Now I know I don’t cover much hockey here for y’all, but its that time of year again. There aren’t many phrases that get me more excited in sports than “Playoff Hockey”. The Stanley Cup Playoffs are electric every single year. The level of intensity on the ice and in the arenas is unmatched and it makes for one hell of a tournament. Anything can happen, except boredom.
The 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs will begin tomorrow night when Minnesota takes on Winnipeg. Also starting at 7PM ET is the Pennsylvania series, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia will do battle once again. Los Angeles and Las Vegas will cap off opening night at 10PM ET. Since we haven’t covered hockey really at all, I’m just gonna jump in and give you my picks for all the first round series and quick reason why. All the home teams will be listed first.
Nashville V. Colorado:
I’ve got Nashville winning this one comfortably. The Predators have been great all season and will overpower a smaller Colorado team. The big boys come out to play in the playoffs, and muscle and defense will prevail.
Winnipeg V. Minnesota:
I’ll take Winnipeg here in a close one. Winnipeg has had a great year on the backs of Patrick Laine and Connor Hellebuyck. Laine is second in the league in goals and Hellebuyck led the league in wins in net while posting a .924 save percentage. Look for them to continue to carry the team.
Las Vegas V. Los Angeles
The Golden Nights have been the story of the season. The expansion team finished 5th in points overall in their first season in the league. I think they continue making history and make a deep run in the playoffs. This roster was built extremely well and they play a great brand of hockey.
Anaheim V. San Jose
Both of these teams have been regulars in the playoffs as of late. Both of them have struggled to meet expectations as well. I think Jon Gibson plays just well enough in an offensive series to carry the Ducks through. This will be one of the more exciting series of the first round for sure.
Tampa Bay V. New Jersey
The Devils had a great season and did well to sneak into the playoffs, but their swinging out of their weight class here. Tampa Bay is just a step above this team and should cruise into the next round after leading the East in points.
Boston V. Toronto
This is sure to be a great series too as the two teams were only separated by 7 points at the end of the regular season. Just like Nashville, I think Boston’s physicality carries them through here, but not as comfortably. These teams will have to grind through this series and I think Boston has enough grit to finish on top.
Washington V. Colombus
Washington has too much firepower here and shouldn’t have many issues with Columbus. But we all know that Ovechkin and the Caps are yet to really put it together in the playoffs. Either way, I think they have enough to get out of the first round this year.
Pittsburgh V. Philadelphia
This matchup has become common in the Eastern playoffs and has delivered some of the best games of recent history. The storyline hasn’t really changed either. Can Philly be scrappy enough to take Crosby and the bunch out of their offensive groove. They sure will try, expect a bunch of huge hits in this series and maybe even a suspension. But in the end, the defending champs move on. The amount of offensive talent on this team is overwhelming.
So there you have it. Get used to seeing some more hockey coverage as the playoffs get rolling. I’ll be keeping you updated all the way up until Lord Stanley’s Cup is raised by the champs.