On Wednesday, April 11th, 2018, the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs begin where 16 of the 31 National Hockey League (NHL) teams made playoffs. The winning team will have to win sixteen games and win four best-of-seven series in order to hoist up the Stanley Cup and make history.
The Tampa Bay Lightning put up the most points in the Eastern Conference during the 82 games regular season and will face the New Jersey Devils. The Devils play as a young team with Corey Schneider, a struggling goalie, who must bring his “A” game, or else the Devils don’t stand a chance against the Lightning. The Lightning scored the most goals and had the greatest goal differential (goals scored minus goals against) in all of the NHL as well as making blockbuster trades at the trade deadline. The Lightning should beat the Devils in less than six games as they to make a deep run in the playoffs.
The Boston Bruins put up the second most points in the Eastern conference during the regular season and will face, the young and star-studded, Toronto Maple Leafs. The Bruins have played well all season and are healthy. They have young talent and have some experienced veterans including, Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara, as well as a solid goalie in Tuukka Rask. The Maple Leafs are very young and can sneakily go far in the playoffs. Maple Leafs’ superstar, Auston Matthews is finally healthy and even though he is only twenty years old, he has playoff experience and can lead to Maple Leafs far in the playoffs. The Maple Leafs have a great opportunity to upset the Bruins in a series that can be decided in seven games.
The Washington Capitals have been a high seed in the playoffs on a consistent basis over many years but have been very unreliable. Alexander Ovechkin led the NHL in a 49 goal season but he tends to struggle in the playoffs. Capitals’ goalie Braden Holtby struggled mightily all season long but if he wakes up in the playoffs, the Capitals can be the huge threat they normally are at this time of the year. The Capitals will face the Columbus Blue Jackets who have arguably the best goalie in the NHL ,Sergei Bobrovsky,but that might not be enough to beat the Washington Capitals in the first round of the playoffs.
The Pittsburgh Penguins have won the Stanley Cup the last two years led by Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin and look to make it three. They finished the regular season strong and have played at playoff form as the look to beat the rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers are very young and look very shaky at the goalie position. The Flyers have the ability to score many goals but their poor goaltending is where the Penguins should take advantage and beat the Flyers in the first round of the playoffs.
The Nashville Predators won the Presidents Trophy for 117 points, the most in the Regular Season. The Predators are known for having the craziest home environment in the NHL and will have home-field advantage for all of the postseason which makes them the front-runners to hoist up the Stanley Cup in the end. The Nashville Predators have the arguably the best defense men in all of the NHL as well as a top-tier veteran goaltender in Pekka Rinne. In order to beat the Predators in a best-of-seven series, you must find a way to score on them and win on the road. The Predators lost in the Stanley Cup Finals last year to the Pittsburgh Penguins and they are now more experienced and are ready to dominate. The Predators face the Colorado Avalanche who lack depth at every position. Although the Avalanche have one really strong offensive line; the lack of depth, the poor goal-tending, and a strong opponent make the Avalanche heavy underdogs. The Predators should beat the Avalanche in four or five games.
The Winnipeg Jets put up the second most points in all of the NHL during the regular season. Despite concerns about their lack of playoff experience, the Jets arguably have the best team on paper and most depth at every position in all of the NHL. If the Jets play in the playoffs as well as the did in the regular season, they can easily get to the Stanley Cup Finals. The Jets will face the Minnesota Wild who are filled with veterans. The Wild doesn’t have high expectations entering the postseason but have an opportunity to beat the Jets due to the Jets’ lack of playoff experience. If the Jets can play like they did in the regular season, they should embarrass the Wild.
The Vegas Golden Knights made history this year. They made the playoffs in the first year of the team’s existence. The Golden Knights joined the NHL as the 31st NHL team after the 2016-2017 NHL season. They have two great lines on offense but their defense is shaky. The Golden Knights also have a three-time Stanley Cup winning goalie in ,Marc-Andre Fleury , who has played outstanding all season. Vegas will play the Los Angeles Kings in the first round who have won the Stanley Cup twice in the last seven years. Kings’ goaltender, Jonathan Quick, carried the Kings in the postseason throughout his career and he will look to lead his team one again. The Kings have many veterans and have a great opportunity to defeat the Vegas Golden Knights in the first round of the playoffs.
The Anaheim Ducks have made several runs in the postseason in past years and they can easily make another run. The Ducks have a tremendous young goalie in John Gibson, as well an excellent player in Ryan Getzlaf. With a very favorable first round match up with the San Jose Sharks, the Ducks can make some noise in the playoffs. The Sharks have little depth on offense, as well as poor goal-tending. The Sharks’ defense, led by Brent Burns, have carried the Sharks into the postseason but that may not be enough to beat the Ducks in a best-of-seven series.
The Eastern Conference is wide open. The Pittsburgh Penguins, the Boston Bruins, and the Tampa Bay Lightning are the favorites to win to come out of the Eastern Conference but I think that the Toronto Maple Leafs can be that under the radar team. The Maple Leafs are filled with young talent and are finally healthy and are ready to blast off in the playoffs.
The favorite in the Western Conference are the Nashville Predators and the Winnipeg Jets. The Predators made the Stanley Cup Finals last year and are even better and more experienced this year. The Winnipeg Jets have the best team on paper and if they play like they did in the regular season, they can be a juggernaut in the postseason.
