get down to the business of breaking down the series Monday and Tuesday night.

It’s the Ducks. Of course it’s the Ducks. Starting from the net out, other than Martin Brodeur and Dominik Hasek, no other goalie has as much playoff experience, and particularly Stanley Cup Final experience, as J-S Giguere.

On defense, the formula certainly worked last season, and it’s just very hard to beat a team that has either Scott Niedermayer or Chris Pronger on the ice at all times. Matthieu Schneider brings a boatload of experience to the blueline, Francois Beuachemin took a step back this season, but is one of the best fourth-defencemen around. Add a little Marc-Andre Bergeron to taste, and some Kent Huskins, Sean O’Donnell and the underrated Joe Dipenta, and the Ducks have the best blue line corps around.

Up front, the Ducks dropped off a little in 2008, scoring 53 fewer goals than in 2007. That said, Ryan Getzlaf missed time with injuries, as did Corey Perry, who didn’t really take the step forward most thought he would, and Teemu Selanne only played 26 games. It’s easy to see how the team’s production dropped off.

That said, the Ducks also gave up fewer goals in 2008. This squad really clamped down defensively, and checking-line guys like Travis Moen, Rob Niedermayer and Sami Pahlsson all played to the top-notch form they showed last spring.

There’s also the little matter of how well this team played after Scott Niedermayer returned from semi-retirement. In 34 games without Nidermayer, the Ducks had a 15-15-4 record. Since his return, they’ve posted a 32-12-4 record. I guess he’s pretty good. And if that’s not enough, since Selanne’s return from his semi-retirement, the Ducks are a startling 20-5-1.

So, for all of these reasons, and many more, the Anaheim Ducks will repeat as Stanley Cup champions. There’s just nobody out there that can stop them in a seven-game series.