Let's Talk About The NHL Playoff Picture, Shall We?

(Photo courtesy of Auston Matthews and Connor McDavid , Getty Images via TSN)

The Stanley Cup Playoffs are supposed to start in mid-May. With a month left of the regular season, I wanted to share my predictions from the top four of each division all the way to finals. Some of these may be realistic and some may be bold predictions, we will have to wait and see. 

Before I start, I want to give the format of the playoffs. This season, the top four teams in each division will advance. The first seed will play the fourth and the second will play the third. The winners of those two seasons will then play against each other. For the semifinals, the winner of the central will play the winner of the east and the winner of the north will play the winner of the west. From there, the winners of those series will compete to raise the Cup.

Honda West

End of Season Rankings:

1. Vegas

2. Colorado

3. Minnesota

4. Arizona

First Round:

Vegas, Arizona 🡪 Vegas 

Colorado, Minnesota 🡪 Colorado 

Second Round:

Vegas, Colorado 🡪 Colorado

Scotia North

End of Season Rankings:

1. Toronto

2. Edmonton

3. Winnipeg

4. Montreal

First Round:

Toronto, Montreal 🡪 Toronto

Edmonton, Winnipeg 🡪 Edmonton 

Second Round:

Toronto, Edmonton 🡪 Edmonton 

MassMutual East

End of Season Rankings:

1. NY Islanders

2. Washington

3. Pittsburgh

4. Boston

First Round: 

NY, Boston 🡪 Boston

Washington, Pittsburgh 🡪 Washington 

Second Round:

Boston, Washington 🡪 Washington 

Discover Central

1. Tampa Bay

2. Florida

3. Carolina 

4. Chicago 

First Round:

Tampa Bay, Chicago 🡪 Tampa Bay

Florida, Carolina 🡪 Florida

Second Round:

Tampa Bay, Florida 🡪 Florida

Stanley Cup Semifinals

Florida, Washington 🡪 Washington

Edmonton, Colorado 🡪 Colorado

Stanley Cup Finals

Washington, Colorado 🡪 Colorado

These playoffs are going to be so interesting because each game in the regular season has been a divisional game. It’s anyone’s playoff to take to be honest, and I think we are going to see strong pushes from team’s hovering those four and five spots because, especially in the central, those spots are close. In those top three spots in each division, I think we can confidently say who those will be, but that fourth spot will have to wait until the very end. After all, that’s hockey.