Western Conference Final Prediction: Detroit Red Wings (1) vs. Dallas Stars (5)

It's no secret, my doubt in the Detroit Red Wings. If you'll recall my 2nd round predictions, while I did have the Wings getting through the Avalanche, I mentioned the possibility of them falling apart in the Western Finals. But then they came out and played so strong they had me choosing my words carefully as I recapped the 2nd round.

The Stars shocked us upsetting the Sharks in the 2nd round, especially myself. San Jose had been my Western Conference pick all season long. It was closely fought, with four games heading to overtime, including the deciding game which took 4 overtimes for the Stars to eliminate the Sharks.

This match-up is going to be all about who can enforce their style of play on the series. If the play is more open and higher scoring, the Red Wings are going to have the advantage. However if the Stars can muck it up a bit, slowing it down and making the game close, they've shown they can win those games. Thus far these playoffs the officials have shown that they are willing to let teams slow the games down, so I've got to believe when it matters in this series they'll keep their whistles in the their pockets. Marty Turco is a top five goaltender in the league. Osgood has been playing well, but I'm not sure he holds out. All in all, I imagine this one will be close, but I've got the Stars in 7.