We once again get an incredible Battle of Florida in the Atlantic Division as the final series to start of the first round begins tonight in Tampa, with the 2 seed Tampa Bay Lightning facing their rival 3 seed Florida Panthers, the defending Stanley Cup Champions. I’m expecting a spectacular seven games between these teams in a hard-hitting, electric series. These state of Florida rivals … Continue reading NHL Playoffs 2025 – Round 1 Series Preview: Lightning vs. Panthers

For the fourth straight season, we get another great first round matchup in the Pacific Division between the #2 LA Kings and the #3 Edmonton Oilers. I’d expect this to be a fantastic series out West. Both of these teams had their inconsistency’s but had solid seasons. The Oilers have knocked off the Kings each of the last three years, in seven games in 2022, … Continue reading NHL Playoffs 2025 – Round 1 Series Preview: Kings vs. Oilers

Tonight the Eastern Conference winning Washington Capitals start the playoffs with a pretty favorable matchup against the last team to get into the playoffs, the second Wild Card Montreal Canadiens. This should be a fun series, but I don’t see it going very long. The Caps went 2-0-1 in the regular season series against the Habs this year. On Halloween they won the first game … Continue reading NHL Playoffs 2025 – Round 1 Series Preview: Capitals vs. Canadiens

I wouldn’t anticipate this being a great series out West with the Pacific Division winning Vegas Golden Knights facing the first Wild Card Minnesota Wild. I think this ends up being a pretty quick series. The Golden Knights, without much of a surprise swept the season series between these teams, winning the first game 3-2 on the road on December 15th, winning 4-1 at home … Continue reading NHL Playoffs 2025 – Round 1 Series Preview: Golden Knights vs. Wild

There should be plenty of fireworks with a fun first round matchup of the Battle of Ontario between the Atlantic Division winning Toronto Maple Leafs and the first Wild Card, Ottawa Senators. Despite the Leafs being the better team all season, the Senators actually swept the season series in the regular season between these teams with a 3-0 shutout on the road on November 12th, … Continue reading NHL Playoffs 2025 – Round 1 Series Preview: Maple Leafs vs. Senators

I don’t expect a great series here as the #2 seed Carolina Hurricanes take on the #3 seed New Jersey Devils. The puck drops this afternoon for an Easter Sunday start in Raleigh. These teams split the season series between them, with all four games won at home. The Hurricanes won 4-2 at home on October 15th, the Devils answered with a 4-2 home win … Continue reading NHL Playoffs 2025 – Round 1 Series Preview: Hurricanes vs. Devils