Forman Faceoff 2020 Stanley Cup Playoff Preview - Eastern/Western Conference Semifinals

After an interesting (to say the least) qualifying round in the playoffs, the 1st round round saw 6 of the 8 round-robin teams win, with only the Islanders and Canucks winning from the play-in round. I went 3/8 in the 1st round (picking Philadelphia, Tampa Bay and Colorado), definitely showing how unpredictable these playoffs have been. We started with 24 teams and now are down to the final 8, and this article will look at how we got to the 8 teams and a preview/prediction of the second round match-ups. Hope you enjoy!

1st Round Results:

Eastern Conference:

#1 Philadelphia Flyers defeat #8 Montreal Canadiens (4-2)

#2 Tampa Bay Lightning defeat #7 Columbus Blue Jackets (4-1)

#6 New York Islanders defeat #3 Washington Capitals (4-1)

#4 Boston Bruins defeat #5 Carolina Hurricanes (4-1)

Western Conference:

#1 Vegas Golden Knights defeat #8 Chicago Blackhawks (4-1)

#2 Colorado Avalanche defeat #7 Arizona Coyotes (4-1)

#3 Dallas Stars defeat #6 Calgary Flames (4-2)

#5 Vancouver Canucks defeat #4 St. Louis Blues (4-2)

Playoff Scoring Leaders:

1. Nathan MacKinnon (COL) - 13 points

2. Elias Pettersson (VAN) - 13 points

3. Miro Heiskanen (DAL) - 12 points

4. Sebastian Aho (CAR) - 12 points (eliminated)

5. Nazem Kadri (COL) - 11 points

6. JT Miller (VAN) - 10 points

7. Mikko Rantanen (COL) - 10 points

8. Brayden Point (TBL) - 10 points

9. Josh Bailey (NYI) - 10 points

10. Ryan O'Reilly (STL) - 10 points (eliminated)

Second Round Matchups:

Eastern Conference:

#1 Philadelphia Flyers vs #6 New York Islanders

#2 Tampa Bay Lightning vs #4 Boston Bruins

Western Conference:

#1 Vegas Golden Knights vs #5 Vancouver Canucks

#2 Colorado Avalanche vs #3 Dallas Stars

2nd Round Preview and Predictions:

Eastern Conference:

#1 Philadelphia Flyers vs #6 New York Islanders

Season Series: Islanders won the season series 3-0-0

October 27, 2019: New York Islanders 5, Philadelphia Flyers 3 
November 16, 2019: New York Islanders 4, Philadelphia Flyers 3 (SO)
February 11, 2020: New York Islanders 5, Philadelphia Flyers 3

Players to Watch:

Philadelphia: Carter Hart, Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier, Kevin Hayes, Ivan Provorov, Travis Konecny

New York: Mat Barzal, Anthony Beauvillier, Josh Bailey, Semyon Varlamov, Jordan Eberle, Ryan Pulock

X-Factor:

Philadelphia: Carter Hart

New York: Mat Barzal

Season Stat Leaders:

Philadelphia

Goals: Travis Konecny (24), Kevin Hayes (23), Sean Couturier (22)
Assists: Jakub Voracek (44), Sean Couturier/Travis Konecny (37), Claude Giroux (32)
Points: Travis Konecny (61), Sean Couturier (59), Jakub Voracek (56)
Wins: Carter Hart (24), Brian Elliott (16)
Goals Against Average: Carter Hart (2.42), Brian Elliott (2.87)
Save Percentage: Carter Hart (.914), Brian Elliott (.899)
Shutouts: Brian Elliott (2), Carter Hart (1)

New York

Goals: Brock Nelson/Jean-Gabriel Pageau (26), Anders Lee (20), Mat Barzal (19)
Assists: Mat Barzal (41), Josh Bailey (29), Brock Nelson (28)
Points: Mat Barzal (60), Brock Nelson (54), Anders Lee/Josh Bailey (43)
Wins: Semyon Varlamov (19), Thomas Greiss (16)
Goals Against Average: Semyon Varlamonv (2.62), Thomas Greiss (2.74)
Save Percentage: Semyon Varlamov (.914), Thomas Greiss (.913)
Shutouts: Semyon Varlamov (2)

Playoff Stat Leaders:

Philadelphia

Goals: Jakub Voracek (4), Scott Laughton/Joel Farabee/Michael Raffl (3)
Assists: Kevin Hayes (6), Sean Couturier (5), Claude Giroux/Jakub Voracek (4) 
Points: Jakub Voracek (8), Kevin Hayes (7), Scott Laughton/Sean Couturier (5)

New York

Goals: Anthony Beauvillier (6), Jean-Gabriel Pageau (4), Mat Barzal/Brock Nelson (3)
Assists: Josh Bailey (8), Ryan Pulock (5), Mat Barzal/Brock Nelson (4)
Points: Josh Bailey (10), Anthony Beauvillier (9), Mat Barzal/Brock Nelson (7)

Prediction: The Flyers come into this series having beaten the Canadiens in 6 games and they will have their hands full with the stingy Islanders, fresh off upsetting the 3rd-seeded Capitals in 5 games. Both of these teams have shown they are capable of going far in the playoffs, and it's going to be interesting to see which team has the advantage in this series. The biggest factor will be between the pipes with Carter Hart vs. Semyon Varlamov, both goalies have been tremendous so far in the playoffs. While I think this series can go either way, I think the Islanders pull off another upset and take this in 7

(NEW YORK ISLANDERS 4, PHILADELPHIA FLYERS 3)

#2 Tampa Bay Lightning vs #3 Boston Bruins

Season Series: Lightning won the season series 3-1-0

October 17, 2019: Tampa Bay Lightning 4, Boston Bruins 3 (SO)
December 12, 2019: Tampa Bay Lightning 3, Boston Bruins 2
March 3, 2020: Boston Bruins 2, Tampa Bay Lightning 1

March 7, 2020: Tampa Bay Lightning 5, Boston Bruins 3

Players to Watch:

Tampa Bay: Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, Victor Hedman, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Alex Killorn, Yanni Gourde

Boston: David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, Jaroslav Halak, Torey Krug, Zdeno Chara

X-Factor:

Tampa Bay: Nikita Kucherov

Boston: David Pastrnak

Season Stat Leaders:

Tampa Bay

Goals: Nikita Kucherov (33), Steven Stamkos (29), Alex Killorn (26)
Assists: Nikita Kucherov (52), Victor Hedman (44), Brayden Point (39)
Points: Nikita Kucherov (85), Steven Stamkos (66), Brayden Point (64)
Wins: Andrei Vasilevskiy (35), Curtis McElhinney (8)
Goals Against Average: Andrei Vasilevskiy (2.56), Curtis McElhinney (2.89)
Save Percentage: Andrei Vasilevskiy (.917), Curtis McElhinney (.906)
Shutouts: Andrei Vasilevskiy (3), Curtis McElhinney (1)

Boston

Goals: David Pastrnak (48), Patrice Bergeron (31), Brad Marchand (28)
Assists: Brad Marchand (59), David Pastrnak (47), Torey Krug (40)
Points: David Pastrnak (95), Brad Marchand (87), Patrice Bergeron (56)
Wins: Tuukka Rask (26), Jaroslav Halak (18)
Goals Against Average: Tuukka Rask (2.12), Jaroslav Halak (2.39)
Save Percentage: Tuukka Rask (.929), Jaroslav Halak (.919)
Shutouts: Tuukka Rask (5), Jaroslav Halak (3)

Playoff Stat Leaders:

Tampa Bay 

Goals: Brayden Point (5), Tyler Johnson (3), Nikita Kucherov/Alex Killorn/Yanni Gourde (2)
Assists: Nikita Kucherov (7), Brayden Point (5), Ryan McDonagh (3)
Points: Brayden Point (10), Nikita Kucherov (9), Tyler Johnson/Alex Killorn/Yanni Gourde (4)

Boston

Goals: David Krejci/Jake DeBrusk/Brad Marchand (3), Patrice Bergeron/Charlie Coyle (2)
Assists: David Krejci (6), Brad Marchand/Patrice Bergeron/Ondrej Kase (4)
Points: David Krejci (9), Brad Marchand (7), Patrice Bergeron (6)

Prediction: The top 2 teams from the Eastern Conference in the regular season face off in a heavyweight battle in the second round, and with that both teams are missing key players in Tuukka Rask and Steven Stamkos. Rask left the bubble to be with his family and will miss the rest of the playoffs, while Stamkos remains out indefinitely with a lower-body injury. Both teams won their 1st round matchup in 5 games, and it's going to be interesting to see who has the edge here. While I think it will be close and either team can win, I give the edge to the Lightning after they shed some demons after beating the Blue Jackets

(TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING 4, BOSTON BRUINS 2)

Western Conference:

#1 Vegas Golden Knights vs #5 Vancouver Canucks

Season Series: Golden Knights won the season series 1-0-1

December 15, 2019: Vegas Golden Knights 6, Vancouver Canucks 3 
December 19, 2019: Vancouver Canucks 5, Vegas Golden Knights 4 (OT)

Players to Watch:

Vegas: Mark Stone, Reilly Smith, Robin Lehner, Max Pacioretty, William Karlsson, Shea Theodore

Vancouver: Elias Pettersson, Quinn Hughes, Jacob Markstrom, Bo Horvat, Brock Boeser, JT Miller

X-Factor:

Vegas: Mark Stone

Vancouver: Elias Pettersson

Season Stat Leaders:

Vegas

Goals: Max Pacioretty (32), Reilly Smith (27), Johnathan Marchessault (22)
Assists: Mark Stone (42), Max Pacioretty (34), Shea Theodore (33)
Points: Max Pacioretty (66), Mark Stone (63), Reilly Smith (54)
Wins: Marc-Andre Fleury (27), Robin Lehner (3)
Goals Against Average: Robin Lehner (1.67), Marc-Andre Fleury (2.77)
Save Percentage: Robin Lehner (.940), Marc-Andre Fleury (.905)
Shutouts: Marc-Andre Fleury (5), Robin Lehner (1)

Vancouver

Goals: Elias Pettersson/JT Miller (27), Tyler Toffoli (24), Bo Horvat (22)
Assists: JT Miller/Quinn Hughes (45), Elias Pettersson (39), Bo Horvat (31)
Points: JT Miller (72), Elias Petterson (66), Quinn Hughes/Bo Horvat (53)
Wins: Jacob Markstrom (23), Thatcher Demko (13)
Goals Against Average: Jacob Markstrom (2.75), Thatcher Demko (3.06)
Save Percentage: Jacob Markstrom (.918), Thatcher Demko (.905)
Shutouts: Jacob Markstrom (2)

Playoff Stat Leaders:

Vegas

Goals: Mark Stone/Shea Theodore/Alex Tuch (4), Reilly Smith (3), Jonathan Marchessault (2)
Assists: Reilly Smith/Jonathan Marchessault (5), Mark Stone/William Karlsson/Nate Schmidt (4)
Points: Mark Stone/Reilly Smith (8), Shea Theodore/Jonathan Marchessault (7), William Karlsson (6)

Vancouver

Goals: Bo Horvat (6), JT Miller (5), Elias Pettersson/Tyler Motte (4)
Assists: Elias Pettersson/Quinn Hughes (9), JT Miller/Brock Boeser/Chris Tanev (5)
Points: Elias Pettersson (13), JT Miller/Quinn Hughes (10), Bo Horvat/Brock Boeser (8)

Prediction: This to me is the most exciting series of the playoffs so far, the high-flying Golden Knights vs the young and upcoming Vancouver Canucks and it's going to be a dandy. The Golden Knights brushed off the Blackhawks in 5 games, while the Canucks impressively downed the defending-champion Blues in 6 games, so both teams are coming in with a lot of confidence and swagger. If Vancouver has any chance of beating the Golden Knights they need Jacob Markstrom to continue his brilliant play in net, and I would not be shocked if the Canucks were able pull off another upset. Having said that, I give the edge to the Golden Knights as the more complete team

(VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS 4, VANCOUVER CANUCKS 2)

#2 Colorado Avalanche vs #3 Dallas Stars

Season Series: Stars won the season series 4-0-0

November 1, 2019: Dallas Stars 2, Colorado Avalanche 1
November 5, 2019: Dallas Stars 4, Colorado Avalanche 1

December 28, 2019: Dallas Stars 3, Colorado Avalanche 2 (SO)
January 14, 2020: Dallas Stars 3, Colorado Avalanche 2 (OT)

Players to Watch:

Colorado: Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, Cale Makar, Gabriel Landeskog, Nazem Kadri, Philipp Grubauer

Dallas: Miro Heiskanen, John Klingberg, Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin, Alex Radulov, Denis Gurianov

X-Factor:

Colorado: Nathan MacKinnon

Dallas: Miro Heiskanen

Season Stat Leaders:

Colorado

Goals: Nathan MacKinnon (35), Gabriel Landeskog (21), Andre Burakovsky (20)
Assists: Nathan MacKinnon (58), Cale Makar (38), Sam Girard (30)
Points: Nathan MacKinnon (93), Cale Makar (50), Andre Burakovsky (45)
Wins: Pavel Francouz (21), Philipp Grubauer (18)
Goals Against Average: Pavel Francouz (2.41), Philipp Grubauer (2.63)
Save Percentage: Pavel Francouz (.923), Philipp Grubauer (.916)
Shutouts: Philipp Grubauer (2), Pavel Francouz (1)

Dallas

Goals: Denis Gurianov (20), Jamie Benn/Roope Hintz (19), Tyler Seguin (17)
Assists: Tyler Seguin (33), Miro Heiskanen (27), John Klingberg (26)\
Points: Tyler Seguin (50), Jamie Benn (39), Miro Heiskanen (35)
Wins: Ben Bishop (21), Anton Khudobin (16)
Goals Against Average: Anton Khudonin (2.22), Ben Bishop (2.50)
Save Percentage: Anton Khudobin (.930), Ben Bishop (.920)
Shutouts: Ben Bishop (2)

Playoff Stat Leaders:

Colorado 

Goals: Nazem Kadri (6), Nathan MacKinnon (4), Mikko Rantanen/Andre Burakovsky (3)
Assists: Nathan MacKinnon (9), Gabriel Landeskog (8), Mikko Rantanen (7)
Points: Nathan MacKinnon (13), Nazem Kadri (11), Mikko Rantanen (10)

Dallas

Goals: Denis Gurianov/Joe Pavelski (6), Miro Heiskanen (3), Jamie Benn/Alexander Radulov (2)
Assists: Miro Heiskanen (9), John Klingberg (6), Roope Hintz (4)
Points: Miro Heiskanen (12), Joe Pavelski (8), Denis Gurianov/John Klingberg (7)

Prediction: The Avalanche come into this series having walked all over the Coyotes in 5 games, outscoring them 22-8 in the process. They'll face a Stars team fresh off their 6-game series win over the Flames, and they certainly have been impressive, none more so than Miro Heiskanen who leads all defenseman with 12 points. The Avalanche have been equally impressive with Nathan MacKinnon leading the playoffs in points (13) and Nazem Kadri in goals (6), and this should be a very interesting series to watch. The Stars did win all 4 games in the regular season, and it will be interesting to watch the goalie match-ups as both teams have 2 capable goalies (don't be surprised to see all 4 play at some point). While I think this will be a close series, I give the edge to MacKinnon and the Avs

(COLORADO AVALANCHE 4, DALLAS STARS 2)

This would mean the Conference Finals Match-ups would be as follows:

Eastern Conference Finals

#2 Tampa Bay Lightning vs #6 New York Islanders

Western Conference Finals

#1 Vegas Golden Knights vs #2 Colorado Avalanche

The 2nd round starts tonight!

-Joel Forman - The Forman Faceoff

Forman Faceoff 2020 Stanley Cup Playoff Preview - Eastern/Western Conference Quarterfinals

Well the qualifying round was...something? I really don't know what to think, I have some positives and negatives to take away from that but it was certainly full of entertainment and drama to say the least. I went just 2/8 in the play-in round predictions (yikes), picking just New York I. and Chicago to win, no question the first round had some shocking upsets with both #5 seeds losing. With that being said, we now have the 16 teams set for the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs. In this preview I'll give a quick recap of the Play-In/Round Robin and then give my preview and prediction of the 1st round. Hope you enjoy!

Play-In Round Results

Eastern Conference:

#12 Montreal Canadiens defeat #5 Pittsburgh Penguins (3-1)

#6 Carolina Hurricanes defeat #11 New York Rangers (3-0)

#7 New York Islanders defeat #10 Florida Panthers (3-1)

#9 Columbus Blue Jackets defeat #8 Toronto Maple Leafs (3-2)

The 4 advancing seeds are now re-seeded #5-8 based on their original number

#5 Carolina Hurricanes

#6 New York Islanders

#7 Columbus Blue Jackets

#8 Montreal Canadiens

Western Conference:

#12 Chicago Blackhawks defeat #5 Edmonton Oilers (3-1)

#11 Arizona Coyotes defeat #6 Nashville Predators (3-1)

#7 Vancouver Canucks defeat #10 Minnesota Wild (3-1)

#8 Calgary Flames defeat #9 Winnipeg Jets (3-1)

The 4 advancing seeds are now re-seeded #5-8 based on their original number

#5 Vancouver Canucks

#6 Calgary Flames

#7 Arizona Coyotes

#8 Chicago Blackhawks

Round-Robin Results

The 4 teams in each conference who got a bye through the play-in round played each of the teams once, with the standings re-seeding for the 1st round of the playoffs. 

Eastern Conference

#1 Philadelphia Flyers (3-0-0, 6 points)

#2 Tampa Bay Lightning (2-1-0, 4 points)

#3 Washington Capitals (1-1-1, 3 points)

#4 Boston Bruins (0-3-0, 0 points)

Western Conference:

#1 Vegas Golden Knights (3-0-0), 6 points)

#2 Colorado Avalanche (2-0-1, 5 points)

#3 Dallas Stars (1-2-0, 2 points)

#4 St. Louis Blues (0-2-1, 1 point)

Qualifying Round Point Leaders:

1. Connor McDavid (EDM) - 9 points (eliminated)

2. Sebastian Aho (CAR) - 8 points

3. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (EDM) - 8 points (eliminated)

4. Jonathan Toews (CHI) - 7 points

5. Dominik Kubalik (CHI) - 6 points

6. Sean Monahan (CGY) - 6 points

7. Quinn Hughes (VAN) - 6 points

8. Leon Draisaitl (EDM) - 6 points (eliminated)

9. Auston Matthews (TOR) - 6 points (eliminated)

10. Andrei Svechnikov (CAR) - 5 points

1st Round Matchups:

Eastern Conference:

#1 Philadelphia Flyers vs #8 Montreal Canadiens

#2 Tampa Bay Lightning vs #7 Columbus Blue Jackets

#3 Washington Capitals vs #6 New York Islanders

#4 Boston Bruins vs #5 Carolina Hurricanes

Western Conference:

#1 Vegas Golden Knights vs #8 Chicago Blackhawks

#2 Colorado Avalanche vs #7 Arizona Coyotes

#3 Dallas Stars vs #6 Calgary Flames

#4 St. Louis Blues vs #5 Vancouver Canucks

1st Round Preview and Predictions:

Eastern Conference:

#1 Philadelphia Flyers vs #8 Montreal Canadiens

Season Series: Flyers won the season series 2-1-0

November 7, 2019: Philadelphia Flyers 3, Montreal Canadiens 2 (OT)
November 30, 2019: Philadelphia Flyers 4, Montreal Canadiens 3 (OT)
January 16, 2020: Montreal Canadiens 4, Philadelphia Flyers 1 

Players to Watch:

Philadelphia: Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier, Carter Hart, Kevin Hayes, Ivan Provorov, Travis Konecny

Montreal: Carey Price, Shea Weber, Brendan Gallagher, Nick Suzuki, Tomas Tatar, Jeff Petry

X-Factor:

Philadelphia: Carter Hart

Montreal: Carey Price

Season Stat Leaders:

Philadelphia

Goals: Travis Konecny (24), Kevin Hayes (23), Sean Couturier (22)
Assists: Jakub Voracek (44), Sean Couturier/Travis Konecny (37), Claude Giroux (32)
Points: Travis Konecny (61), Sean Couturier (59), Jakub Voracek (56)
Wins: Carter Hart (24), Brian Elliott (16)
Goals Against Average: Carter Hart (2.42), Brian Elliott (2.87)
Save Percentage: Carter Hart (.914), Brian Elliott (.899)
Shutouts: Brian Elliott (2), Carter Hart (1)

Montreal

Goals: Tomas Tatar/Brendan Gallagher (22), Max Domi (17), Joel Armia (16)

Assists: Tomas Tatar (39), Phil Danault (34), Jeff Petry (29)

Points: Tomas Tatar (61), Phil Danault (47), Max Domi (44)

Wins: Carey Price (27), Charlie Lindgren (2)

Goals Against Average: Carey Price (2.79), Charlie Lindgren (3.33)

Save Percentage: Carey Price (.909), Charlie Lindgren (.888)

Shutouts: Carey Price (4)

Playoff Stat Leaders:

Philadelphia

Goals: Scott Laughton (3), Nicolas Aube-Kubel (2)
Assists: Kevin Hayes (4), Scott Laughton/Sean Couturier/Travis Konecny (2)
Points: Scott Laughtn (5), Kevin Hayes (4)

Montreal

Goals: Jeff Petry/Shea Weber/Jesperi Kotkaniemi (2)
Assists: Paul Byron (3), Shea Weber/Artturi Lehkonen/Ben Chiarot (2)
Points: Shea Weber/Paul Byron (4), Jeff Petry/Artturi Lehkonen (3)

Prediction: If the Canadiens taught us anything in the play-in round is that anyone can win in this playoffs, knocking off the much more talented Penguins. They will do their best to try and pull off a repeat against a second Pennsylvania team, and with Carey Price at his best anything is possible, but a much more daunting task awaits in the Philaelphia Flyers. The Flyers won all 3 round robin games and finished 1st in the Eastern Conference, not to mention the hottest team in the NHL down the stretch before the season paused. This is also a battle of two of the best goaltenders in the NHL in Price vs Carter Hart and should be very fun to watch. I'm picking the Flyers in this series as they are also one of my Stanley Cup favourites

(PHILADELPHIA FLYERS 4, MONTREAL CANADIENS 2)

#2 Tampa Bay Lightning vs #7 Columbus Blue Jackets

Season Series: Lightning won the season series 1-0-0

February 10, 2020: Tampa Bay Lightning 2, Columbus Blue Jackets 1 (OT) 

Players to Watch:

Tampa Bay: Nikita Kucherov, Steven Stamkos, Brayden Point, Victor Hedman, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Alex Killorn

Columbus: Zach Werenski, Seth Jones, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Cam Atkinson, Joonas Korpisalo, Liam Foudy

X-Factor:

Tampa Bay: Nikita Kucherov

Columbus: Zach Werenski

Season Stat Leaders:

Tampa Bay

Goals: Nikita Kucherov (33), Steven Stamkos (29), Alex Killorn (26)
Assists: Nikita Kucherov (52), Victor Hedman (44), Brayden Point (39)
Points: Nikita Kucherov (85), Steven Stamkos (66), Brayden Point (64)
Wins: Andrei Vasilevskiy (35), Curtis McElhinney (8)
Goals Against Average: Andrei Vasilevskiy (2.56), Curtis McElhinney (2.89)
Save Percentage: Andrei Vasilevskiy (.917), Curtis McElhinney (.906)
Shutouts: Andrei Vasilevskiy (3), Curtis McElhinney (1)

Columbus

Goals: Oliver Bjorkstrand (21), Zach Werenski (20), Pierre-Luc Dubois (18)
Assists: Pierre-Luc Dubois (31), Gustav Nyquist (27), Seth Jones (24)
Points: Pierre-Luc Dubois (49), Gustav Nyquist (42), Zach Werenski (41)
Wins: Joonas Korpisalo (19), Elvis Merzlikins (13)
Goals Against Average: Elvis Merzlikins (2.35), Joonas Korpisalo (2.60)
Save Percentage: Elvis Merzlikins (.923), Joonas Korpisalo (.911)
Shutouts: Elvis Merzlikins (5), Joonas Korpisalo (2)

Playoff Stat Leaders:

Tampa Bay

Goals: Tyler Johnson (2), Alex Killorn/Brayden Point/Nikita Kucherov (1)
Assists: Alex Killorn/Brayden Point (2)
Points: Tyler Johnson/Alex Killorn/Brayden Point (3), Nikita Kucherov (2)

Columbus

Goals: Pierre-Luc Dubois (3), Cam Atkinson (2)
Assists: Cam Atkinson/David Savard (3). Nick Foligno/Alex Texier (2)
Points: Cam Atkinson (5), Pierre-Luc Dubois (4)

Prediction: Buckle up, it's a rematch of last year's historic 1st round upset where the Blue Jackets swept the Presidents Trophy winning Lightning and this should be one of the best series of the 1st round. The Lightning will be out for blood after last year, and added some considerable size and grit (Pat Maroon, Barclay Goodrow, Blake Coleman, Zach Bogosian, Luke Schenn) to make sure it won't happen again. They get put the test right away against a much different Columbus team without Panarin, Bobrovsky, Duchene, but don't count them out as they looked very impressive against the Leafs in the play-in round. I think this series is going to be very close, but I see Tampa Bay exacting their revenge.

(TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING 4, COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS 2)

#3 Washington Capitals vs #6 New York Islanders

Season Series: Capitals won the season series 2-1-0

October 4, 2019: Washington Capitals 2, New York Islanders 1
January 18, 2020: Washington Capitals 6, New York Islanders 4 
February 10, 2020: New York Islanders 5, Washington Capitals 3 

Players to Watch:

Washington: Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov, John Carlson, Nicklas Backstrom, TJ Oshie, Tom Wilson

New York: Mat Barzal, Jordan Eberle, Anthony Beauvillier, Anders Lee, Josh Bailey, Semyon Varlamov

X-Factor:

Washington: Alexander Ovechkin

New York: Mat Barzal

Season Stat Leaders:

Washington

Goals: Alex Ovechkin (48), TJ Oshie (26), Jakub Vrana (25)
Assists: John Carlson (60), Nicklas Backstrom (42), Evgeny Kuznetsov (33)
Points: John Carlson (75), Alex Ovechkin (67), Nicklas Backstrom (54)
Wins: Brayden Hotlby (25), Ilya Samsonov (16)
Goals Against Average: Ilya Samsonov (2.55), Brayden Holtby (3.11)
Save Percentage: Ilya Samsonov (.913), Brayden Holtby (.897)
Shutouts: Ilya Samsonov (1)

New York

Goals: Brock Nelson/Jean-Gabriel Pageau (26), Anders Lee (20), Mat Barzal (19)
Assists: Mat Barzal (41), Josh Bailey (29), Brock Nelson (28)
Points: Mat Barzal (60), Brock Nelson (54), Anders Lee/Josh Bailey (43)
Wins: Semyon Varlamov (19), Thomas Greiss (16)
Goals Against Average: Semyon Varlamonv (2.62), Thomas Greiss (2.74)
Save Percentage: Semyon Varlamov (.914), Thomas Greiss (.913)
Shutouts: Semyon Varlamov (2)

Playoff Stat Leaders:

Washington

Goals: TJ Oshie/Richard Panik/Evgeny Kuznetsov/Tom Wilson (1)
Assists: Radko Gudas (2), Ilya Kovalchuk/Nicklas Backstrom (1)
Points: Radko Gudas (2), TJ Oshie/Evgeny Kuznetsov/Nicklas Backstrom (1)

New York

Goals: Anthony Beauvillier/Jean-Gabriel Pageau (3), Jordan Eberle/Brock Nelson (2)
Assists: Josh Bailey/Devon Toews (4), Ryan Pulock (3)
Points: Anthony Beauvillier (5), Ryan Pulock/Devon Toews/Josh Bailey (4)

Prediction: The Capitals face off against their old coach in Barry Trotz, the man that helped them to their 1st Stanley Cup in franchise history 2 years ago, and certainly going to be interesting to watch the coaching battle between him and his replacement Todd Reirden. This match-up pins the high-scoring Capitals against the stingy, defense-first Islanders who beat the Panthers in 4 games in the play-in round. I think a lot of people are writing off the Islanders in this series and it will be much closer than expected, but I'm giving the slight edge to Ovie and the Caps.

(WASHINGTON CAPITALS 4, NEW YORK ISLANDERS 3)

#4 Boston Bruins vs #5 Carolina Hurricanes

Season Series: Bruins won the season series 1-0-0

December 3, 2019: Boston Bruins 2, Carolina Hurricanes 0 

Players to Watch:

Boston: David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, Tuukka Rask, Torey Krug, Charlie McAvoy

Carolina: Sebastian Aho, Teuvo Teravainen, Andrei Svechnikov, Dougie Hamilton, Jaccob Slavin, Petr Mrazek

X-Factor:

Boston: David Pastrnak

Carolina: Sebastian Aho

Season Stat Leaders:

Boston

Goals: David Pastrnak (48), Patrice Bergeron (31), Brad Marchand (28)
Assists: Brad Marchand (59), David Pastrnak (47), Torey Krug (40)
Points: David Pastrnak (95), Brad Marchand (87), Patrice Bergeron (56)
Wins: Tuukka Rask (26), Jaroslav Halak (18)
Goals Against Average: Tuukka Rask (2.12), Jaroslav Halak (2.39)
Save Percentage: Tuukka Rask (.929), Jaroslav Halak (.919)
Shutouts: Tuukka Rask (5), Jaroslav Halak (3)

Carolina

Goals: Sebastian Aho (38), Andrei Svechnikov (24), Martin Necas (16)
Assists: Teuvo Teravainen (48), Andrei Svechnikov (37), Jaccob Slavin (30)
Points: Sebastian Aho (66), Teuvo Teravainen (63), Andrei Svechnikov (61)
Wins: Petr Mrazek (21), James Reimer (14)
Goals Against Average: James Reimer (2.66), Petr Mrazek (2.69)
Save Percentage: James Reimer (.914), Petr Mrazek (.905)
Shutouts: James Reimer/Petr Mrazek (3)

Playoff Stat Leaders:

Boston

Goals: Chris Wagner (2), Charlie McAvoy/Jake DeBrusk (1)
Assists: Charlie McAvoy/Zdeno Chara/Patrice Bergeron/David Krejci (1)
Points: Chris Wagner/Charlie McAvoy (2), Jake DeBrusk/David Krejci (1)

Carolina

Goals: Andrei Svechnikov/Sebastian Aho (3), Teuvo Teravainen/Jaccob Slavin (1)
Assists: Sebastian Aho (5), Sami Vatanen (3), Andrei Svechnikov (2)
Points: Sebastian Aho (8), Andre Svechnikov (5), Sami Vatanen (3)

Prediction: The Bruins won the Presidents Trophy this season with 100 points in 70 games, and yet after an 0-3 performance in the round robin suddenly they find themselves in the #4 seed against a stingy #5 seed in Carolina, fresh off their 3-game sweep of the Rangers in the play-in round. I think this series is the closest of any of the 1st round match-ups, the Bruins are hoping to go back to the Finals again but Rod the Bod and the Hurricanes stand in their way. I think the Hurricanes pull off the upset and move on to round 2

(CAROLINA HURRICANES 4, BOSTON BRUINS 3)

Western Conference:

#1 Vegas Golden Knights vs #8 Chicago Blackhawks

Season Series: Golden Knights won the season series 2-1-0

October 22, 2019: Vegas Golden Knights 2, Chicago Blackhawks 1 (SO) 
November 13, 2019: Chicago Blackhawks 5, Vegas Golden Knights 3

December 10, 2019: Vegas Golden Knights 5, Chicago Blackhawks 1
February 14, 2020: 

Players to Watch:

Vegas: Mark Stone, Max Pacioretty, Robin Lehner, Jonathan Marchessault, Reilly Smith, Shea Theodore

Chicago: Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith, Corey Crawford, Dominik Kubalik, Brandon Saad

X-Factor:

Vegas: Mark Stone

Chicago: Patrick Kane 

Season Stat Leaders:

Vegas

Goals: Max Pacioretty (32), Reilly Smith (27), Johnathan Marchessault (22)
Assists: Mark Stone (42), Max Pacioretty (34), Shea Theodore (33)
Points: Max Pacioretty (66), Mark Stone (63), Reilly Smith (54)
Wins: Marc-Andre Fleury (27), Robin Lehner (3)
Goals Against Average: Robin Lehner (1.67), Marc-Andre Fleury (2.77)
Save Percentage: Robin Lehner (.940), Marc-Andre Fleury (.905)
Shutouts: Marc-Andre Fleury (5), Robin Lehner (1)

Chicago

Goals: Patrick Kane (33), Dominik Kubalik (30), Brandon Saad (21)
Assists: Patrick Kane (51), Jonathan Toews (42), Alex DeBrincat (27)
Points: Patrick Kane (84), Jonathan Toews (60), Dominik Kubalik (46)
Wins: Corey Crawford (16)
Goals Against Average: Corey Crawford (2.77)
Save Percentage: Corey Crawford (.917)
Shutouts: Corey Crawford (1)

Playoff Stat Leaders:

Vegas

Goals: Alex Tuch (3), Mark Stone/Shea Theodore/Jonathan Marchessault (2)
Assists: Mark Stone/Nick Cousins (3), Shea Theodore/William Karlsson (2)
Points: Mark Stone (5), Shea Theodore (4)

Chicago

Goals: Jonathan Toews (4), Dominik Kubalik (3)
Assists: Duncan Keith/Kirby Dach (4), Jonathan Toews/Patrick Kane (3)
Points: Jonathan Toews (7), Dominik Kubalik (6)

Prediction: The Blackhawks head into the 1st round after their huge upset of the host Oilers in the play-in round, and they get one of the best teams in the NHL in the Vegas Golden Knights. This has the makings of a really good series, the Golden Knights look like one of the teams to beat in the West while the Blackhawks, lead by veterans Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, are playing some of their best hockey in years. I think that this series could go either way, but I'm picking the Blackhawks to pull off yet another upset with their experience

(CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS 4, VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS 3)

#2 Colorado Avalanche vs #7 Arizona Coyotes

Season Series: Coyotes won the season series 1-0-1

October 12, 2019: Colorado Avalanche 3, Arizona Coyotes 2 (OT) 
November 2, 2019: Arizona Coyotes 3, Colorado Avalanche 0 

Players to Watch:

Colorado: Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, Cale Makar, Gabriel Landeskog, Nazem Kadri, Philipp Grubauer

Arizona: Taylor Hall, Phil Kessel, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Clayton Keller, Darcy Kuemper, Conor Garland

X-Factor:

Colorado: Nathan MacKinnon

Arizona: Taylor Hall

Season Stat Leaders:

Colorado

Goals: Nathan MacKinnon (35), Gabriel Landeskog (21), Andre Burakovsky (20)
Assists: Nathan MacKinnon (58), Cale Makar (38), Sam Girard (30)
Points: Nathan MacKinnon (93), Cale Makar (50), Andre Burakovsky (45)
Wins: Pavel Francouz (21), Philipp Grubauer (18)
Goals Against Average: Pavel Francouz (2.41), Philipp Grubauer (2.63)
Save Percentage: Pavel Francouz (.923), Philipp Grubauer (.916)
Shutouts: Philipp Grubauer (2), Pavel Francouz (1)

Arizona

Goals: Conor Garland (22), Christian Dvorak (18), Clayton Keller/Carl Soderberg (17)
Assists: Taylor Hall (36), Nick Schmaltz (35), Alex Goligoski (28)
Points: Taylor Hall (52), Nick Schmaltz (45), Clayton Keller (44)
Wins: Darcy Kuemper (16), Antti Raanta (15)
Goals Against Average: Darcy Kuemper (2.22), Antti Raanta (2.63)
Save Percentage: Darcy Kuemper (.928), Antti Raanta (.921)
Shutouts: Darcy Kuemper/Antti Raanta (2)

Playoff Stat Leaders:

Colorado

Goals: Joonas Donskoi (2), Nathan MacKinnon/Nazem Kadri (1)
Assists: Mikko Rantanen (4), Nazem Kadri (3)
Points: Nazem Kadri/Mikko Rantanen (4), Nathan MacKinnon/Andre Burakovsky (3) 

Arizona

Goals: Clayton Keller/Christian Dvorak/Michael Grabner (2)
Assists: Phil Kessel/Taylor Hall/Oliver Ekman-Larsson/Derek Stepan (3)
Points: Phil Kessel/Taylor Hall/Clayton Keller/Oliver Ekman-Larsson (4)

Prediction: The Coyotes head into the 1st round fresh off their 3-1 series upset of the Predators, and Head Coach Rick Tocchet has them playing the right way at the right time. The task for the Coyotes is daunting with #2 seeded Avalanche, who lead the entire Western Conference with 237 goals this season. I think this is going to be an interesting match up with a very offensive team vs a stingy defensive team, but I am giving the edge to the Nathan MacKinnon and the Avs

(COLORADO AVALANCHE 4, ARIZONA COYOTES 2)

#3 Dallas Stars vs #6 Calgary Flames

Season Series: Flames won the season series 2-1-0

October 10, 2019: Calgary Flames 3, Dallas Stars 2 (SO)

November 13, 2019: Dallas Stars 3, Calgary Flames 1

December 22, 2019: Calgary Flames 5, Dallas Stars 1

Players to Watch:

Dallas: Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn, Alexander Radulov, Ben Bishop, Miro Heiskanen, John Klingberg

Calgary: Johnny Gaudreau, Mark Giordano, Matthew Tkachuk, Sean Monahan, Elias Lindholm, Dillon Dube

X-Factor:

Dallas: Ben Bishop

Calgary: Johnny Gaudreau

Season Stat Leaders:

Dallas

Goals: Denis Gurianov (20), Jamie Benn/Roope Hintz (19), Tyler Seguin (17)
Assists: Tyler Seguin (33), Miro Heiskanen (27), John Klingberg (26)\
Points: Tyler Seguin (50), Jamie Benn (39), Miro Heiskanen (35)
Wins: Ben Bishop (21), Anton Khudobin (16)
Goals Against Average: Anton Khudonin (2.22), Ben Bishop (2.50)
Save Percentage: Anton Khudobin (.930), Ben Bishop (.920)
Shutouts: Ben Bishop (2)

Calgary

Goals: Elias Lindholm (29), Matthew Tkachuk (23), Sean Monahan (22)
Assists: Johnny Gaudreau (40), Matthew Tkachuk (38), Mikael Backlund (29)
Points: Matthew Tkachuk (61), Johnny Gaudreau (58), Elias Lindholm (54)
Wins: David Rittich (24), Cam Talbot (12)
Goals Against Average: Cam Talbot (2.63), David Rittich (2.97)
Save Percentage: Cam Talbot (.919), David Rittich (.907)
Shutouts: David Rittich/Cam Talbot (2)

Playoff Stat Leaders:

Dallas

Goals: Joe Pavelski (2), Corey Perry/Jamie Oleksiak (1)
Assists: Miro Heiskanen (4), John Klingberg/Roope Hintz (1)
Points: Miro Heiskanen (4), Joe Pavelski (2)

Calgary

Goals: Sean Monahan/Mikael Backlund/Johnny Gaudreau/Elias Lindholm/Sam Bennett (2)
Assists: Sean Monahan (4), Milan Lucic/Andre Mangiapane/Erik Gustafsson (3)
Points: Sean Monahan (6), Milan Lucic/Andrew Mangiapane (4)

Prediction: The Flames head into the 1st round after beating the Winnipeg Jets 3-1, and they get a Dallas Stars team dealing with injuries to star players Tyler Seguin and Ben Bishop. I think the Stars are the worst of the 4 bye team from the Western Conference, winning just 1 of their 3 games (in a shootout) in the round robin. The Stars will have their hands full with the Flames and I think that Calgary's speed on forward will end up being the difference in this series

(CALGARY FLAMES 4, DALLAS STARS 1)

#4 St. Louis Blues vs #5 Vancouver Canucks

Season Series: Canucks won the season series 2-0-1

October 17, 2019: Vancouver Canucks 4, St. Louis Blues 3 (SO) 
November 5, 2019: St. Louis Blues 2, Vancouver Canucks 1 (OT)
January 27, 2020: Vancouver Canucks 3, St. Louis Blues 1

Players to Watch:

St. Louis: Ryan O'Reilly, Vladimir Tarasenko, Jordan Binnington, David Perron, Alex Pietrangelo, Brayden Schenn

Vancouver: Elias Pettersson, Quinn Hughes, Brock Boeser, JT Miller, Bo Horvat, Jacob Markstrom

X-Factor:

St. Louis: Ryan O'Reilly

Vancouver: Elias Pettersson

Season Stat Leaders:

St. Louis

Goals: David Perron/Brayden Schenn (25), Jaden Schwartz (22), Alex Pietrangelo/Zach Sanford (16)
Assists: Ryan O'Reilly (49), Alex Pietrangelo (36), David Perron/Jaden Schwartz (35)
Points: Ryan O'Reilly (61), David Perron (60), Brayden Schenn (58)
Wins: Jordan Binnington (30), Jake Allen (12)
Goals Against Average: Jake Allen (2.15), Jordan Binnungton (2.56)
Save Percentage: Jake Allen (.927), Jordan Binnington (.912)
Shutouts: Jordan Binnington (3), Jake Allen (2)

Vancouver

Goals: Elias Pettersson/JT Miller (27), Tyler Toffoli (24), Bo Horvat (22)
Assists: JT Miller/Quinn Hughes (45), Elias Pettersson (39), Bo Horvat (31)
Points: JT Miller (72), Elias Petterson (66), Quinn Hughes/Bo Horvat (53)
Wins: Jacob Markstrom (23), Thatcher Demko (13)
Goals Against Average: Jacob Markstrom (2.75), Thatcher Demko (3.06)
Save Percentage: Jacob Markstrom (.918), Thatcher Demko (.905)
Shutouts: Jacob Markstrom (2)

Playoff Stat Leaders:

St. Louis

Goals: David Perron/Colton Parayko (2), Troy Brouwer/Robert Thomas (1)
Assists: Ryan O'Reilly (3), Brayden Schenn/Zach Sanford (2)
Points: Ryan O'Reilly (3), David Perron/Colton Parayko/Brayden Schenn (2)

Vancouver

Goals: Bo Horvat/Tanner Pearson/Brock Boeser (2)
Assists: Quinn Hughes (5), Chris Tanev/Elias Pettersson (3)
Points: Quinn Hughes (6), Bo Horvat/Elias Pettersson/Chris Tanev (4)

Prediction: The defending Stanley Cup Champions head into the 1st round having lost all 3 of their round robin games, dropping from the #1 seed in the Western Conference to the #4 seed. This pits them against the upstart Vancouver Canucks, fresh off their 3-1 series win over the Wild in the play-in round. I think that this is going to be a really close series, and the Canucks certainly have the power upfront to match the Blues. Having said that, I'm taking the defending Champions to move on to round 2

(ST. LOUIS BLUES 4, VANCOUVER CANUCKS 2)

This means the 2nd round match-ups would be as follows:

Eastern Conference:

#1 Philadelphia vs #5 Carolina

#2 Tampa Bay vs #3 Washington

Western Confernence:

#2 Colorado Avalanche vs #12 Chicago Blackhawks

#4 St. Louis Blues vs #6 Calgary Flames

The 1st round kicks off tomorrow with 4 games on schedule:

Joel Forman - The Forman Faceoff