Sibling Rivalry

It's that time of year again - the sun is shining, the birds are singing, and the Stanley Cup Playoffs are starting! Anything can happen in the second season, which made me wonder, why do people pay so much attention to what the puck pundits predict? What are their picks really worth? I decided to find out by having my kids pick the first round games and match them up against some professional playoff prognosticators.

The boys both chose the winner of each series independently, without coercion from me or other outside influence. For Danny, I merely asked him who he thought would win in each series. Liam took a more visual approach; I showed him a puck with the logo of each team and he selected the one he thought would win. Sounds questionable, at best, right? I'll bet he comes pretty close to these coin flippers from ESPN. I just wish I had enough space in this blog to show all of the analysts' picks. Clearly, Melrose put a lot of thought into it and then just went with all of the favorites. Barnaby chose 3 upsets, which seems more in line with the entropy of anyone-can-beat-anyone playoff hockey.

Here is a quick rundown on the experts:
Danny - Has begun but not mastered potty training; Loves playing hockey on our backyard rink; Boos when the Sabres are scored upon. Favorite Teams: Buffalo Sabres, Chicago Blackhawks.
Liam - Climbs the stairs on his own; Still lives with his parents; Thinks 'Liam' is his brother's name. Chose the Bruins over Montreal because he likes the letter 'B' in the Bruins' logo better than the 'C' in the Canadiens' logo.
Matt Barnaby - Former NHL player; ESPN analyst; possibly best well-known for brawling with Garth Snow during the 1995-96 season.
Barry Melrose - Former NHL player and coach; ESPN analyst; most recognizable mullet in hockey. Melrose is the only coach to bring Wayne Gretzky to the Stanley Cup Finals and lose.

My guys are definitely easier to look at, let's see if their systems for picking winners are superior as well. (Leave your own picks in the comments!)