Pete DeBoer, former coach of the New Jersey Devils, has broken my heart one too many times. I hope he doesn’t have another in him. This team lacks the defensive depth necessary to take out the Pittsburgh Penguins offense, and if they get into a high-scoring battle I do not think that Martin Jones has enough to stop them on his own. The Penguins offense is more dynamic and it would not surprise me if Pittsburgh’s young goalie showed up in a big way and shut down the Sharks.

Honestly, as a Devils fan, I don’t like rooting for the Penguins either. Nothing annoys me more than Sidney Crosby. That said, I like Phil Kessel and think he deserves one. If there’s a silver lining to two teams I do not really like facing off in the Stanley Cup, it’s that I can root for the big goofball that got Brian Burke fired.

The series line has value right now on the team with home ice advantage. I expect them to take command of the series early. Both teams should be rested, generally, from a few days off. As the series goes on, the battle scars of earlier rounds may start to show. If Pittsburgh can get out to an early series lead using their home ice, I think they choke this one out.

Pittsburgh Penguins to win the Stanley Cup, and for fun let’s say they do it in 5.