There's still one game to be played before the 2017-18 Stanley Cup playoffs schedule is finalized, and that one game could dramatically affect who plays who at the start of the postseason.
With the Boston Bruins set to make up a game against the Florida Panthers -- and officially close the regular season -- on Sunday night, Bruce Cassidy's squad will have a chance to claim the Atlantic Division title ahead of the rival Tampa Bay Lightning. All they have to do is secure a win of any kind. A loss of any kind, meanwhile, would keep the Lightning atop the Atlantic.
Aware that either the Bruins or the Lightning could be in a different spot in the standings by night's end, the NHL has released the following two scenarios for the opening round of the playoffs (they can be read in their entirety at NHL.com):
Eastern Conference (if Tampa Bay wins Atlantic Division)
Tampa Bay Lightning (A1) vs. New Jersey Devils (WC2)
Thursday, April 12, 7pm: Devils @ Lightning
Saturday, April 14, 3pm: Devils @ Lightning
Monday, April 16, 7:30pm: Lightning @ Devils
Wednesday, April 18, 7:30pm: Lightning @ Devils
*Saturday, April 21, TBD: Devils @ Lightning
*Monday, April 23, TBD: Lightning @ Devils
*Wednesday, April 25, TBD: Devils @ Lightning
Boston Bruins (A2) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (A3)
Thursday, April 12, 7pm: Maple Leafs @ Bruins
Saturday, April 14, 8pm: Maple Leafs @ Bruins
Monday, April 16, 7pm: Bruins @ Maple Leafs
Thursday, April 19, 7pm: Bruins @ Maple Leafs
*Saturday, April 21, TBD: Maple Leafs @ Bruins
*Monday, April 23, TBD: Bruins @ Maple Leafs
*Wednesday, April 25, TBD: Maple Leafs @ Bruins
Washington Capitals (M1) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (WC1)
Thursday, April 12, 7:30pm: Blue Jackets @ Capitals
Sunday, April 15, 7:30pm: Blue Jackets @ Capitals
Tuesday, April 17, 7:30pm: Capitals @ Blue Jackets
Thursday, April 19, 7:30pm: Capitals @ Blue Jackets
*Saturday, April 21, TBD: Blue Jackets @ Capitals
*Monday, April 23, TBD: Capitals @ Blue Jackets
*Wednesday, April 25, TBD: Blue Jackets @ Capitals
Pittsburgh Penguins (M2) vs. Philadelphia Flyers (M3)
Wednesday, April 11, 7pm: Flyers @ Penguins
Friday, April 13, 7pm: Flyers @ Penguins
Sunday, April 15, 3pm: Penguins @ Flyers
Wednesday, April 18, 7pm: Penguins @ Flyers
*Friday, April 20, TBD: Flyers @ Penguins
*Sunday, April 22, TBD: Penguins @ Flyers
*Tuesday, April 24, TBD: Flyers @ Penguins
Western Conference (if Tampa Bay wins Atlantic Division)
Nashville Predators (C1) vs. Colorado Avalanche (WC2)
Thursday, April 12, 9:30pm: Avalanche @ Predators
Saturday, April 14, 3pm: Avalanche @ Predators
Monday, April 16, 10pm: Predators @ Avalanche
Wednesday, April 18, 10pm Predators @ Avalanche
*Friday, April 20, TBD: Avalanche @ Predators
*Sunday, April 22, TBD: Predators @ Avalanche
*Tuesday, April 24, TBD: Avalanche @ Predators
Winnipeg Jets (C2) vs. Minnesota Wild (C3)
Wednesday, April 11, 7pm: Wild @ Jets
Friday, April 13, 7:30pm: Wild @ Jets
Sunday, April 15, 7pm: Jets @ Wild
Tuesday, April 17, 8pm: Jets @ Wild
*Friday, April 20, TBD: Wild @ Jets
*Sunday, April 22, TBD: Jets @ Wild
*Wednesday, April 25, TBD: Wild @ Jets
Vegas Golden Knights (P1) vs. Los Angeles Kings (WC1)
Wednesday, April 11, 10pm: Kings @ Golden Knights
Friday, April 13, 10pm: Kings @ Golden Knights
Sunday, April 15, 10:30pm: Golden Knights @ Kings
Tuesday, April 17, 10:30pm: Golden Knights @ Kings
*Thursday, April 19, 10pm: Kings @ Golden Knights
*Saturday, April 21, TBD: Golden Knights @ Kings
*Monday, April 23, TBD: Kings @ Golden Knights
Anaheim Ducks (P2) vs. San Jose Sharks (P3)
Thursday, April 12, 10:30pm: Sharks @ Ducks
Saturday, April 14, 10:30pm: Sharks @ Ducks
Monday, April 16, 10:30pm: Ducks @ Sharks
Wednesday, April 18, 10:30pm: Ducks @ Sharks
*Friday, April 20, TBD: Sharks @ Ducks
*Sunday, April 22, TBD: Ducks @ Sharks
*Tuesday, April 24, TBD: Sharks @ Ducks
* if necessary
Eastern Conference (if Boston wins Atlantic Division)
Boston Bruins (A1) vs. New Jersey Devils (WC2)
Thursday, April 12, 7pm: Devils @ Bruins
Saturday, April 14, 3pm: Devils @ Bruins
Monday, April 16, 7:30pm: Bruins @ Devils
Wednesday, April 18, 7:30pm: Bruins @ Devils
*Friday, April 20, TBD: Devils @ Bruins
*Sunday, April 22, TBD: Bruins @ Devils
*Tuesday, April 24, TBD: Devils @ Bruins
Tampa Bay Lightning (A2) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (A3)
Thursday, April 12, 7pm: Maple Leafs @ Lightning
Saturday, April 14, 7pm: Maple Leafs @ Lightning
Tuesday, April 17, 7pm: Lightning @ Maple Leafs
Thursday, April 19, 7pm: Lightning @ Maple Leafs
*Saturday, April 21, TBD: Maple Leafs @ Lightning
*Monday, April 23, TBD: Lightning @ Maple Leafs
*Wednesday, April 25, TBD: Maple Leafs @ Lightning
Washington Capitals (M1) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (WC1)
Thursday, April 12, 7:30pm: Blue Jackets @ Capitals
Sunday, April 15, 3pm: Blue Jackets @ Capitals
Tuesday, April 17, 7pm: Capitals @ Blue Jackets
Thursday, April 19, 7:30pm: Capitals @ Blue Jackets
*Saturday, April 21, TBD: Blue Jackets @ Capitals
*Monday, April 23, TBD: Capitals @ Blue Jackets
*Wednesday, April 25, TBD: Blue Jackets @ Capitals
Pittsburgh Penguins (M2) vs. Philadelphia Flyers (M3)
Wednesday, April 11, 7pm: Flyers @ Penguins
Saturday, April 14, 8pm: Flyers @ Penguins
Monday, April 16, 7pm: Penguins @ Flyers
Wednesday, April 18, 7pm: Penguins @ Flyers
*Saturday, April 21, TBD: Flyers @ Penguins
*Monday, April 23, TBD: Penguins @ Flyers
*Wednesday, April 25, TBD: Flyers @ Penguins
Western Conference (If Boston wins Atlantic Division)
Nashville Predators (C1) vs. Colorado Avalanche (WC2)
Thursday, April 12, 9:30pm: Avalanche @ Predators
Saturday, April 14, 3pm: Avalanche @ Predators
Monday, April 16, 10pm: Predators @ Avalanche
Wednesday, April 18, 10pm Predators @ Avalanche
*Friday, April 20, TBD: Avalanche @ Predators
*Sunday, April 22, TBD: Predators @ Avalanche
*Tuesday, April 24, TBD: Avalanche @ Predators
Winnipeg Jets (C2) vs. Minnesota Wild (C3)
Wednesday, April 11, 7pm: Wild @ Jets
Friday, April 13, 7:30pm: Wild @ Jets
Sunday, April 15, 7:30pm: Jets @ Wild
Wednesday, April 18, 8pm: Jets @ Wild
*Friday, April 20, TBD: Wild @ Jets
*Sunday, April 22, TBD: Jets @ Wild
*Wednesday, April 25, TBD: Wild @ Jets
Vegas Golden Knights (P1) vs. Los Angeles Kings (WC1)
Wednesday, April 11, 10pm: Kings @ Golden Knights
Friday, April 13, 10:30pm: Kings @ Golden Knights
Sunday, April 15, 10:30pm: Golden Knights @ Kings
Tuesday, April 17, 10pm: Golden Knights @ Kings
*Thursday, April 19, 10:30pm: Kings @ Golden Knights
*Saturday, April 21, TBD: Golden Knights @ Kings
*Monday, April 23, TBD: Kings @ Golden Knights
Anaheim Ducks (P2) vs. San Jose Sharks (P3)
Thursday, April 12, 10:30pm: Sharks @ Ducks
Saturday, April 14, 10:30pm: Sharks @ Ducks
Monday, April 16, 10:30pm: Ducks @ Sharks
Wednesday, April 18, 10:30pm: Ducks @ Sharks
*Friday, April 20, TBD: Sharks @ Ducks
*Sunday, April 22, TBD: Ducks @ Sharks
*Tuesday, April 24, TBD: Sharks @ Ducks
The Stanley Cup playoffs will get underway this week, kicking off what typically serves as one of the most thrilling postseason experiences in all of sports. The road to raising the Cup is a long one, but most of the first-round matchups are set and we can look forward to a number of intriguing and promising matchups right from the jump
Here's a breakdown of the confirmed matchups we'll see in the opening round.
(The Boston Bruins still have a game to play on Sunday. With a win of any kind, they'll face the New Jersey Devils in Round One, while the Tampa Bay Lightning will face the Toronto Maple Leafs. With a Bruins loss, Boston faces Toronto and Tampa Bay faces New Jersey.)
The Capitals finished tops in the Metropolitan division for the third straight year. They'll await the Blue Jackets, who finished the season in the Eastern Conference's first Wild Card slot. Alexander Ovechkin led all players with 49 goals this year, and he'll be opposed by one of the league's top defensive pairings in Columbus' Seth Jones and Zach Werenski. The Caps took three of their four meetings against Columbus this season.
After sneaking into third place in the Metropolitan division with a win in their final game of the season, the Flyers will face their cross-state rival and back-to-back defending Stanley Cup champions in the Penguins, who finished second in the Metro. Pittsburgh -- led by the superstar duo of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin -- dominated the Flyers in their season series, taking all four contests (though two needed overtime). Hart candidate Claude Giroux will attempt to extend Philadelphia sports' stretch of success with the Flyers' first playoff series win since 2012.
The Predators entered last season's playoffs as the eighth seed before going on a Cinderella run that carried them all the way to the Stanley Cup Final. This year, they'll be the Western Conference's one-seed after finishing as the NHL's Presidents' Trophy winners. Opposite Nashville in round one will be the Avalanche, who are back in the playoffs just one season after finishing as the league's worst team. They'll be led by 22-year-old Nathan MacKinnon, who could be a Hart Trophy finalist this year. The Predators won all four of their matchups against Colorado this season.
The Jets's 114 points during the regular season was good enough for second-most in the entire league, but they had the misfortune of being in the same conference as Nashville. As a result, they finished second in the Central and will draw the Wild, who finished third. The Jets are loaded with offensive talent -- including sophomore phenom Patrik Laine -- and are looking for their first postseason win since relocating from Atlanta in 2011. Winnipeg took three of their four games against Minnesota this year.
The Golden Knights had an incredible season as the league's newest expansion team, setting a number of records during the most successful inaugural season in league history and winning a division title in the process. They'll look to build on a rivalry with a divisional foe in the Kings, who finished as the first Wild Card in the west. Los Angeles hasn't won a playoff series since 2014, when they won the Stanley Cup. Vegas and LA split their season series, taking two games apiece.
California battles have made for some of the most entertaining Stanley Cup playoff seres in the past handful of years, and this should continue that trend. The Ducks jumped the Sharks in the standings after their final game of the season, giving Anaheim second place in the Pacific and home ice advantage in the first round. However, San Jose took three of the four meetings during the regular season, with the one loss coming in overtime.
NEW YORK (April 8, 2018) - The National Hockey League today announced two scenarios for the dates of the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs First Round based on the outcome of tonight's Florida Panthers-Boston Bruins game at 7:30 p.m. ET. The Bruins (50-19-12, 112 points) sit one point back of the Tampa Bay Lightning (54-23-5, 113 points) for the top spot in the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference. Boston will clinch first place with a win of any kind, while Tampa Bay will claim the title if Boston loses in any fashion.
The 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs will begin on Wednesday, April 11. National broadcast information will be announced when available. All times are ET and subject to change.
For the first time since their epic 2012 series, the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers will revive the Battle of Pennsylvania to kick off Round 1 in the East. Last time these two met, they combined for 56 goals through six games, peaking with a 10-3 win for Pittsburgh in Game 4 and an 8-5 victory for Philadelphia in Game 2. Though the rosters have seen plenty of turnover in the half-decade since, both clubs enter into the reunion with similar offensive prowess.
The series features four of the top 10 scorers in the league, with Claude Giroux (102 points), Evgeni Malkin (98), Phil Kessel (92) and Sidney Crosby (89) all entering healthy and ready to contribute. Add in some notable goaltending issues on both sides—the Flyers have seen unsteady performances from all of Brian Elliott, Michal Neuvirth and Petr Mrazek and the Penguins don’t have Matt Murray rolling like he was the past two years—and there’s a fair chance some more high-scoring games are coming.
Matching Pittsburgh’s depth will be crucial if the Flyers hope to hang with Pittsburgh in this one. While Philadelphia has seen some elite performances from their top names, they’ll have to be able to keep pace with their rival’s four-line game to avoid getting buried. The Penguins are still without trade deadline acquisition Derick Brassard—who hasn’t played since Mar. 27 while dealing with a lower-body injury—which makes things a bit easier, as the absence of the third-line pivot may convince head coach Mike Sullivan to move Kessel back to the second unit with Malkin.
But if the Penguins opt to keep Crosby, Malkin, and Kessel spread among the top nine, the Flyers’ third line of Valtteri Filppula, Wayne Simmonds, and Travis Konecny will have to step their game up. The two teams’ season series suggests that might be easier said than done, however, as Pittsburgh took all four meetings with Philadelphia in 2017-18, scoring five goals in each of those games.
ADVANCED STATS
5-on-5 via Corsica.Hockey
Pittsburgh: 52.23 CF% (5th), 48.07 GF% (21st), .910 SP% (29th), 7.29 SH% (23rd), 98.33 PDO (29th)
Philadelphia: 49.79 CF% (18th), 52.33 GF% (13th), .925 SP% (13th), 7.88 SH% (13th), 100.36 PDO (14th)
POWER NUMBER
Determined by percentiles created for a variety of statistics and weighed equally to give each team a grade out of 10 for offence and defence (seven for 5-on-5 and three for special teams). These numbers are then averaged to come up with a power number to measure a team’s all-around play.
TEAM OFFENCE (rank) DEFENCE (rank) POWER NUMBER (rank) Pittsburgh 9.12 (1st) 3.95 (19th) 6.53 (6th) Philadelphia 5.01 (18th) 5.69 (10th) 5.35 (13th)
TEAM STATS
Pittsburgh: 26.2 PP% (1st), 80.0 PK% (17th), 270 GF (3rd), 248 GA (20th)
Philadelphia: 20.7 PP% (15th), 75.8 PK% (29th), 249 GF (12th), 236 GA (14th)
HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD
Pittsburgh: 4-0-0
Philadelphia: 0-2-2
Pittsburgh Penguins Outlook: The back-to-back Stanley Cup champions are trying to become the first three-peat winners since the New York Islanders dynasty of the 1980s—not even the great Edmonton Oilers team that followed won three in a row. The Penguins are coming into the playoffs on a relative high note too, and their season really is a tale of two halves.
On Jan. 1, Pittsburgh was the 22nd-best team in the NHL with a 19-18-3 record and had just 68 even strength goals—the third-fewest in the league. But from then on, the Penguins slowly returned to form and have scored the most even-strength goals over the past three-plus months while posting a 26-11-3 record. The one constant team stat has been an unstoppable power play that converts on 26.2 per cent of its chances, which is the best full-season mark in the NHL since the Calgary Flames posted a 27.7 per cent in 1989-90.
A high-event team, the Penguins still have an unmatched amount of star power that is tough to match up against when Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel are spread across three lines. Not much has changed between this year’s Pens team and the ones that won the previous two Cups. In fact, if healthy, they may be more dangerous now than ever.
Philadelphia Flyers Outlook: It’s really hard to get a read on a team that’s been as streaky as the Flyers. Philadelphia is the definition of an up-and-down team this season, starting with a 10-game losing streak early on, which they immediately followed with a stretch of seven wins in eight games. They also had a stretch in which they posted 11 wins in 23 games, which included a 10-1 streak. They’re all over the place.
Muddying the waters even more is the lack of clarity in net, which is nothing new to this franchise. Brian Elliott and Michal Neuvirth went down to injury, forcing GM Ron Hextall to acquire Petr Mrazek at the trade deadline and, after a promising start, he’s cratered to a sub-.890 save percentage. Elliott is back for the playoffs, but he’s played just two games since Feb. 10—and ask Flames fans how he fared in last year’s playoffs (hint: it was ugly).
The fact they got this far means there are some positive things going on here. The Flyers’ young defence has helped them to the fifth-lowest shots-against average this season and their offence is the 11th-best in the league. No. 2 overall draft pick Nolan Patrick started off low in the lineup, but has worked his way up to the second unit where he plays with Jakub Voracek. Patrick has answered with 16 points in 23 games. The top line remains one of the league’s best and was made possible by Claude Giroux’s move to left wing, which has been a huge success. He’s an underrated Hart Trophy candidate who finished with a career-high 102 points after getting just 58 a year ago. In his career, Giroux has 62 points in 63 playoff games, but hasn’t seen the second round since 2012.
Penguins X-Factor: In the past two seasons the Penguins came into the playoffs with two credible No. 1 options in net between Matt Murray and Marc-Andre Fleury—and they needed them both. Now without Fleury, there isn’t as secure a safety net behind the 23-year-old starter.
With a .907 save percentage this season, Murray had his worst of three NHL seasons and, though he’s been good at stretches, it’s the downturns that could be trouble for the Penguins. The longest streak of games Murray has had this season allowing less than three goals in a game is just three, which he achieved just once. At the end of the season he wasn’t exactly trending up either—in three of his past six starts Murray allowed at least four goals.
The Penguins will get their offence, and the power play has been incredibly good, but in the past two playoff seasons Murray’s save percentages have been .923 and .937. He needs to get back up to that level of excellence, or close to it. In last year’s run to the Cup, in which he played the final two rounds, Murray allowed three or more goals just three times in 11 games.
Flyers X-Factor: Brian Elliott returned to the net on April 5 after missing nearly two months with an abdominal injury and allowed three goals on 22 shots, then recorded a shutout on Saturday. With a .909 save percentage in 43 games, Elliott has been his usual self—up and down, with his best month coming in December (.927) and worst in January (.874).
His 2016-17 with the Flames followed a similar wave and ended in disappointment with 12 goals allowed in a four-game sweep to Anaheim. Petr Mrazek was brought in as insurance at the deadline and was even more volatile, while regular backup Michal Neuvirth got injured days after returning from a previous malady. The Flyers, as usual, will sink or swim with their goalies.
TEAM LEADERS (G-A-PTS)
Pittsburgh: Evgeni Malkin (42-56-98), Phil Kessel (34-58-92), Sidney Crosby (29-60-89)
Philadelphia: Claude Giroux (34-68-102), Jakub Voracek (20-65-85), Sean Couturier (31-45-76)
