2010 Playoff Beards

One of the best things about playoff hockey is the infamous Playoff Beard. Often duplicated by other sports, it is never truly replicated. In honor of the Stanley Cup Finals beginning on Saturday, here are our Top 5 Playoff Beards for 2010. Only the Finalists, the Philadelphia Flyers and the Chicago Blackhawks are eligible. You'll notice that it's mainly Flyers, for two reasons. One, I'm a huge Flyers fan. Two, let's face it, they have the better beards.


Flyers captain and hero Mike Richards is looking forward to this list.




1. Scott Hartnell, Philadelphia

Is that a caveman? A recluse in Montana? Robin Williams? A Muppet? No, it's Scott Hartnell. Hartnell's had a rough season, apparently due to some personal problems. But he's picked his game up noticeably in the playoffs. One can only conclude that his epic beard is why.

2. Villie Leino, Philadelphia



A spare forward to begin the playoffs, Leino was forced into the lineup due to the Flyers suffering a wave of injuries. He responded with 5 multi-point games a place in the lineup now that everyone's back from injury, fueled entirely by that beard.

3. Simon Gagne, Philadelphia



Injured during the 1st round of the playoffs against New Jersey, Gagne missed the first 3 games of the 2nd round against Boston. The Flyers lost all those games. Then Gagne returned and the Flyers produced an epic comeback from a 3 games to 0 deficit to defeat the Bruins. Gagne was the catalyst, scoring at least a point in every game. Because he was powered by this beard.

4. Brian Campbell, Chicago



Chicago got criticized for the amount of money they gave Campbell in free agency in 2008, but that beard is worth a couple of million dollars by itself. One of the few players over 30 on the Blackhawks, Campbell is showing Chicago's young stars Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews how to get it done.

5. Claude Giroux, Philadelphia



No, not the guy who was Dink the Clown. The best part of Giroux's beard is that he's only 22, so we've got a lot of beard to look forward to for years to come. Further proof of the playoff beard magic: in the regular season Giroux had 47 points in 82 games. In 17 playoff games to date, he has 17 points.