It is an annual tradition for media, fans and those in the game to analyze the two clubs that made it to the Stanley Cup finals and ask: What does this matchup say about how winning teams are built?
The differences between the construction of last year's champion Los Angeles Kings and either the Chicago Blackhawks or Tampa Bay Lightning are pretty significant, but they all have one thing in common: an elite defenseman.
In fact, if you go back through the past Stanley Cup champions, you would be hard-pressed to find a winner that lacked a top-notch, minute-eating defender. The Kings sport Drew Doughty, the Red Wings had Nicklas Lidstrom, and the Ducks had both Chris Pronger and Scott Niedermayer.
This year's matchup features two of the elite defenseman in the NHL: Chicago's Duncan Keith and Tampa Bay's Victor Hedman.
Not only has each team's defender been exceptional on both ends of the ice, but each has been the best player on his club throughout the postseason. There's a strong case to be made that the D-man who raises the Cup will also be given the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the playoffs.
But if winning the Cup did not matter in the equation, which player would be more deserving of the Conn Smythe Trophy: Keith or Hedman?