NHL Playoffs Preview 1: Pitt/Phi, Wpg/Min, and Vegas/LA

Philadelphia Flyers @ Pittsburgh Penguins

Season Matchup Record: Pittsburgh 4-0-0

Pittsburgh finished second in the Metropolitan Division while Philly battled hard over the last month and a half to earn the third spot in the Metro and earned the right to give us potentially the best matchup in the first round of the NHL playoffs. While Pittsburgh won the regular season series with a perfect 4-0-0 record, two of those wins had to come in overtime while on their home ice. Pittsburgh outscored the Flyers 20-11, but everything resets in the playoffs. Claude Giroux’s MVP caliber season has helped carry the Flyers along with trade deadline acquisition Petr Mrazek between the pipes. While it may seem that Pittsburgh has the upper hand in this post-season matchup given they have home ice advantage along with Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Phil Kessel, I still see this series going seven games. I have Philadelphia eliminating the back-to-back Stanley Cup Champs based on pure grit and effort. Watch Claude Giroux put the team on his back along with the youngsters like Shayne Gostisbehere, Nolan Patrick, and Travis Konecny keeping up with the playoff pace.

Minnesota Wild @ Winnipeg Jets

Season Matchup Record: Winnipeg 3-1-0

Three of the four matchups between the Wild and the Jets occurred during October and November with Winnipeg taking the first three, Minnesota won the last matchup in mid-January. The Jets have been a powerhouse this season behind Patrick Laine, Blake Wheeler, and Connor Hellebuyck finishing second in the Central Division behind the Nashville Predators. Minnesota saw the resurgence of Eric Staal who scored 42 goals this season proving his career isn’t over just yet. However, as it always seems to be the Wild are suffering from the injury bug at the worst time of the year with their stud defenseman, Ryan Suter out for the rest of the season due to a fractured ankle. Which means that’s more pressure put on the Wild’s offense and their goaltender Devan Dubnyk. Look, Winnipeg are a huge team (literally) they have guys like Dustin Byfuglien, Tyler Myers, Blake Wheeler who are all over 6’2”, they play the physical game and have tons of speed and offensive gifted players across their roster. We all know the playoffs come with more physicality, which leads me to believe that the Jets may be the most physical in the West this Spring which is why I have the Jets beating Minnesota in five games. While the Wild have battled hard all year, the injury bug and their inability to succeed in the playoffs makes me feel that this is just not their year.

LA Kings @ Vegas Golden Knights

Season Matchup Record: Tied, both teams went 2-1-1

The story of the NHL this year has been the Vegas Golden Knights and their march to the top team of the Pacific Division. It is truly remarkable at how well Vegas played this season behind William Karlsson and Marc-Andre Fleury, and good for them I hope they can make some noise in the playoffs I really do, BUT they have a huge test in front of them in round one. While the Kings didn’t have their best season they did enough to earn the first wild card spot in the West. Anze Kopitar has had a career year and of course the defense lead by Drew Doughty is one that is the top of the league. There is a reason why the Kings won two cups in three years between 2012-2014, they never really broke up their core roster of Kopitar, Jeff Carter, Alec Martinez, Dustin Brown, and Jonathan Quick. They are battle tested, they know what it takes to win, and in the playoffs they know how to elevate their game to a near-elite level. I’m so happy for Vegas and so should the rest of the NHL community doing what they have done this season and bringing the city of Las Vegas together following the Vegas Shooting in October, but do they have what it takes to get the job done in the playoffs? It is hard for me to say yes, at least this year. I think the Kings resilience and experience help propel them to the next round in a matchup with one of the other California teams, I’m saying the Kings end Vegas’ historic season in six games on their home ice.

Written by Nick Gendreau