2 -  2TPE - I have nothing but respect for the Calgary Dragons franchise, but as a long time member of the Blizzard I am conditioned to hate them and side against them at every chance possible so I'll be siding with the surprising Tampa Bay Barracuda. Not only are they our provincial rival, but we've had the [un]fortunate luck of matching up with them almost every post-season and the track record ain't great. While Edmonton was able to overcome the Dragons in game 7 and go on to win the Challenge Cup last season, the scale is still tipped in favor of Calgary as of late. A cup victory in S50 would definitely suggest that as well.

3 - 3TPE - I'm going to go against the grain here and say I actually like what the SHL has done with the playoff format post expansion (gasp). While it is a little slow if you're not participating in the wild card series it makes round 2 just that much sweeter when it finally kicks off. One change we could visit is reducing the wild card series to a best of 5 similar to baseball. It wouldn't make a huge difference, but it would shave off a day or two before the next round started. I'd be hesitant to go as far as single game elimination given the sheer randomness that is mr Simon T. I'd rather sooner see the removal of the wild card round all together before single elimination play. We have 16 teams, so while 8 making the playoffs is still acceptable it would bump out half the league instead of the 6 we currently have now. It would make things a little easier (and faster) but at the cost of losing participation it's something that may not be worth visiting.

8 - 2 TPE - I'll take one from each. Kata Vilde, the goaltender for the Calgary Dragons, has quietly put together a strong career thus far. He has yet to win a goaltending award, but his name is always there and he's even received several nominations. It would be criminal to see him retire without some individual hardware at this point. From Tampa there are a number of young stars poised to lock up some individual hardware, but one name that I think is ready to take the next step is Matt Kholin. The line 1 center is often overshadowed by the performance of his top winger Flacko Lagerfield, but one of these seasons I think Kholin will drive the ship and lock up an MVP.

12A - 1TPE - No offense to the breakout performance by Gunnar, but this is the Izzy show. The veteran dragon has been a dominant force in this league for YEARS and it's no surprise he's leading the Dragons to a surprising appearance in the S50 finals. I anticipate Izzy will not only protect his post-season point lead, but build upon it putting himself out of reach of any Barracuda, Soderberg included.
12B - 1TPE - While I did throw high praise on Vilde in a previous task this one belongs to Benjamin Blue. 2nd in save percentage during the regular season, he's managed to find an even higher level, increasing his save percentage to a sparkling 0.922, the best in the post-season. Vilde has a very impressive 2.00GAA after 3 rounds to Blue's 2.71 after 2 rounds but the consistency from regular season to post-season displayed by Blue gives Tampa the edge in goaltending.
12C - 1TPE - Given the state of the goaltending in this one I want to say it will be a low scoring defensive battle, but both teams have some incredibly gifted offensive weapons so I'll lean in favor of a high scoring fast paced finals. Last year we saw the Edmonton Blizzard sweep the New England Wolfpack for a quick and relatively low key finals, but I have a feeling this one will go the distance. Barracuda in 7.
12D - 1TPE - There are number of awesome names that incite intimidation, but the goofy names seem to be the ones that stick out to me. One name in particular is Shooter McGavin. Once an illustrious golf pro, his career took a turn for the worse when he went up against the unorthodox Happy Gilmore. It's nice to see him land on his feet in the SHL, making a solid contribution the western conference champion Calgary Dragons.
12E - 1TPE - Jeez I hope no one picks 3. I'm going to lock in a tray of cookies from c00kies. You didn't specify so I'm going to assume it's a delicious assortment of cookies. I'm talking white chocolate and macadamia nut, double chocolate chunk, hell maybe even one of the those pumpkin pie flavored ones I've seen from time to time.

13 - 2 TPE - A bit of a double edged sword here, but I'm going to go with Kata Vilde. After getting lit up for 16 goals in the first 3 games, including 13 in the first two, he did a complete 180 posting back to back wins in the next 3 games allowing only 3 goals, one in each game. It was a return to the goalie we saw in the first 3 rounds that compiled a sexy 12-1 record and a sparkling 2.00 GAA. Going in to game 7 you knew he and the Dragons had to be the favorite trying to complete the illusive reverse sweep, and although he did allow 3 goals against in that game, it was enough to help him team secure the win.

15 - 3TPE - Sent.