The NHL Playoff Manifesto

Hello Readers,

I have been toying around with the idea of starting my own blog for a while. With the Stanley Cup Playoffs starting on April 14th I decided to give it a try. My plan is to keep a blog during the entire post-season. From the 1st puck drop to the time Lord Stanley's Cup is raised I'll be sharing my thoughts on the post-season and things to keep an eye on in the NHL. If this goes well, who knows how far this blog will go and what other things I may touch on.

Now for some fans out there who are reading this there is a chance that your NHL team did not qualify for the post-season or you may be new to the sport and looking for a team to cheer on in the playoffs. Well I am more than happy to help you find a team to cheer for with my annual NHL Playoff Manifesto.

The Manifesto was 1st published in 2007. Both the Detroit Red Wings and the Minnesota Wild made the playoffs that season and there was a chance that the two could meet in the first round of the post-season.

Being a huge Detroit Red Wings fan, I thought it was crystal clear to everyone as to where my allegiance would be if these two teams met in the post-season. Instead, my co-workers kept asking me who I would be cheering for in the playoffs even after I told them the Red Wings always came first and I would cheer for the Wild as long as they didn't play Detroit.

At this point I realized that I needed to spell out my rules as to whom to cheer for and against in the Stanley Cup Playoffs and to where I stood on each post-season series. After the Manifesto was introduced, a listener to the Al Malmberg Show sent it over to a relative of his who was stationed in Iraq. the whole battalion took the Manifesto and got behind the Detroit Red Wings and cheered them on during their playoff run in 2007.

So without any further adieu here is the 2010 Playoff Manifesto.

1. Cheer for The Detroit Red Wings

2. Always Cheer against the Philadelphia Flyers NO MATTER WHAT

3. Support the Minnesota Wild when they are in the post-season. If they play Detroit see rule number 1

4. Normally I would say cheer against the Pacific Division but the only two teams in that division I don't like, Dallas & Anaheim did not qualify for the post-season so you can cheer for Los Angeles & San Jose in the 1st round. As for Phoenix, see rule number 1.

5. Support the Original 6 teams in the post-season. They are a huge part of the game of hockey and it's always nostalgic when one of them go on a cup run.

6. When in doubt go with the Canadian team.

Hope this helps you choose a squad to cheer on in the playoffs. I'll be back tomorrow with my 1st round predictions. Thank you for reading.