Conn Smythe Watch

With the 2nd round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs underway I thought it would be a nice time to take a look at the candidates for the Conn Smythe Trophy.

The Conn Smythe Trophy is awarded to the MVP of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. It is named after Conn Smythe, who was the Owner and General Manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Without any further adieu here are the candidates.

1. Sidney Crosby- He had 5 goals and 9 assist in the Penguins series win over Ottawa and already has two assist against Montreal. Right now he is the best player on the planet when it comes to hockey and he is only 22 years old. He's only going to get better.

2. Joe Pavelski- The Sharks forward has nine goals this post-season to lead all scorers. three of those goals have been game winners and two have been game tying goals. Five of his goals have been on the Power Play. Pavelski is the most clutch player so far these playoffs.

3. Mike Cammalleri- Jaroslav Halak may get all the headlines but Cammalleri has been Montreal's most consistent player. He scored in three of the four wins over Washington and added two goals, including the game winner, yesterday in the Canadiens 3-1 win over the Penguins. With eight goals this post-season only Pavelski has more goals.

4. Mikael Samuelsson- The 3rd member of the Sedin Line has been the best player for Vancouver this post-season scoring seven goals and assisting on four others. He is the plus/minus leader this post-season at nine.

5. Jaroslav Halak- The only reason I don't have him higher on this list is because he has been pulled twice this post-season and benched for Game four against Washington. He was brilliant, stopping 131 of 134 shots, in games five thru seven leading the Habs to the upset over the Capitals.

Yesterday Halak stopped 38 of 39 shots, helping Montreal to win Game two against Pittsburgh. His save percentage of .931 is the highest since Patrick Roy had a save percentage of .929 in 1993. (Note: Montreal went on to win the Stanley Cup that season. Something to keep an eye on.)

Honorable Mention:

Pavel Datsyuk/Henrik Zetteberg: The Red Wings are 4-1 when one of them scores a goal and 0-4 when they don't find the back of the net.

The Sedin Twins: Mikael Samuelsson may be scoring the goals for the Canucks but Daniel Sedin has eleven points & Henrik Sedin has nine points for Vancouver. I expect this to increase as long as the Canucks stay alive.

Brian Boucher: He has a save percentage of .928 and a Goals Against Average of 2.07. Most importantly he outplayed Martin Brodeur in Round one. He will have to continue to play good if Philadelphia is to win the Stanley Cup. ( I can't believe I just typed that.)

We have two games on tap tonight, Boston hosts Philadelphia in Game two of their series & Chicago host Vancouver. Both games are on Versus.

Thanks for reading & enjoy the hockey.