Trail Blazers vs. Pelicans Game Info. Player to watch: Claude Giroux. Or was it symptomatic of the Blues' inconsistent attack? Center Steven Stamkos (eight points) and defenseman Ryan McDonagh have been there in big moments. Toronto can't hide from its ugly postseason past. Washington lives and dies on the performance of its franchise star, especially on the power play. The Oilers are more resilient than some observers previously thought. by Fantasy Hockey Staff @NHLFantasy. Unfortunately, Alex Ovechkin cornered the market on "he can still do that at his age, wow!" Kristen Shilton: Lightning in six Make Your Picks. Wischusen: Rangers in seven Campbell-Pascall: Hurricanes in five A limited if intense calendar, combined with the reality of losing players every round, and a simpler scoring system set . cal: Rangers in seven 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs: Highlights and analysis from the entire postseason. Football Women's Basketball Games Home ESPN Fantasy App NHL.com ranks the top 200 overall fantasy hockey players in standard . Saros missed the last two games of the season with a lower-body injury, and his status is uncertain heading into the postseason. Pacific: CGY | EDM Any notion that the Avs' slide out of the regular season (losing six of their last seven games) was a premonition of poor playoff performance to come was unfounded. Bolden: Flames in seven Emily Kaplan: Lightning in seven Player to watch: Miro Heiskanen. McCarron for choosing his league over the NFL. "Obviously, Vasilevskiy has a track record that speaks for itself. Yet Carolina is not mentioned in the same breath as other Stanley Cup contenders. But that's the regular season. The legend of Mike Smith has only grown this postseason. Mleczko: Avalanche in six Each player had some solid stretches late in the Calgary series, but those four have combined for only five goals thus far in the playoffs. Leah Hextall: Panthers in seven If he finally emerges in this series, that's an edge for the Avalanche as well. Don La Greca: Panthers in seven Before I reveal every series winner in the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs and the exact number of games in which the series will be won, I'd like to just offer a small reminder to establish a baseline . Biggest flaw(s): Consistency and resiliency. No disrespect intended to Sebastian Aho, but the Rangers didn't have to face an elite offensive player like Kucherov in their series against the Hurricanes. But forwards Nicklas Backstrom and T.J. Oshie saw their offensive output drop during seasons impacted by injuries and illness. They are firing on all cylinders. Keep an eye on those little things Brodin can do to put Minnesota over the top. That presents a perfect backdrop for Minnesota's run. The Lightning had some bumpier stretches in the season's second half. Artemi Panarin quietly had points in the last three games against Carolina, including a great outlet pass that sprung Strome for a critical goal that put them up 3-0. Those 5-on-5 opportunities can be -- and almost always are -- limited in the playoffs. Case for a Stanley Cup run: The Kings, who flaunt one of the deepest prospect pools in the NHL, had been waiting a few years for their next generation of stars to mature. But don't underestimate the drive of MacKinnon and McDavid to really show off here. If Andersen can't go, netminder duties will fall to backup Antti Raanta and rookie Pyotr Kochetkov. That formula doesn't generally work in the postseason. NHL Matchups 2022-2023 - Today's Hockey Previews, Scores & Schedules NHL Scores & Matchups Odds Free Picks News & Analysis NHL Contest Stanley Cup Injuries Teams Players Standings. NHL Playoff Predictions 2022 Matchups EASTERN CONFERENCE Playoff Round 1 #1 seed Florida Panthers vs #8 seed Washington Capitals Florida wins (4-1) #2 seed Carolina Hurricanes vs #7 seed Boston Bruins Carolina wins (4-2) Metropolitan Division Match-up #2 New York Rangers vs #3 Pittsburgh Penguins New York wins (4-2) Atlantic Division Match-up Central: COL | MIN It will all happen on the new NHL TV Networks of ESPN and TNT/Turner Sports. The Rangers goalie has been their best player through the first two rounds -- heck, he has even chipped in three assists on top of his stellar goaltending. But the defenseman is battling a core muscle injury and he's still playing over 21 minutes per game, so faulting him too harshly for not performing at his most elite would be misguided. La Greca: Hurricanes in six reactions, leaving Crosby's incredible season a bit underappreciated. Kevin Weekes: Lightning in seven We've already discussed Kuemper. If his Game 5 hat trick against the Blues was any indication, "Playoff Nate" is ready to dance toe-to-toe with McDavid & Co. MacKinnon already has eight goals and 13 points in 10 games. How they choose to defend Kucherov's line is going to be a key for the series. The rare NHL talent who can agitate you with words, deeds and on the scoreboard. The Panthers repeatedly fell into multiple-goal deficits they were able to erase because, well, see above. DiPietro: Flames in six There's more to the team than just a dominant goalie, however. Messier: Oilers in six Player to watch: Tom Wilson managed not to get suspended during the regular season, to his credit. Unlike the other two teams on this list, the Portland Trail Blazers are currently on the outside looking in. Under coach Dave Tippett, the Oilers were 13th in the NHL in expected goals per 60 minutes at 5-on-5; under interim coach Jay Woodcroft, who took over Feb. 10, the Oilers jumped to fourth in that category. Not exactly the best offensive company to keep. Jump to a team: Returning contributors Alex Killorn and Ondrej Palat can play up or down the lineup with effectiveness. This series against Colorado could see each team's top talents canceling each other out. After Makar and Devon Toews, where do the rest of Colorado's defensemen fit? This series projects to trend more toward what Edmonton just experienced, with the potential for larger momentum swings and opportunity to generate offense. Bold prediction: The Oilers win their first playoff series since 2017 before bowing out to Calgary. Facebook; Twitter; Facebook Messenger; Pinterest; Email; print; Welcome to the 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs!The first round gets rolling on Saturday with Game 1 of the Washington Capitals-Boston Bruins series.. There's plenty of history in many of these matchups, as the NHL is using an intradivisional format for the first two rounds, before re-bracketing the final four for the semifinals. Goalie Frederik Andersen had a dominant regular season, finishing third in goals saved above average (38.7). Nikita Kucherov leads the Lightning with 15 points in 11 games. history but they get to host a game . He's a 40-year-old veteran churning out great numbers, including an 8-3-0 record, .927 SV% and 2.70 GAA. He relieves pressure in Edmonton's end, makes smart plays up the ice and is a natural leader from whom few words are required -- but there's no doubt Keith has a "big voice" in the Oilers' room, according to teammates. Biggest flaw(s): Confidence. Sixteen teams entered the postseason tournament, but only four are left in the bracket, as the New York Rangers will take on the Tampa Bay Lightning in the East, and the Colorado Avalanche will square off against the Edmonton Oilers in the West. The Lightning will have to convert some of those to beat "Shesty.". Bold prediction: Boston uses its shutdown capabilities to bounce a high-octane offensive opponent in the first round. He is the Russian Machine, and seeing him play in the first round would not be a surprise, although coach Peter Laviolette said that Ovechkin would not have been able to play had the playoffs started last week. He's both their last line of defense and their catalyst, as the Rangers feed off his performances when opponents tip the ice. Because he picked this opportunity. On paper, they're winning this series. While it's desirable to have the top-end talent Colorado does, it's often the unheralded players who pick up the playoff slack. Shilton: Flames in six Florida is the only place he wanted to land at the trade deadline. He's the club's leading scorer, averaging more than a point a game, and eats important minutes. My other prediction for this series? That mindset is critical when every team out there is looking to unseat the champions. NHL.com staff members have made their predictions for the Stanley Cup First Round and Playoffs, and most believe the Honda West Division representative will win it all. But the catalyst for their first playoff berth since 2018 wasn't the kids, but rather the established veterans. TB | WSH So if there's room for improvement anywhere, it's from some of the Oilers' second- and third-line skaters like Warren Foegele, Ryan McLeod, Kailer Yamamoto and Jesse Puljujarvi. Listen here . Here's a player who requested a trade out of St. Louis and instead has thrived there this season. Note: Profiles for the Atlantic and Central playoff brackets were written by Shilton, while Wyshynski analyzed the Metro and Pacific brackets. The Lightning have a couple of players they'd like to see produce a little more, but their lack of production is injury-related in both cases. McDonough: Hurricanes in seven Period. PIT | BOS 2022 NHL playoff fantasy hockey pool guide: Favorites, sleepers and busts. But even he was upstaged this postseason by his adorable infant daughter, Maisie. Levy: Rangers in seven That's by far the fewest among any goalie left in these playoffs. The Avs' Norris Trophy finalist defenseman projects to draw Edmonton's toughest matchups, and as the Oilers proved against Calgary, its top line is tough to contain. The Ducks and Penguins have moved back into the playoff race and will face off Monday. Player to watch: Tarasenko. Maintaining that intensity each night in the playoffs will be a task in itself. Why? Colorado has shown it can win all types of games, whether big-time blowouts or tightly contested grinders. Could the Florida Panthers, who raced to the top seed in the Eastern Conference, win their first Cup? Defenseman Adam Fox said he's looking forward to the battle between Andrei Vasilevskiy and Shesterkin. cal: Oilers in seven Weekes: Flames in seven Ferraro: Avalanche in six The Wild have that, big-time. 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