NHL Playoff Preview (And Predictions)

The playoffs are finally upon us. After an insane regular season, it is time to make our predictions for the playoffs. So I will go through each playoff matchup and give my prediction on who I think will win.

Source: nhl.com

A1. Florida Panthers vs WC2. Washington Capitals

Season Series: 2-1-0 Panthers

Positives:

The Florida Panthers are obviously, one of the best teams in the NHL. They won the President’s Trophy who is awarded to the team with the most points at the end of the regular season. Heading into the playoffs, the Panthers are hot. They are 7-3-0 in their last 10 games. They have Sergei Bobrovsky who has the most wins in the NHL this season. They also have Jonathan Huberdeau who has one of the most points in the NHL. So this is going to be a tough team to play, especially in the playoffs when they could be red hot.

The biggest positive for the Capitals is obviously Alex Ovechkin who finished off the season with 50 goals and 90 points in only 77 games. They also have Evgeny Kuznetsov and John Carlson who were close to point per game. In the 3 games that they have against the Panthers, they are 1-1-1. Also, over half their team has a Corsi For Percentage over 50.0.

Negatives:

Only thing that worries me about the Panthers is their ability to get a lead. Multiple times this year, and against some of the worst in the league, they have got down by multiple goals heading late into the game. Luckily, most of them they are able to come back and win, but if they do this in the playoffs, it won’t look good. For Panthers fans worried about the 10-2 loss to the Canadiens, I would not be scored as the Panthers had multiple great players scratched for that game.

The 2 Caps goalies don’t have a high Save Percentage. Samsonov has a .896 and Vanecek has a .908. So the main problem that they have to worry about is goalies. But there’s other things as well. After John Carlson, the highest point total by a Caps player is Tom Wilson with 52. So there are not many other point getters than Ovi and Kuzy. Also, the Caps have dropped 5 of their last 6 games, which is not something they want heading into the playoffs.

Prediction: Panthers in 6

A2. Toronto Maple Leafs vs A3. Tampa Bay Lightning

Season Series: 2-2-0

Positives:

The Maple Leafs are entering the playoffs as one of the best goal scoring teams in the NHL. Auston Matthews was able to find his form to score over 60 goals this season to win the Rocket Richard Trophy. They also have Mitch Marner who has been able to get almost 100 points this season.

Like the Panthers, Andrei Vasilevskiy is one of the best goalies in the league. He is 2nd in wins for the season. He has won 4 of his last 5 games and is looking to carry that into the postseason. Captain, Steven Stamkos has got over 100 points this season and Victor Hedman has also got over a point per game. After missing most of the season due to injury, Nikita Kucherov has got over 65 points in the only 47 games he has played this season.

Negatives:

The Maple Leafs don’t have the best tendency when it comes to the playoffs, and with about the same lineup. So if Matthews and Marner and other players don’t show up to this series, things could get ugly for the Leafs.

Brayden Point and Ondrej Palat has not really played up to par like they have previous seasons. You know how I said Kucherov has over 65 points? Well that is 3rd on the team. No one else has gotten over 60 points on the Lightning this season. So if the Bolts want to get through the 1st round, it will have to be a team effort.

Prediction: Leafs in 7

M1. Carolina Hurricanes vs WC1. Boston Bruins

Season Series: 3-0-0 Canes

Positives:

The Hurricanes have won 6 straight going into the playoffs. They also have Freddie Andersen, who has one of the best Save Percentages in the NHL. They also have Antti Raanta and Pyotr Kochetkov who have been looking good during Andersen’s absence. Their entire team has a Corsi For Percentage over 50.0 which is really good. The only 2 players who are not are now back in the AHL.

Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak are both top 50 in points in the NHL, both who have over a point per game. The Bruins have 2 of the best goalies in the Save Percentage category, Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark. The Bruins also have not many players with a CF% below 50.0, meaning that they spend a good chunk of time in the offensive. The Bruins have also won 6 of their last 8 games, which is a good thing to have going into the playoffs.

Negatives:

While looking, I’m starting to wonder how this team got so good. They have 1 player in Sebastian Aho who has a point per game or better, and it’s barely over a PPG. I’m guessing it was mostly Andersen who has been putting the team on his shoulders to help them get to the playoffs. But I guess it doesn’t matter how you get there if you get there, right?

The Bruins have been basically destroyed in the 3 games that the Hurricanes played them, (0-3, 1-6, 0-7). They also don’t have any other players with a point per game or better. When you have more players with a point per game or better, you have more stars on the team. When you have more stars on a team, there a better chance of winning a cup.

Prediction: Canes in 5

M2. New York Rangers vs M3. Pittsburgh Penguins

Season Series: 3-1-0 Rangers

Positives:

The Rangers are a high-class team. They have Igor Shesterkin who has the best Save Percentage in the NHL. They also have Chris Kreider who is one of the best goal scorers in the NHL. Alongside him, they also have Artemi Panarin and Mika Zibanejad who have over a point per game. The Rangers are second in the NHL in Goals Against, only allowing 305 this season.

The Penguins have 2 players, Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel, in the top 25 in points. Crosby had 84 in 69 and Guentzel had 84 in 76. They also have Kris Letang and Bryan Rust who are behind them. Both of their goalies are above .910 in Save Percentage. Tristan Jarry, who had 4 shutouts, has a .919, and Casey DeSmith had a .914.

Negatives:

The Rangers have their top 5 point-getters and not much else after that. Shesterkin has also been the top goalie for the Rangers, and no one else has really been able to kind of get that role. Igor has a SV% that is .037 points higher than Georgiev. So if Igor gets hurt, the Rangers might be in trouble.

The Penguins have lost 3 of their last 6 games, and it’s not really good heading into the playoffs. Their main goalie, Jarry, hasn’t played since April 14th with a foot injury. This means they will have to bring in Louis Domingue until he gets back. Domingue doesn’t have a lot of playoff experience, 7 shots to be exact. He also has only played 2 games this season, one of which was an OT win, the other was a 1-4 loss.

Prediction: Rangers in 6

C1. Colorado Avalanche vs WC2. Nashville Predators

Season Series: 3-1-0 Preds

Positives:

The Avs are second in the league in goals for with 311 goals scored this season. They also have only given up 230 goals this season. The Avs have 5 players with a point per game or better, including defenseman Cale Makar. Both of their goalies have a Save Percentage of over .915, which puts them both in the top 15 for goalies. Combined the 2 goalies have 7 shutouts. I guess, the good part was that the Avalanche were able to make it into OT twice, even though they lost.

The Preds have 3 players who have over a point per game, and their leading point getter is defenseman, Roman Josi. They also have one of the best goalies in the league with Juuse Saros. The main thing that will help them this series is that they did really well against the Avalanche in the regular season, winning 3 of the 4 games.

Negatives

The Avalanche went on a 9-game winning streak…until they have lost 6 of their last 7 games heading into the playoffs. One of those losses was a 4-5 SO loss to Nashville. Also, the Preds are the only team that the Avs have a Points Percentage of .500 or below in the Central Division. Nashville was the only team that Colorado lost to in January, and although it was in OT, it prevented them from having a 16-0-0 month. So probably the main struggles that the Avalanche have to deal with is their failure to win vs Nashville in the regular season.

The Preds have lost 4 of their last 5 games, with their only win being against the Avs in a shootout. Their past 3 losses have all been 4-5, whether in overtime or in regulation. The reason why that is a problem is because it shows that they can’t win in close games like that. And if they can’t do that during the playoffs, then it’s going to be hard for them.

Prediction: Avs in 6

C2. Minnesota Wild vs C3. St. Louis Blues

Season Series: 3-0-0 Blues

Positives:

The Wild are 8-1-1 in their last 10 games, and in only his second season, Kirill Kaprizov had over 100 points. And joining him are 2 other players with over a point per game. After picking up Marc-Andre Fleury, he was 9-2-0. Both him and Talbot have a Save Percentage of around .910, which is very consistent. The Wild are also 5th in the league in scoring, which is very good.

7-2-1 in their last 10 is pretty good for the Blues. Especially when you add that the Blues are undefeated against the Wild this season. The Blues are in the top 5 in scoring, and top 10 in goals against, meaning that they are very consistent. They have 4 guys with over a point a game, and a few others that are relatively close. Ville Husso has mainly taken the pipes this season, having a .919 Save Percentage in the process, which is pretty good.

Negatives:

The Wild hasn’t played good against the Wild all season. Even if the Wild are a higher seed than the Blues, the Blues have dominated the Wild the entire time. The Wild have also got only 3 shutouts the entire season, which shows that their defense, isn’t up to par. The Wild are 5th in the league in scoring, but they are also in the bottom half of the league in goals against.

The Blues have a season CF% of under 50.0, which isn’t good. Speaking of that, Jordan Binnington has not played pretty well this season. He has a Save Percentage of barely over .900, which could hurt the Blues if Husso gets injuried. Even though they have beat the Wild all 3 times, 2 have gone to OT, and one was a 2-goal win. So if the Blues want to win this series, they are going to have to buckle down and play well.

Prediction: Blues in 7

P1. Calgary Flames vs WC1. Dallas Stars

Season Series: 2-0-1 Flames

Positives:

The Flames are 6th in scoring and 2nd in goals against, which proves them to be a very consistent team. They have 2 100+ point scorers with Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk. Elias Lindholm also has a point per game in all 82 he played. Goalie, Jacob Markstrom has proved to be very good, being 4th in Save Percentage in the NHL. He also ended up getting a league leading 9 shutouts. Daniel Vladar also got a .906 in the 23 games he played, which could be nice if Markstrom gets hurt. These could all help the Flames get through some tough times.

Jason Robertson, while not being the leading point getter, does have over a point per game in 74 games. Also, both of their goalies have a Save Percentage around .914, and the Stars need consistency in a series like this, especially with the Flames’ scoring.

Negatives:

Other than the 3 players with a point per game or better, the next highest point getter is 55 in 82 games. Also, out of all their opponents, the Stars has scored some of the most goals on them, scoring about 3 goals a game.

Robertson is their only player with a point per game or better, they also have CF% under 50.0, and a negative goal differential. Honestly, I think the Stars just have to play their hearts out and try to drag this series out as long as they can if they want to make it past the 1st round.

Prediction: Flames in 5

P2. Edmonton Oilers vs P3. Los Angeles Kings

Season Series: 3-1-0 Oilers

Positives:

McDavid and Leon. Also they are 7-2-1 in their last 10. Also they are top 7 in scoring. Mike Smith. Not much else I need to say.

LA has kept this series close. They have scored 12 whereas the Oilers has scored 13. The Kings are in the top half of goals against, mainly thanks to Johnathan Quick. Quick has a .910 SV% and will probably play all of the playoffs. The Kings will be coming in hot; they are 5-0-1 in their last 6 and want to send the Oilers home early.

Negatives:

After McDavid and Leon, the highest point getter is 54. Also this team doesn’t have a lot of playoff experience. I think the best playoff experience this team has is Mike Smith (who has a .915 SV% btw). The last time they made it to the 2nd round was 2016-17 and keep in mind that McDavid was 20 at that point.

The Kings have no players with a point per game. Also if Quick does get hurt, things might go down. Cal Petersen has only a .895 SV%, which isn’t very good. So the Kings will have to get the series done early before McDavid and Leon does any damage.

Prediction: Oilers in 6

So there is a preview of the first round of the playoffs that will hopefully help you make your predictions. But in case you are wondering, here is my bracket:

Stats from: hockey-reference.com