Game 7 reactions

Dasherboard: The playoff beards will continue to grow in Detroit and Carolina after yesterday's pair of Game 7's. They certainly were more exciting than Pittsburgh's evisceration of Washington the night before.

We think they are trying to grow beards in Pittsburgh, but the jury's still out on that one...

Anaheim certainly showed veteran calm in fighting back against the Red Wings, once more a contrast to the pre-lockout days when comebacks were as rare as penalty shots. Not the prettiest of game winning goals, but enough to get the job done as the Red Wings will now square off against the Blackhawks for the 15th time in their long rivalry, the first since 1995. The two teams met six times this year, with Detroit winning the first four, with two of those going to shootouts, and losing two in the final two games of the regular season.

On the jersey front, Detroit did take the best dressed game of the year in this season's Winter Classic back on New Year's Day.

Meanwhile, in Boston, it was unfortunate that the #1 Eastern seeded Bruins season had to come to a premature end at the hands of someone who should not have been on the ice in the first place, as Public Enemy #1, Scott Walker scored the game winning goal in overtime.

The #6 Hurricanes will now take on the #4 Penguins, with all three division winners in the East now out after only two rounds. Meanwhile in the West it's #2 Detroit against #4 Chicago, a team back from the wilderness, having missed the playoffs 9 of the last 10 years, losing in the first round the one time they did qualify for the postseason back in 2002.

Hopefully now the NHL and Versus will figure out a way for the two possible Game 7's to not be on at the same time.