Eastern Conference
Washington Capitals vs. Philadelphia Flyers
The Presidents Trophy was a nice addition to the accomplishments of Alex Ovechkin, but Ovi realizes that his biggest challenge is yet to come. As one of the premier players of his generation, Ovi has somehow never managed to reach the Stanley Cup. He has had to sit and watch while the other greats of his generation like Jonathan Toews, Drew Doughty and Sidney Crosby rack up the Stanley Cup victories.
The Capitals are hoping this will give Ovechkin the motivation needed to overachieve in the playoffs, where he has in the past underachieved. They boast a top five offense and defense, with a Vezina Trophy contender in net that goes by the name Braden Holtby. There is no reason for the Capitals not to make a deep playoff run.
For the Flyers, they had to be happy just to make the playoffs. They needed a bizarre Bruins meltdown against the Senators to qualify for the last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The team struggled on offense even though Claude Giroux led their top line. They also have a hot Steve Mason in net, but their defense has let him down this season in games like the 4-3 debacle of a loss to the Maple Leafs. Prediction: Capitals in Five
Pittsburgh Penguins vs. New York Rangers
This divisional match up is quickly becoming one of the best rivalries in the NHL. This will be the third straight year the two teams meet in the playoffs. The Rangers have won the previous two series.
If the Penguins have an advantage over the Rangers, it would be because of their star power on the offensive end. Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel are all perennial All Star forwards. Also to take into consideration is the fact that Kris Letang will again be leading the power play from the blue line.
The key for the Rangers is to keep the game 5 on 5. They have the best shooting % and best save % in the NHL when playing 5 on 5. Henrik Lundqvist is 4-0 in his last four playoff games at Pittsburgh, and will give the edge to New York in net regardless if Marc-Andre Fleury plays. The Rangers have the advantage 5 on 5 and in net. Prediction: Rangers in five
Florida Panthers vs. New York Islanders
This is the second time the Florida Panthers have made the playoffs in the 21st century. They will face a New York Islanders team that is trying to get their first second round appearance in the 21st century.
Jaromir Jagr will be asked to do a lot for the young Panthers. He leads the team with 66 points, and has plenty of playoff experience at the age of 44. His leadership over young, promising players like Aaron Ekblad will be very helpful over the course of the series.
Jaroslav Halak will miss this series, which makes things much more interesting. John Tavares is one of the most underappreciated stars in the NHL, and his play in the playoffs has been superb, with five goals and 11 points in 13 career playoff games. Tavares had a terrific season this year, with 33 goals and 70 points. Tavares is the best player in this series, and needs to really produce if the Islanders are going to win. Prediction: Islanders in Seven
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Detroit Red Wings
Both teams had high expectations for this season, and neither can be completely satisfied with how the regular season ended up. The inexperienced Panthers got the better of them, and now they are forced to play each other in the first round.
The defending Eastern Conference Champion Lightning were surprisingly bad on offense for a team that had arguably the most explosive offense in the NHL last year. Tyler Johnson took a massive step backwards this season, not even reaching the 40 point plateau. Still though, the team was the fifth ranked defense thanks to a great season from Victor Hedman. Hedman led the team with 23:04 minutes per game, and a 21 +/-. Anton Stralman was with him on the top line, and showed yet again why the Lightning have so much faith in him.
The Red Wings struggled on offense this year, with only Henrik Zetterberg getting to the 50 point plateau. Pavel Datsyuk has missed time due to injury, and his absence has been felt. Tomas Tatar and Gustav Nyquist both digressed in a major way this season. Their defense benefited greatly from the emergence of Danny DeKeyser this season, who played on the top line with star Niklas Kronwall. Prediction: Lightning in Six
Western Conference
Dallas Stars vs. Minnesota Wild
The Star return to the playoffs after a season where they finished top in the Western Conference. The Stars went out and got Patrick Sharp with the hope that they would make a long playoff run. Their first step towards that Stanley Cup will be to beat the Wild in the opening round.
The dynamic duo of Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn are the core of the team. The Stars had the best offense in the NHL this year, and the two combined for an impressive 74 goals. Jason Spezza, John Klingberg and Patrick Sharp all had more than 50 points this season, and have complemented the top two very well.
The Wild struggled on offense this season, with only 2.59 GPG. They have the star power to keep up with the Stars, but not the depth. Ryan Suter played close to 30 MPG for the Wild, and his body has to be close to breaking down. Zach Parise and Thomas Vanek are also banged up, and it is not sure if they will be ready to play when the playoffs begin. Prediction: Stars in Four
St. Louis Blues vs. Chicago Blackhawks
After a spectacular run to the Stanley Cup victory, the Blackhawks come into the post season flat. Their defense has struggled without Duncan Keith, who will miss game one of this series. The Blues on the other hand are red hot and looking to finally get past the Blackhawks in the playoffs.
Patrick Kane has to win the Hart Trophy after what he has been able to accomplish for the Blackhawks this year, leading the league with 106 points. He is a big reason why the Blackhawks were the sixth ranked offense this year, and why the Blackhawks probably have the advantage on offense in this series.
The Blues know that Vladimir Taransenko is coming into the post season red hot. He has 40 goals and 74 points this season, and already has seven points in the month of April. They have the fourth best defense in the league, largely due to the core of Alex Pietrangelo, Jay Bouwmeester and Kevin Shattenkirk. Captain David Backes is one of the better two way forwards in the league, and they will need him to contain Jonathan Toews. Prediction: Blues in seven
Anaheim Ducks vs. Nashville Predators
The Ducks barely squeaked out a Pacific Division victory in the final weeks of the season. They were successful down the stretch because of their top ranked defense and power play. The Predators had to slug it out in the rough Central Division, and have to be disappointed that they are only a wild card team.
The Ducks move to sign Kevin Bieksa was huge, as he was a physical force on the team’s second defensive pairing. Hampus Lindholm and Sami Vatanen both emerged as top line defenders this year as they commanded ice time. The team did struggle on the offensive end, as they finished with the 17th ranked offense. They will yet again need the trio of Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry and Ryan Kesler to carry them in the playoffs like they did last year.
The Predators decision to grab Ryan Johansen worked out great, as he was able to instantly connect with Filip Forsberg. The two both got to the 60 point plateau and were instrumental in getting the Predators power play turned around. Shea Weber and Pekka Rinne still form the core of this team. The veteran duo will yet again make scoring on the Predators a difficult task, the only difference this season being that they have a better offense to work with. Prediction: Predators in seven
Los Angeles Kings vs. San Jose Sharks
Last but not least, we have the Kings against the Sharks. The Kings eliminated the Sharks the last two times the Sharks made the playoffs. The Kings are looking for another deep playoff run after a shocking playoff absence last year.
The Kings come into this series with the third best defense in the league. Drew Doughty could be the best defender in the league, playing 28:01 MPG and having a 24 +/-. They need him to continue to should the defense and protect star goaltender Jonathan Quick. Anze Kopitar entered the season with high expectations after his mammoth contract, and he delivered with 74 points. Jeff Carter had 62 points this season, and is one of the best second line centers in hockey.
The Sharks know their advantage comes from their fourth ranked offense. Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski are two of the premier forwards in the game. Brent Burns is the quarterback of the power play, with 23 PPA. Tomas Hertl had 46 points and seems to be the future of the Sharks. Their inconsistent defense, though, is a recipe for disaster in front of an inexperienced goaltender in Martin Jones. Prediction: Kings in Five