The most exciting postseason in sports is about to begin. The 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs get underway on Wednesday with five of the eight first-round matchups getting underway. Over the next two months beards will be grown, multiple overtimes will be had, and someone will hoist a 34.5 lb. trophy high over his head by the end of it.
Breaking down the first-round matchups, which are the most enticing? Here are the eight, in order from least-to-most appealing:
8) Tampa Bay vs. Columbus:
The Lightning had a historic regular season, winning 62 games, collecting 128 points and running away with the Presidents’ Trophy by an astounding 21 points. Nikita Kucherov will likely win the Hart Trophy, Steven Stamkos had 45 goals and Andrei Vasilevskiy could win the Vezina. The Lightning are chasing history, and though Columbus comes in red hot – winning seven of its final eight games to sneak in – don’t expect a close series. Tampa Bay in 5
7) Calgary vs. Colorado:
The Flames put everything together this season, winning 50 games for the first time since 1989 – conveniently, the last time Calgary won the Cup – and finishing first in the West. While boasting firepower with the likes of Johnny Gaudreau (99 points), Sean Monahan (82) and Elias Lindholm (78), there is legitimate concern between the pipes, where Mike Smith and David Rittich could platoon. Still, the Avalanche are the last team into the postseason with just 90 points in a bad Western Conference. Nathan McKinnon can steal a win, but the Flames shouldn’t face much first-round pushback. Calgary in 6
6) Washington vs. Carolina:
The defending champs won the Metro by a single point, thus earning a date with the Hurricanes in Round 1. Carolina is in the postseason for the first time since 2009 and made national waves all year for its postgame celebrations at home (don’t ask Don Cherry about it…) Although certainly a fun story with some exciting players (Sebastian Aho and Teuvo Teravainen especially), it won’t be enough to dethrone the champs. Washington in 5
5) Nashville vs. Dallas:
The Predators started the year 13-3-0, finished it 8-2-1, and in between pretty much played .500 hockey. The Stars are back in the postseason for the first time since 2016.
Expect this to be the lowest-scoring of any series, as Dallas finished second in the league in goals against (2.44) and Nashville third (2.59), while conversely both finished in the bottom half in scoring. The Predators have more offensive depth, as someone besides the Jamie Benn-Tyler Seguin-Alexander Radulov combo needs to score for the Stars. Ben Bishop, while having a phenomenal year, has also been hurt for much of the last two months. All of that gives a slight edge to the Preds. Nashville in 6
4) New York vs. Pittsburgh:
Most prognosticators picked the Islanders to finish somewhere in the bottom three in the Eastern Conference. Instead, the Isles are hosting a first-round playoff series at Nassau Coliseum for the first time in over three decades thanks to a league-leading defense (2.33 goals allowed). Both Robin Lehner and Thomas Greiss put together career years in net to make New York the first team in 100 years to go from allowing the most goals in the league to the least in one year.
The opponent, though, is an old enemy in the Penguins, in search of a third Stanley Cup in four seasons. All of the usual names had nice years: 100 points for Sidney Crosby, 72 for Evgeni Malkin, a 40-goal season for Jake Guentzel, and 82 points from Phil Kessel. The Islanders are the feel-good story of the season… but the Pens move on. Pittsburgh in 6
3) Boston vs. Toronto:
The rivalry leaks into the playoffs for the third time in seven seasons. The Bruins finished with the second-highest point total in the league, yet still trailed Tampa Bay in the Atlantic by 21 points. Last year Boston won in seven games, thumping Toronto 7-3 in the decisive final contest, continuing the Leafs’ postseason misery.
A series win here would be Toronto’s first in 15 years, and it has the offense to advance, with Mitch Marner, John Tavares, Auston Matthews and others. The only problem is that the Maple Leafs give up all sorts of chances on the other end, and if Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand play to the line’s capability, it could be a long series. That top line for Boston can score and shut down an opponent at will. Boston in 6
2) San Jose vs. Vegas:
The Golden Knights made it two-for-two, going back to the postseason, albeit in less dominant fashion than in 2018. They’ll open up at the SAP Center against the Sharks in a rematch of last season’s second-round matchup that went the way of Vegas.
San Jose looked in line to lock up the top-seed in the West before finishing 9-9-1 after the trade deadline, and it has major question marks on defense. Its goaltending ranks last in the league in 5-on-5 play, with Martin Jones sporting just an .896 save percentage. To make up for it, the Sharks have to win the special teams battle, where both units are middle-of-the-pack on the penalty kill, but San Jose is sixth on the power play, and Vegas just 25th. Vegas in 7
1) Winnipeg vs. St. Louis:
The Blues were dead in the water three months ago, sitting at 16-19-4 and dead last in the Western Conference. Since then, led by rookie goaltender Jordan Binnington, St. Louis is 29-9-5 and finished a point out of first in the Central. The Jets, meanwhile, are back in the playoffs for the second straight year and boast one of the best home-ice advantages in hockey. Though Winnipeg outscored St. Louis 18-10 in the regular season, all of the meetings were before the Blues turned the season around. Perhaps the hardest series to predict, a slight edge to the league’s hottest team. St. Louis in 7
