NHL 2nd Round Picks

The first round of the playoffs are now in the rearview mirror. Congratulations to those fanbases that saw their teams advance. Picks wise not the start I was hoping for personally. Missing on the Oilers, Stars, and Penguins while hitting on the Sabres, Avalanche, Hurricanes, and Vegas. In hindsight probably should have just flipped a coin but what fun would that be. Anyway lets try turn this thing around.

Carolina vs Philadelphia

It seems like forever since Carolina last played. That's what happens though when you sweep a team, the inevitable long layoff. The layoff however will be welcomed by many players, especially those dealing with nagging injuries. Too much rest though could perhaps lead to some rust. I am of the belief that rest is a positive regardless of any possible rust issues. Philadelphia is the underdog here, and not because of any potential fatigue issues. While I struck out picking against Philadelphia in the first round. I see no reason to change course here. Carolina is better than Philadelphia in every major category. The one bright spot for the Flyers has been the play of netminder Dan Vladar. Vladar was solid against Pittsburgh including an impressive 42 save shutout to close out the series. Unfortunately for the Flyers, Carolina's Frederik Andersen has been impressive himself. In fact Andersen currently leads all playoff goaltenders in save percentage and goals against. As good as Vladar was against Pittsburgh I see a wash at best here for Philadelphia. Offensively for the Hurricanes Taylor Hall looked like a man possessed against Ottawa racking up 7 points in only 4 games. Kamloops native Logan Stankoven was just as good, scoring a goal in 4 consecutive games against the Senators. Needless to say Carolina is firing on all cylinders heading into this matchup. Everything! Defense, offense, and special teams favour Carolina here. No advantage behind the bench either. Rod Brindamour is every bit as good if not better than Rick Tocchet. Home ice while overrated belongs to Carolina. Philadelphia defied the odds last time around. I don't expect them to do so again

PICK CAROLINA IN 5

Vegas vs Anaheim

Quite the Cinderella story Anaheim has turned out to be this season. Going from a lottery team to the 2nd round of the playoffs. Masterful job by first year head coach Joel Quenneville. The Ducks were terrific offensively against Edmonton, with the trio of Lacombe, Carlson, and Troy Terry racking up a combined 25 points. Points should be tougher to come by against Vegas but I don't expect them get shut down by any means. They'll get their points. On the other side Vegas has some firepower of their own. Eichel and Mitch Marner racked up 16 points in their series against a Utah. Expect those two to continue their scoring ways. I don't see any real advantages offensively here for either team. That's not the case in net though. Dostal was terrible against Edmonton. He's currently sporting the 2nd worst goals against average in the playoffs. The guy with the worst, was benched after only two games. If Dostal doesn't right the ship a similar fate probably awaits him. Vegas' goaltender Carter Hart hasn't been great himself, but despite that I feel Vegas has the edge in net. Special teams are fairly even, Ducks have the advantage on the power play but Vegas has a much better penalty kill. Both teams are playing with house money so pressure wont be a factor here. Both these teams will play loose. Both have a hall of fame worthy coach behind the bench. I think it will come down to playoff experience and that's where Vegas has a decided advantage.

VEGAS IN 7

Colorado vs Minnesota

I'm not sure Colorado even broke a sweat last round. If they did I wanna see proof. This time around the competition will be a lot harder. The trio of Matt Boldy ,Quinn Hughes, and Kirill Kaprizov will prove a formidable challenge for an Avalanche team that was barely tested in the first round. These three were a wrecking ball against Dallas. However Colorado isn't Dallas. Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar by their standards were fairly quiet last series. Yet despite that they had very little trouble with the Kings. My initial instinct was that this would be a fairly easy series victory for Colorado. Now I'm not so sure. The top line of Minnesota exceeded my lofty expectations by quite a bit. Minnesota goaltender Jesper Wallstedt was also much better than I anticipated. Avalanche goalie Scott Wedgewood was himself rock solid against LA, but it was LA after all. Wallstedt faced a far more potent offense in Dallas and looked good doing so. Minnesota likely has the edge in net even if the numbers say otherwise. This one is going to be a lot closer than people think but I'll play it safe.

COLORADO IN 7

Buffalo vs Montreal

Who would have believed at the start of the season, one of these teams would be in the Eastern Conference final. This has all the hallmark of a series going 7 games. Montreal goalie Jakub Dobes was terrific against Tampa Bay, sporting an impressive 2.03 goals against average. Alex Lyon was just as impressive for Buffalo after taking over from a struggling Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen in their series against Boston. Advantage in net goes to Montreal in my opinion. Lyon's numbers were actually better, but Dobes was challenged by a far better team offensively in Tampa Bay. Defensively Buffalo has a significant edge over Montreal. Better talent, better depth, and they can score. Expect Rasmus Dahlin, Bowen Byram, and company to be a disruptive force. As for forwards Montreal has the edge. The top line of Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield are likely to cause serious problems even for a pretty solid Buffalo defense. Tampa Bay head coach Jon Cooper was able to keep Montreal's top line in check. However I don't expect a repeat here. On the flipside look for Buffalo to likely employ a 3 high strategy to stretch the Canadiens' D and open up some passing lanes. I also expect Buffalo to win the forecheck battle, which should lead to a fair share of Montreal turnovers. One concern for Buffalo though is their anemic powerplay. Buffalo's powerplay went a measly 1 for 24 (4%) against Boston. Buffalo will need to do a lot better against Montreal. Home ice was a relative non factor for both teams last round. I expect that trend to continue here, advantage Montreal. No real advantage behind the bench for either team. I'm expecting a tight long series here.

BUFFALO IN 7