Quick Glance:

Season 16’s finale brings together some very familiar friends/foes. General Managers Igor Kirunov of Minsk and Guybrush Threepwood of Berlin are both charter members of the the EURO League. And their coaches, Dave Tippett of the Hussars and Adam Oates of the Smurfs have guided their clubs for more than a decade each now. It should be a tight series. In trying to figure out who has the edge, it seems every time you find a selling point for one team, the other team counters with a selling point of its own that’s just as strong. Minsk has won two Cups in the past. Berlin has also won two Cups. Minsk has the best goalie during the regular season in Attila Adorjan. Berlin has home ice advantage. Minsk had the best defensive team during the regular season. Berlin had the top offensive team. In these playoffs, both teams suffered injuries to forwards on the top line and both saw the second lines raise their level of play and carry them to victories. Both teams barely slipped through the playoffs. Oslo had the Hussars by the throat, but they wriggled free in Round 2. And in the last round, Berlin snatched victory from Munich with two wins at the end.

Goalies (playoffs):

• Minsk – Attila Adorjan 2.54 GAA and .901 save pct.
• Berlin – Calvin Pickard 2.96 GAA and .894 save pct.

Top Plus/Minus players (playoffs):

• Minsk– Jimmie Ericsson and Fyodor Malykhin +8
• Berlin – Artturi Lehkonen +14

Expert Panel Predictions:

• Commissioner Chuck: Minsk in 5 games. The Hussars have the edge in a few areas, as I see it. Number one, they’re healthy. Berlin has to play without injured Vadim Shipachyov on the right wing and he’s merely the most successful playoff performer in league history if you want to look at point production. Number two, the Hussars have the better goalie right now. And Number 3, while the teams were very even in goals and goals against during the regular season, Minsk had better special teams. My mind is made up.
• Rose: Berlin in 7 games. I have gone against Guybrush Threepwood in the past many times, but I know when to change my ways. He shows up in my nightmares at night, and he doesn’t stop there. In the daytime, if I look up, I see Smurf blue in the sky. If I look down, I see little kids and Commissioner Chuck and I wonder if they are all secretly Smurfs. GT has thoroughly haunted me. If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em, my grandpa used to say. There is a certain fact that has swayed me to the dark side … er, the light blue side. When Minsk and Berlin met three times this season … Berlin won each time. I think they have the Hussars figured out.