And then there were 2.  The Eastern Conference Final of the Stanley Cup playoffs have completed, and we now know who’s playing in the Finals.

Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final was played last night, with two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay playing at home against the New York Rangers.  Tampa Bay held a 3-2 lead in the series.  In yet another tight game, the Lightning defeated the Rangers 2-1.  Neither team scored in the first period, and it wasn’t until 10:43 of the second that Steven Stamkos scored to give the Lightning a 1-0 lead, and that’s how the second period ended.  The Rangers fought back, though, and finally evened the score at 13:07 of the third period.  But, 21 seconds later, Stamkos scored again to put the Lightning back up 2-1, and that’s the way it ended, giving Tampa Bay the 4-2 series victory and a berth in the Finals.

So, Colorado faces Tampa Bay in the Stanley Cup Finals, with the series starting on Wednesday.  Colorado has been the top-ranked team in the McDonald NHL Power Ratings for most of the season, but Tampa Bay is the two-time defending champion.  In the season series, the two teams only faced each other twice, with Colorado winning both games, although one had to go to a shootout before it was decided.  After looking at the performances of the two teams in the Conference Finals, our team of hockey experts and mathematical wizards have crunched the numbers, and are predicting a Colorado victory, giving them a 63.7% / 36.3% edge over Tampa Bay.

No games until Wednesday!  What’s the CBC going to do to fill their schedule?  We’re hoping that they have a Beachcombers marathon each night that hockey isn’t on.

Yesterday’s Game

NY Rangers (2nd in Metropolitan, 110 pts) vs. Tampa Bay (3rd in Atlantic, 110 pts)

NY Rangers 1 at Tampa Bay 2

• Tampa Bay wins series 4-2

Series schedule:

• June 1: Tampa Bay 2 at NY Rangers 6
• June 3: Tampa Bay 2 at NY Rangers 3
• June 5: NY Rangers 2 at Tampa Bay 3
• June 7: NY Rangers 1 at Tampa Bay 4
• June 9: Tampa Bay 3 at NY Rangers 1
• June 11: NY Rangers 1 at Tampa Bay 2

Wednesday’s Game

Tampa Bay at Colorado

• Series tied 0-0
• Colorado has a 63.7% chance of winning the series

Playoff Matchups

Eastern Conference Finals

NY Rangers (2nd in Metropolitan, 110 pts) vs. Tampa Bay (3rd in Atlantic, 110 pts)

Tampa Bay wins series 4-2

McDonald NHL Power Ratings:

• NY Rangers: 1581, 4th overall
• Tampa Bay: 1603, 2nd overall

Head-to-head this year (3 games):

• NY Rangers: 2 regulation wins, 1 shootout win
• Tampa Bay: 0 wins

Previous rounds:

• NY Rangers:
  • defeated Pittsburgh (1540, 12th) in 7 games
  • defeated Carolina (1595, T-2nd) in 7 games
• Tampa Bay:
  • defeated Toronto (1598, 2nd) in 7 games
  • defeated Florida (1591, 4th) in 4 games

Series schedule:

• June 1: Tampa Bay 2 at NY Rangers 6
• June 3: Tampa Bay 2 at NY Rangers 3
• June 5: NY Rangers 2 at Tampa Bay 3
• June 7: NY Rangers 1 at Tampa Bay 4
• June 9: Tampa Bay 3 at NY Rangers 1
• June 11: NY Rangers 1 at Tampa Bay 2

Western Conference Finals

Colorado (1st in Central, 119 pts) vs. Edmonton (2nd in Pacific, 104 pts)

Colorado wins series 4-0

McDonald NHL Power Ratings:

• Colorado: 1635, 1st overall
• Edmonton: 1589, 3rd overall

Head-to-head this year (3 games):

• Colorado: 1 overtime win, 1 shootout win
• Edmonton: 1 regulation win

Previous rounds:

• Colorado:
  • defeated Nashville (1512, 17th) in 4 games
  • defeated St. Louis (1595, T-2nd) in 6 games
• Edmonton:
  • defeated Los Angeles (1534, 13th) in 7 games
  • defeated Calgary (1582, 6th) in 5 games

Series schedule:

• May 31: Edmonton 6 at Colorado 8
• June 2: Edmonton 0 at Colorado 4
• June 4: Colorado 4 at Edmonton 2
• June 6: Colorado 6 at Edmonton 5 (OT)

Stanley Cup Finals

Colorado (1st in Central, 119 pts) vs. Tampa Bay (3rd in Atlantic, 110 pts)

Series tied 0-0

McDonald NHL Power Ratings:

• Colorado: 1660, 1st overall
• Tampa Bay: 1616, 2nd overall

Head-to-head this year (2 games):

• Colorado: 1 regulation win, 1 shootout win
• Tampa Bay: 0 wins

Previous rounds:

• Colorado:
  • defeated Nashville (1512, 17th) in 4 games
  • defeated St. Louis (1595, T-2nd) in 6 games
  • defeated Edmonton (1589, 3rd) in 4 games
• Tampa Bay:
  • defeated Toronto (1598, 2nd) in 7 games
  • defeated Florida (1591, 4th) in 4 games
  • defeated NY Rangers (1581, 4th) in 6 games

Series schedule:

• June 15: Tampa Bay at Colorado
• June 18: Tampa Bay at Colorado
• June 20: Colorado at Tampa Bay
• June 22: Colorado at Tampa Bay
• June 24: Tampa Bay at Colorado (if necessary)
• June 26: Colorado at Tampa Bay (if necessary)
• June 28: Tampa Bay at Colorado (if necessary)

Simulation results:

• Colorado has a 63.7% chance of winning
  • In 4 games: 11.8%
  • In 5 games: 19.8%
  • In 6 games: 16.0%
  • In 7 games: 16.1%
• Tampa Bay has a 36.3% chance of winning
  • In 7 games: 10.6%
  • In 6 games: 12.7%
  • In 5 games: 8.2%
  • In 4 games: 4.9%

Chances of winning the Stanley Cup

 1       Colorado Avalanche            63.7%
 2       Tampa Bay Lightning           36.3%

These chances were calculated before the Stanley Cup Finals started.