The first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs started off with the New York Islanders playing the Carolina Hurricanes and the Maple Leafs playing the Boston Bruins on April 20.
The rest of the matchups consisted of the Florida Panthers playing the Tampa Bay Lightnings, the New York Rangers against the Washington Capitals, the Dallas Stars vs the Vegas Golden Knights, the Winnipeg Jets and Colorado Avalanche, the Vancouver Canucks against the Nashville Predators and the Edmonton Oilers playing the Los Angeles Kings.
The Rangers were the first team to advance to the second round, going 4-0 against the Capitals. The Rangers have already had an amazing season, so no one expected any less of the New York team.
The other teams that advanced were the Carolina Hurricanes who played the Islanders in five games, and won 4-1. Most hockey fans wee able to predict that win, but the Islanders fan in me mourns the loss.
The Toronto Maple Leafs lost to the Bruins after seven games, which made the final one a nail-biter. People were anxiously watching as the Bruins scored in overtime. David Pastrnak led his team to advancement in round 2.
The Tampa Bay Lightning went head-to-head with the Florida Panthers, battling for the title of best Florida team. The Panthers beat Tampa Bay after 5 games, going 4-1.
The Winnipeg Jets were blown out of the water after going against the Colorado Avalanche, losing 4-1. Fans didn’t have high expectations for the Jets but had hoped for a better result than what they received.
The Vancouver Canucks took the lead against the Nashville Predators, and after six laborious games, the Canucks won 4-2. This was a close matchup, and fans were split between the two. I was rooting for the Vancouver Canucks, mainly because of the season they’ve had, and I want to see them go on to win their first franchise cup.
The Vegas Golden Knights were in a close game with the Dallas Stars, yet Dallas went on to win game seven. The Knights won the cup last year, which was their first Stanley Cup win. Vegas was a good team this past season, but I really wanted to see Dallas advance.
The Los Angeles Kings played the Edmonton Oilers, and the Oilers won in game five, with a 4-1 lead over the Kings. The Oilers had a decent season as well and managed to keep that same energy going into the playoffs, which is something some teams aren’t capable of.
The next round of the playoffs will feature the Florida Panthers vs. Boston Bruins, New York Rangers vs. Carolina Hurricanes, the Vancouver Canucks vs. Edmonton Oilers and the Dallas Stars vs. Colorado Avalanche.
I predict the Bruins and Rangers will advance, just based off their regular season playing and their playoff attitude so far. I also expect Dallas and Vancouver to advance and play each other.
