Series Discussion: The less important playoff series' (non-Caps ones) Part the First

[AussieCapsFan]

Thread for Caps fans to discuss the other playoff series' - which teams you think are going to win, who is exiting in the first round, etc.

Edit: please post however much or little you want in regards to the different series'. I know some people might only have opinions on Pens, or Leafs etc. I don't really want it to be one of those threads where each poster follows the same format as me. I (almost certainly) spend way too much time following all 31 teams so I get caught up in the entire NHL. I realise many people only follow the Caps, or a few teams.

To get things rolling....in the East:

Pens over Isles but it could be a close series. If the Isles are going to win games they'll be low scoring ones. Trotz should know the Pens pretty well by now, which will make things interesting. I think if the Pens get their offensive lines going it will be a blow out.

Bruins vs Leafs - nobody seems to expect the Leafs to win this. In fact for weeks we've been hearing about how the Bruins are going to be seeing Tampa in the next round. I am going to pick the Leafs to upset the Bruins. I think it will go 7 games.

Lightning vs Columbus - I expect Tampa to win this, I'm just not sure how many games they'll need. The Blue Jackets have a lot of talent, offensively, defensively, and of course there's Bobrovsky. But i think the team is so fragile mentally that if they don't have early success they will get crushed in 4 games. Personally I'm hoping it will go to 6 and will be a physical, hard fought battle.

Click to read more...

 

[AussieCapsFan]

In the West:

San Jose vs Vegas - I am picking the Sharks in 6 or 7 games. It will depend on Erik Karlsson's health and of course Jones' goaltending. A lot of people believe that Vegas will win this series but I have a feeling the Sharks are going to figure things out in the playoffs and be a very good team.

Calgary vs Colorado - I think the Flames will win this in 5 or 6 games. Colorado have been good the last few weeks but I don't feel like they are good enough to make it to the second round.

Nashville vs Dallas - Nashville have not looked anywhere near as good as they were last year. Dallas have been good the last few weeks but overall I think Nashville is still a better team and will win in 6 games.

Winnipeg vs St Louis - the Jets need to stop blowing leads late in games. I think this is going to be a very even series that will ultimately be decided by which team's goalie stands on their head. I'm going with the Blues in 7 games.

 

[bags92]

I think the series I'm most looking forward to outside of Caps-Canes is probably Leafs-B's. I have a feeling that one is gonna end up being a 7 game dog fight. I know the Leafs haven't looked good recently but I just can't imagine they continue to sleepwalk through the playoffs. I still like the B's in that series, but I think it's gonna be a tight one.

 

[Skrudland2Lomakin]

I'm not going to pretend I have intimate knowledge of the West beyond the stats, so I won't even bother there:

Boston v. Toronto

I legitimately see this being a coin flip 7 game series. I think the B's have better defense and physicality, but the Leafs have some serious star power and offensive potential. I would give the Leafs the edge in goal tending too.

Bruins in 7 (No team loses at home)


Pens vs. Islanders

The Islanders are one of the worst type of playoff teams to match up against. They're defensively stout and they're competent at taking a one goal lead and sitting on it. Still I think that the playoff experience and offensive star power of Pitt wears them down

Pens in 6

CJB vs. TBL

I have wavered on this. First I was in the camp of blowout, then I was back in the camp of "toughest playoff match up", but I'm starting to swing back around. I think CBJ has so much potential if their players all showed up, I just haven't seen any sign that this is actually capable. I think Duchene goes MIA and the city turns of Bob after one or two bad showings.

TBL in 5

 

[twabby]

Islanders vs. Penguins: Unfortunately I think Pittsburgh is really good again this season. Their weakness is on defense (Jack Johnson and Erik Gudbranson are both very bad) but the Islanders don't have nearly enough firepower to exploit this. Meanwhile, structure will only take the Islanders so far. At some point you need talent on offense and they just don't have it. Penguins in 5.

Lightning vs. Blue Jackets: I actually think this series could be closer than people imagine. The Lightning are extremely good, but the way they were able to separate themselves from the field this year was because of dominant special teams play and Columbus is very good at staying out of the box so this should mitigate it a bit. That being said, Tampa is still also a better 5v5 team and they have better goaltending. Lightning in 6.

Bruins vs. Maple Leafs: If Toronto wasn't such a tire fire defensively I'd pick them to win because they have a huge edge at forward and goaltending is probably a wash. However I have trouble seeing how anyone not named Rielly or Muzzin is going to be able to handle a playoff series against a relentless possession team like Boston. I still think it will be close, but Toronto really needs to look for options this offseason to fix their blue line because it is really bad. Bruins in 7.

Predators vs. Stars: The Stars are an extremely top-heavy team while Nashville has more depth throughout their lineup. Dallas's main strength is team-defense and goaltending but I don't really think Nashville is a good matchup for them, they'd probably be better off against a team like the Sharks who give up a lot of goals of their own. I expect Nashville is win this series pretty easily. Predators in 5.

Jets vs. Blues: The Jets have been one of the worst teams in the NHL since the new year and they've shown no signs of improvement in recent weeks either. Meanwhile, the Blues have been great since Berube has taken over and finished strong. I think Winnipeg might steal a game or two with their superior forward talent but St. Louis will be the better team throughout the series. Blues in 6.

Flames vs. Avalanche: The Flames are top to bottom one of the strongest teams in the NHL except for goaltending. The Avalanche have good top-end talent but aren't very deep. I see the Flames winning this series, in 5 games if their goaltending is decent but I doubt it will be. I think Smith is going to cost them at least one game, maybe two, but not enough to lose them the series. I think Grubauer will acquit himself better this postseason but it won't be enough to overcome a superior Flames team. Flames in 6.

Sharks vs. Golden Knights: Vegas has shown that last year was no fluke. They are probably the most relentless and fastest team in the NHL and they added a lot of talent this year. San Jose also has a talented roster but they are absolute garbage in goal and I can't help but think that is going to be their downfall. San Jose's only hope is that Jones is good to great and Fleury returns to earth this postseason because otherwise I think this is going to be a repeat of last postseason. It's hard to imagine Erik Karlsson being fully healthy at this point which means I can't see him single-handedly lifting his team like he did a few times in Ottawa. Golden Knights in 6.

 

[RandyHolt]

I am boldly predicting NY takes down Pitt.

Barry has the blueprint. Pound Letang until he presents glorious defensive gaffes. I think Barry was doing some subtle shadowing using Stephenson as well. You cannot let their lead punk queen puffy lips run around diving to his hearts content, dictating the officiating and PP distribution.

 

[hb12xchamps]

I agree with pretty much every one of @twabby predictions. The only one I worry about is Calgary/Colorado. That could be a shootout with both teams having some goaltending issues. Calgary is Calgary and has always had issues and Colorado I’d assume starts Grubauer who we know doesn’t have great playoff numbers.

 

[John Price]

lets go isles

the sooner pittsburgh is eliminated the better

 

[Barry Amsterdam]

Go isles, Cbj, and have Boston /leafs go the ringer

 

[Corby78]

In the West:

San Jose vs Vegas - I am picking the Sharks in 6 or 7 games. It will depend on Erik Karlsson's health and of course Jones' goaltending. A lot of people believe that Vegas will win this series but I have a feeling the Sharks are going to figure things out in the playoffs and be a very good team.

Calgary vs Colorado - I think the Flames will win this in 5 or 6 games. Colorado have been good the last few weeks but I don't feel like they are good enough to make it to the second round.

Nashville vs St Louis - Nashville have not looked anywhere near as good as they were last year. I don't expect them to suddenly figure things out in the post-season. St Louis have been gaining momentum ever since January 1st and i think they'll win this in 6 games.

Winnipeg vs Dallas - much like Nashville, the Jets haven't been as impressive as they were last season, and they have a penchant for blowing leads late in games. Despite that I think they are quite a lot better than Dallas and I'm picking the Jets in 5 or 6 games.

I’m going out on a limb, I don’t think the jets and blues face off in round two like you think

 

[Calicaps]

Don't expect Columbus to win that series, but between them and, hopefully, the Bruins, the Bolts should be well tenderized by the conclusion of R2, should they get that far.

 

[sycamore]

The two we care about are obviously Pens/Isles and Tampa/CBJ. Like most you, I see the bad guys winning both series. But I don't see Tampa making it to the ECF: CBJ followed by likely Boston is too much to handle.

 

[AussieCapsFan]

I’m going out on a limb, I don’t think the jets and blues face off in round two like you think

Yeah I think you're right haha. My bad - I edited my post.

 

[AussieCapsFan]

I'm excited about the new matchups in the first round. I think only Bruins v Leafs and Sharks v Vegas (2nd round last year) are the same as last year. The rest are new.

 

[Portable Mink]

I dont know why but i just cannot rate Calgary.

 

[AussieCapsFan]

Bruins vs. Maple Leafs: If Toronto wasn't such a tire fire defensively I'd pick them to win because they have a huge edge at forward and goaltending is probably a wash. However I have trouble seeing how anyone not named Rielly or Muzzin is going to be able to handle a playoff series against a relentless possession team like Boston. I still think it will be close, but Toronto really needs to look for options this offseason to fix their blue line because it is really bad. Bruins in 7.

Jets vs. Blues: The Jets have been one of the worst teams in the NHL since the new year and they've shown no signs of improvement in recent weeks either. Meanwhile, the Blues have been great since Berube has taken over and finished strong. I think Winnipeg might steal a game or two with their superior forward talent but St. Louis will be the better team throughout the series. Blues in 6.

Sharks vs. Golden Knights: Vegas has shown that last year was no fluke. They are probably the most relentless and fastest team in the NHL and they added a lot of talent this year. San Jose also has a talented roster but they are absolute garbage in goal and I can't help but think that is going to be their downfall. San Jose's only hope is that Jones is good to great and Fleury returns to earth this postseason because otherwise I think this is going to be a repeat of last postseason. It's hard to imagine Erik Karlsson being fully healthy at this point which means I can't see him single-handedly lifting his team like he did a few times in Ottawa. Golden Knights in 6.

Yeah I think you're right about Toronto's defence. I was too focused on their forward "star power" but defence and goaltending is so important in the playoffs and Toronto have shown no signs in the last few weeks that their defence is getting any better.

Binnington is my Calder pick and St Louis finished the season where I expected them to (actually picked them to win the Central) way back in the preseason. The Jets really haven't been as good as last season, which surprises me because the roster is almost identical. The return of Byfuglien (if fully healthy) does make them quite a lot better going into the playoffs but I wonder how much of this is coach Paul Maurice and the team not being on the same page?

San Jose - Martin Jones has good numbers outside of this regular season and his playoff numbers are really good. But he has been (mostly) terrible this season and especially in the last few weeks. It's a long shot but if he gets his head into playoff mode the Sharks could go on a long run because they have so much scoring (tied with Flames for 2nd most goals). I haven't looked at the stats but I wonder if the team allows a lot of shots - neither Burns or Karlsson are "famous" because of their defensive play so how much help does Jones actually get on defence?

Vegas - is Fleury 100 percent healthy? Was he being rested while Subban played or did he have an injury? As he goes, so goes Vegas. The team will live or die on Fleury's performance.

 

[Portable Mink]

I'm tipping:


Penguins over Islanders in 6
Capitals over Canes in 5
Bruins over Leafs in 7
Predators over Stars in 6
Blues over Jets in 7
Lightning over Jackets in 5
Knights over Sharks in 6

 

[895]

While I want Boston to beat Toronto because I think they have a good shot at Tampa, I think Toronto pulls off the upset.

 

[AlexBrovechkin8]

Let's do that hockey tonight.

 

[AtNightWeFly]

Except Blues. Go Blues!!!

 

[AlexBrovechkin8]

Playoff Bob is a real thing.

 

[Calicaps]

Playoff Bob is a real thing.

Pens looking pretty soft early, too.

 

[thelebaron]

or conversely, trotz has the isles looking good.

 

[Calicaps]

or conversely, trotz has the isles looking good.

Both are true.

Meanwhile, Jackets get one back.

 

[sycamore]

Isles playing the Pens tough. Keep it up!