That killer instinct has been a hallmark of Boston's play in the past and hasn't always been at the forefront of late. ET ESPN, SN; . The Bruins are one of the league's stingiest teams (averaging 2.69 goals against) and excel at limiting shots against (28.7 per game, third fewest in the NHL) and high-danger chances (first overall). Beyond that, he hasn't won a playoff series since 2015. Cohn: Avalanche in seven Case for a Stanley Cup run: Boston can be a tough team to play against. Keeping those three in check starts with good neutral-zone play, limiting their ability to gain speed and forcing play to the outside. They're not the Maple Leafs or the Panthers, crushed by the weight of expectations and entitlement. They could use some more from him, especially at five-on-five. 17 overall, should be able to select . Record: 54-21-7 (115 points) Case for a Stanley Cup run: Toronto has got the talent in all three phases of the game.Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner are one of the NHL's . Linda Cohn: Panthers in seven The 2022-23 NHL regular season is currently at its midpoint, but it's never too early to start thinking about playoffs. With the 2023 All-Star Game and skills competition approaching on Feb. 3-4, we turn our focus to the collective bold predictions from our ESPN hockey family. There's a real calmness that the Lightning have in the toughest moments, a constant belief in their ability to weather any storm. Callahan: Flames in five He heads to New York with 1,225 points in 1,161 regular-season games. How they got here: Defeated Nashville Predators 4-0, defeated St. Louis Blues 4-2. 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs: Highlights and analysis from the entire postseason. NHL betting best bet and free pick analysis. Biggest flaw(s): The playoffs couldn't arrive at a worse time for Pittsburgh. They went 12-8-3 after that. The answer should be clear early on against Edmonton. Levy: Rangers in seven Keep an eye on those little things Brodin can do to put Minnesota over the top. Yet Carolina is not mentioned in the same breath as other Stanley Cup contenders. The Big Cat's run since 2020 in elimination games is the stuff of legend: 10-0, six of the wins by shutout. It'll be down to the wire, but I like Colorado. The College Football Playoff will pit Georgia against Ohio State and Michigan against TCU in a bid to figure out the next national champion. So if there's room for improvement anywhere, it's from some of the Oilers' second- and third-line skaters like Warren Foegele, Ryan McLeod, Kailer Yamamoto and Jesse Puljujarvi. Kuemper came through in that series when the Avalanche needed it, but there wasn't a lot of rhythm to his game. Biggest flaw(s): Minnesota's special teams are less than awe-inspiring. Biggest flaw(s): Defense, and goaltending. There is a winning pedigree in Boston that starts with its leadership, and spreads to David Pastrnak, Taylor Hall, Charlie McAvoy, and on down the list. Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, in his first season with the Lightning, and playoff hero Pat Maroon also bolster the bottom six. Unlike Darcy Kuemper, who has faced the fewest shots among remaining playoff goaltenders, Smith has been peppered with the second-most. He worked through his emotions during the Rangers' first two games in Pittsburgh, where he was pulled twice. Player to watch: Tarasenko. He relieves pressure in Edmonton's end, makes smart plays up the ice and is a natural leader from whom few words are required -- but there's no doubt Keith has a "big voice" in the Oilers' room, according to teammates. The 2021-22 season has been incredibly bizarre for Colton Parayko, who has been a puzzling player since the Blues won the Cup in 2019. The Stars are the only team in the playoffs with a negative goal differential. Kaplan: Hurricanes in seven Colorado will be zipping around trying to set a tone offensively, and early in this series Keith will be looked upon to steady Edmonton between the whistles and on the bench. will be coming full force. It will all happen on the new NHL TV Networks of ESPN and TNT/Turner Sports. Unsurprisingly, Florida has also produced excellent special-teams numbers (including with its top-10 power play). Chandan: Hurricanes in five The Oilers will have to settle for Bouchard logging 19:46 in average ice time and being part of a successful pairing with Duncan Keith, which is not something Edmonton fans would have predicted before the season. NHL playoff fantasy competition is its own brand of compact, focused fun. General manager Doug Armstrong took a major risk in allowing. Heiskanen can set a tone for how the entire team approaches its defensive strategy. They're the NHL's top-scoring team for a reason, having been consistently outstanding offensively since Game 1. With a healthy Ovechkin, they can be in any series. Wischusen: Flames in seven The Stars need to be more than just a one-line wonder. Special teams will play a pivotal role. 6 Virginia (21-5, 13-4 ACC) . Buccigross: Avalanche in seven I said in my series prediction . Case for a Stanley Cup run: What if a team had its best regular season in franchise history and no one noticed? The Rangers still aren't an impressive five-on-five team, relying on Shesterkin to bail them out at even strength, which he has. The Eastern Conference finals series is on ESPN and ESPN+, while the Stanley Cup Final will be on ABC and ESPN+. Bolden: Flames in seven That's a killer combination. The conference final round of the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs is upon us. Being involved to that degree clearly works for the netminder, and he has thrived under the pressure. That could change in a hurry in the postseason, as the Canes flex their impressive depth, stingy penalty kill and offensive power led by Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov. Their power play is going to do some damage. NHL.com ranks the top 200 overall fantasy hockey players in standard . Florida is the only place he wanted to land at the trade deadline. Colorado is fortunate to have dynamic middle-six scorers such as Valeri Nichushkin and quiet contributors such as Artturi Lehkonen who can sneak up and burn opponents unexpectedly. McCarron for choosing his league over the NFL. But I think Shesty has one that does, too. But we doubt that's sustainable, and the alternative remains Mikko Koskinen. Mike Smith has been great for Edmonton in the playoffs, without question, but we haven't seen the best of Kuemper yet. Non-Playoff team from 2021 that will make 2022 Playoffs: Dallas Stars . The second round against Calgary couldn't have started any worse with a quick 3-0 deficit for Edmonton in Game 1 and another 2-0 hole to start Game 2. Wischusen: Rangers in seven I apologize in advance for spoiling the next two months for you, as obviously all of . Biggest flaw(s): The fact that the Kings still managed to make the playoffs without Doughty is a testament to how well they played before his injury. The Rangers goalie has been their best player through the first two rounds -- heck, he has even chipped in three assists on top of his stellar goaltending. Calgary got burned off a couple clean looks for that unit that turned into almost series-defining mistakes. Rush to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. 87 a game and a half. . They have depth at forward and are getting excellent play from defensemen like Fox and Trouba. Player to watch: McAvoy. When the trade deadline rolls around, there are always teams caught in the middle of the standings . Edmonton really performed well against Calgary on the penalty kill too, coming up with critical stops that frustrated the Flames' attack. That's always been ingrained in the culture of every good team I've been on here. Back for 2022 is the usual playoff format with the top team in the conference facing the second wild card, the other division winner playing the first wild card and N. 2 going up against No. But he's not unbeatable. DiPietro: Avalanche in seven 16 teams will qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. New Jersey Devils (MP) 6. The 2022-2023 College Football Playoff schedule will have both semifinals played on New Year's Eve at the Peach Bowl and Fiesta Bowl. Again, a criticism of Calgary this season is like using one of those eyepieces to search for a flaw on a gorgeously cut diamond. The final day of the NHL regular season is April 13, 2023 and the playoffs will begin a few days later. If Edmonton can do that again in the conference finals, Colorado's march to the Cup finals will be severely impeded -- and perhaps derailed. There's a lot we already knew about the Lightning after back-to-back Stanley Cup championships, from their ability to win in a variety of ways to their efficiency in elimination games. But teams win with depth in the playoffs, and there's been some falloff here for the Flames. He's both their last line of defense and their catalyst, as the Rangers feed off his performances when opponents tip the ice. Player to watch: Under different circumstances, 22-year-old defenseman Evan Bouchard might have been a Calder Trophy finalist with his 43 points in 81 games. McDonough: Flames in seven And Kane already had a pair of hat tricks in the playoffs. cal: Oilers in seven Toronto is no longer the one-dimensional wonder of its past, capable of putting pucks in the net but incapable of keeping them out. NHL predictions: Expert picks for both conference final series in Stanley Cup playoffs Our experts reveal their predictions for which two teams will be moving on to the Stanley Cup Final. Rantanen must be exactly that for Colorado in the series ahead. We just keep on trying to find our game and playing for each other," said forward Chris Kreider. If that's the case, whose top line will benefit more? Chris Kreider became just the fourth player in Rangers history to top 50 goals. Bold prediction: Evgeny Kuznetsov leads the Capitals in scoring, but their stay in the playoffs is limited to one round. Bold prediction: Binnington ends up back in the starter's net, and carries St. Louis deep into the postseason. These simulcasts typically involve ESPN's linear television channels and internet streaming platforms, and may . Football Women's Basketball Games Home ESPN Fantasy App Columbus Blue Jackets (WC) 5. The Avs' Norris Trophy finalist defenseman projects to draw Edmonton's toughest matchups, and as the Oilers proved against Calgary, its top line is tough to contain. If he finally emerges in this series, that's an edge for the Avalanche as well. The best that can be said of them is that the Kings found ways to win: While their divisional rivals flailed about trying to qualify for the postseason, Los Angeles won four straight critical games in regulation down the stretch. Goalie Tristan Jarry, who had an outstanding regular season, has been sidelined with a broken foot that he's in the process of rehabbing. NFL Survivor Pool 2023 Canada Fantasy Hockey Predictions Rob Ellis - September 9, 2022 0 Some teams have improved, while others went into re-build mode. Case for a Stanley Cup run: The Kings, who flaunt one of the deepest prospect pools in the NHL, had been waiting a few years for their next generation of stars to mature. We know Josi is a Norris Trophy-caliber defender, but the rest of Nashville's blue line doesn't exhibit nearly the same consistency. How well Colorado's back end -- led by Makar, Devon Toews and Bowen Byram -- can manage those assignments will go a long way in determining the series. How much trust should he place in Jack Johnson or Samuel Girard? Biggest flaw(s): Well, let's go with "potentially biggest." Heading into the playoffs, Craig Custance gets the lowdown on the Vancouver Canucks from rival players, coaches and scouts. Stream the NHL on ESPN, Allen: Avalanche in five The 2021-22 NHL season is winding down towards the final . Game 6 was a good sign as Erik Haula and Curtis Lazar each scored their first of the playoffs, while Charlie Coyle got his second. He had 23 goals and 28 assists and led all Capitals forwards in goals scored above average. The Igor Shesterkin that we saw during Round 1 is not the Igor Shesterkin that the Lightning are going to see. Again, Hagel has done fine in the roles that they've cast him in during the playoffs. Kavanagh: Hurricanes in six He's an integral part of their success. Patrice Bergeron is still Patrice Bergeron. Mleczko: Avalanche in six The matchups and storylines are set as the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs get underway this week, with the last team standing hoisting the cherished chalice sometime in late June. "I've kind of referred to us as cockroaches. Tarasenko had 11 goals and 17 points during the Blues' 2019 run. This postseason, he's 8-3 with a .932 save percentage and has 6.76 goals saved above average to lead all goalies still playing in the postseason. There has also been more effort on the forecheck. Trail Blazers vs. Pelicans Game Info. He battled back and won a Game 7. 2022 NHL playoff fantasy hockey pool guide: Favorites, sleepers and busts. He has added 10 assists to his point total, but Rantanen has still fallen short of expectations to date in terms of output. Bold prediction: Coach Dean Evason bucks tradition by not naming a playoff starter in net, opting to alternate between Fleury and Talbot instead. In net, Jack Campbell appears back on his game following a midseason downturn and rib injury. McDonough: Hurricanes in seven Player to watch: Forsberg. And yet, here we are. Bob Wischusen: Panthers in seven If he makes it back, Jarry still has to demonstrate his postseason prowess after flopping against the Islanders in their 2021 series. A limited if intense calendar, combined with the reality of losing players every round, and a simpler scoring system set . Its defense has been a little better than Edmonton's (giving up a playoff-low 27 shots against per game versus the Oilers' 37.5) and its depth is impressive. Elimination nhl playoff predictions 2022 espn is the stuff of legend: 10-0, six of the 2022 Stanley Cup:... Little things Brodin can do to put Minnesota over the top, coaches and scouts killer combination down the! 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