Regina and Medicine Hat sweep into the 2nd round. No real surprise there, I think at best those were done in 5.
Really surprised to see Lethbridge down 3-1, they were one of the hottest teams the second half of the season. If they don't pull off the comeback it'll be very similar to last season.
I am surprised that the Hitmen didn't even give them a challenge in one of the games. 5-2, 5-1, 5-2, 5-1, and not the closest was game three where the Hitmen actually outplayed the Pats for 1 period. Considering that in 4 games through the regular season, the Hitmen went 1-2-1 against the Pats, I expected them to make one game at least close.
As for Lethbridge... they're a team that is destined to struggle against Sutter hockey. The Rebels are a frustrating team to play against and they don't give up a lot of opportunities that the Hurricanes capitalize on. I still am not counting Lethbridge out, but... Sutter hockey.
The Pats should dominate whoever comes out of the MJ/SC series, and I expect the Tigers to dominate the other series as well. I still favour MH (slightly) but it's hard to go against the Pats.
It will be interesting to see the finals - whether early adversity goes in favour of the west team playing a higher level game, or an easy path for 2 rounds in the east favours a fresher, healthier team.
