AC Staff Playoff Prediction Challenge 2014: Round Three

The second round is over and so is the Ducks season, Teemu Selanne's career, and any form of dignity the Ducks had in this cross-town rivalry.

But nonetheless the playoffs will still continue and we have a champion to crown. So let's look back on the semi-finals and see how our writers fared.

We all suck at this.

EVERYONE UNANIMOUSLY PICKED THE BRUINS AND FAILED TO SCORE FROM THE BOSTON-MONTREAL SERIES.

Our own Kid-Ish was the big winner in the second round, being the only staffer to correctly guess three of the four series. Nobody went 0-for-4 but frontrunners Jen and Chris (as well as myself *sobs*) each only scored 10 points total. And holding his own scoring 30 points with two perfect predictions, our new leader becomes our Battle of California guest Jer Dobias.

Note: edited to fix a scoring error for Eric.

Round three began just a few short hours after round two ended, so it took a little time to get all of these predictions collected, but here we are. No unanimous choices this round, though one predictably came close.

Montreal Canadiens vs. New York Rangers

Much to the surprise of man (including all of us here at AC), the Montreal Canadiens conquered their division rivals in a seven-game thriller. Much like the top seed in the West, the East's best Bruins really didn't show up for game seven at all and the Habs' impeccable speed proved to be a difference maker.

They now face one of the "feel good" stories of the East as the New York Rangers are back in the Eastern Conference Final for the second time in three seasons. Henrik Lundqvist has been a beast and Martin St. Louis has been a big factor in getting the Rangers through the first two rounds. Likewise, the Blueshirts have been demonstrating some remarkably good defense, which is big considering their massive power play struggles.

-"One of my former bosses worked for the Rangers for a few seasons. He told me that whenever Henrik Lundqvist got a shutout, he'd buy everyone on the team and the staff a bottle of champagne, because Henrik Lundqvist is the man." - Ben
-"Okay, fine. I believe now, Canada." - Jer
-"Lundqvist gave me the gift of eliminating the Crosbys so I can't go against him. Who likes Canada anyway?" - Cory
-"The Canadiens are seeming to have a bit of a 'favored by fate' feel to them. Subban is rapidly earning a reputation for coming up huge in the spotlight, and the Habs have more shown more scoring depth players (8 vs 6) with 3+ goals thus far. Price and Lundqvist is essentially a push between the pipes, but Montreal's speed will put them over the top against a Rangers team that hasn't had to face something like it yet." - Eric
-"The entire weight of a nation is on Montreal's shoulders and I think it works to their advantage this time." - Jen

Chicago Blackhawks vs. Los Angeles Kings

The Chicago Blackhawks are one step closer to their third Stanley Cup in the last five seasons. Additionally, they are also looking to become the first repeat champion since the 2004-05 lockout. To virtually nobody's surprise, they're getting great depth from all over their lineup and contributions from just about everybody.

They now face the Los Angeles Kings who are a franchise of a bunch of stupid bastards who play dirty hockey and should die a horrible and painful Game of Thrones style death are back once again in the Western Conference final for the third year in a row. This matchup is a repeat of last season, and many people are saying the results should likely be the same. Snore.

-"Chelsea Dagger just became my new favorite song for the next two weeks. Also the sweet poetic justice that is the Hawks bandwagon invading Staples Center will be hilarious." - Kyle
-"Keeping the SoCal Stanley Cup score tied at one is essential to my psychological well-being. I know Blackhawks fans who care less about this series than I do." - Derek
-"The NHL's best team (sorry, everybody) get one step closer to winning their third Cup in 5 years." - Kristen
-"Fingers crossed that L.A. get their asses handed to them. Fuck Jonathan Quick. He can burn in hell... I might still be bitter." - Liz
-"*Breaks into tears humming Chelsea Dagger*" - Chris