Stanley Cup Playoffs: Who will make a surprise run in the East?

• The NHL drops the puck on the Stanley Cup playoffs Saturday, April 19. The Eastern Conference features several contenders.
• The top seed Washington Capitals and the second seed Toronto Maple Leafs both have 51 wins on the final day of the regular season.
• The Montreal Canadiens earned the last NHL playoff spot in their final regular season game with a win over the Carolina Hurricanes.

Full Story

The NHL’s Stanley Cup playoffs begin Saturday, April 19, so it’s time to break down the matchups starting in the East, a conference stacked with contending teams. The playoffs are a four-round tournament, and each matchup is a best-of-seven series.

Can the top seed Capitals avoid a first round upset?

The first series in the Eastern Conference pits the top seed Washington Capitals against the Montreal Canadiens. Montreal secured the final playoff spot with a win over the Carolina Hurricanes in their last game of the regular season.

Their reward is Alex Ovechkin and the 51-win Capitals, who were quite busy in the past few weeks with the ‘Great Chase’ and an attempt to maintain the form that allowed them to earn 111 points so far. They have struggled a bit down the stretch but hope to make quick work of a young, upset-minded Canadiens team.

“We gotta clean some stuff up. There’s different guys all over the lineup. Once we get our guys in there for playoffs, we gotta make sure we’re playing well together and we’re playing detailed, because that’s what the playoffs demand,” Capitals forward Tom Wilson said.

Why are the Carolina Hurricanes such big favorites?

The next Eastern Conference series matches the 3-seed Carolina Hurricanes against the New Jersey Devils. The Hurricanes haven’t lost a first-round series since 2020, and they are heavy favorites to win this one as well.

The Devils will be without star Jack Hughes, but they may have one big advantage. It comes between the pipes with all-star goalie Jacob Markstrom, who is 5th in the league in goals against average at 2.5. Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal said his team will counter with home ice advantage.

“It’s always a pleasure playing in front of this group of fans who are so passionate and so loud. Momentum shifts are huge at home, and we ride those as hard as we can,” Staal said.

Who has the advantage in the ‘Battle of Ontario’?

The Toronto Maple Leafs will also enjoy home ice advantage in their seven-game series against the Ottawa Senators. It’s historically known as the “Battle of Ontario,” and it promises to be a bitterly contested battle. It’s been 21 years since the two teams met in the playoffs.

With high scoring players all over the ice and each team loves to attack the net. Ottawa put together a 3-0 record against Toronto in the regular season, outscoring the Maple Leafs 9-3. But Mitch Marner, Auston Matthews and company have 51 wins this year, tied for first in the Eastern Conference.

“Yeah, it’ll be cool, I mean, it’s been a long time,” Matthews said. “Obviously, they’re a good, young team. They’re hungry. They’ve taken steps as well. So, I think it’s going to be great. It’s going to be fun. It’s good for hockey. Obviously, it’s going to be intense. So, I think we’re looking forward to it.”

Can the Lightning dethrone the defending champs?

The final first-round matchup in the East is down south for the “Battle of Florida.” The Tampa Bay Lightning have home ice advantage against the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers.

The two teams have met in the playoffs in three of the last four seasons, and this is the second straight year they’ve met in the first round. Florida obviously won last season in five games and went on to win the Cup. It couldn’t be a more even matchup as they also split their four games in the regular season. Star forward Matthew Tkachuk could make his return to give the Panthers a boost.

“I think it’s great for hockey in Florida because there’s two elite teams,” Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice said. “Either one of them could win the whole thing and certainly the eyes in Florida and fans in both cities will be wired right into it, so it’s great for hockey.”