3. Dallas Stars vs. 2. Tampa Bay Lightning
It wasn’t a good start for Dallas in the Round Robin play of the playoffs. They struggled mightily to score goals and it was a bad sign going forward with their first round matchup being against the Calgary Flames. Continue reading
Eastern Conference
2. Tampa Bay Lightning vs. 6. New York Islanders
Players to Watch: F Nikita Kucherov and F Mathew Barzal
Who Wins: Lightning in 7 games
Western Conference
1. Vegas Golden Knights vs. 3. Dallas Stars
Players to Watch: F Mark Stone and D Miro Heiskanen
Who Wins: Golden Knights in 6 games
Eastern Conference
1. Philadelphia Flyers vs. 6. New York Islanders
Players to Watch: G Carter Hart and G Semyon Varlamov
Who Wins: Islanders in 6 games
2. Tampa Bay Lightning vs. 4. Boston Bruins
Players to Watch: F Nikita Kucherov and G Jaroslav Halak
Who Wins: Lightning in 6 games
Western Conference
1. Vegas Golden Knights vs. 5. Vancouver Canucks
Players to Watch: F Mark Stone and D Quinn Hughes
Who Wins: Canucks in 6 games
2. Colorado Avalanche vs. 3. Dallas Stars
Players to Watch: F Nazem Kadri and D Miro Heiskanen
Who Wins: Avalanche in 5 games
Eastern Conference
1. Philadelphia Flyers vs. 8. Montreal Canadiens
Players to Watch: G Carter Hart and G Carey Price
Who Wins: Flyers in 5 games
2. Tampa Bay Lightning vs. 7. Columbus Blue Jackets
Players to Watch: F Nikita Kucherov and D Seth Jones
Who Wins: Lightning in 6 games
3. Washington Capitals vs. 6. New York Islanders
Players to Watch: G Braden Holtby and D Ryan Pulock
Who Wins: Islanders in 7 games
4. Boston Bruins vs. 5. Carolina Hurricanes
Players to Watch: F David Pastrnak and F Sebastian Aho
Who Wins: Hurricanes in 7 games
Western Conference
1. Vegas Golden Knights vs. 8. Chicago Blackhawks
Players to Watch: G Robin Lehner and G Corey Crawford
Who Wins: Golden Knights in 6 games
2. Colorado Avalanche vs. 7. Phoenix Coyotes
Players to Watch: D Cale Makar and F Taylor Hall
Who Wins: Avalanche in 6 games
3. Dallas Stars vs. 6. Calgary Flames
Players to Watch: G Ben Bishop and F Sean Monahan
Who Wins: Flames in 6 games
4. St. Louis Blues vs. 5. Vancouver Canucks
Players to Watch: D Alex Pietrangelo and D Quinn Hughes
Who Wins: Blues in 7 games
1. Tampa Bay Lightning
They can’t have a repeat of last year and they shouldn’t.
2. Toronto Maple Leafs
This is a crucial year for this group to finally live up to their potential.
3. Boston Bruins
After coming up short in the Stanley Cup final, they’re still contenders once again.
4. Florida Panthers
They have a new goaltender and a Stanley Cup winning coach to go with their high powered offense.
5. Montreal Canadiens
The health of goalie Carey Price will determine their fate this season.
6. Buffalo Sabres
Once again they made a coaching change, but their talent pool is as deep as it’s ever been.
7. Detroit Red Wings
With Steve Yzerman now in charge it’ll be interesting to see how long it takes for them to be contenders.
8. Ottawa Senators
The long rebuild continues north of the border. Continue reading
