NFL
By: Damon Horton
After looking through the Eastern Conference, which has been locked up for a couple of days, the West waited for the buzzer to be set for Lord Stanley’s Playoffs. Colorado, Dallas, and Minnesota all look to run the West. Meanwhile, the pillow fight in the Pacific leads to a few of the “weaker” playoff matchups. How many of these teams have legitimate chances to advance to Round 2?
The Round 1 Matchups are as follows:
- C1 Colorado Avalanche vs WC2 Los Angeles Kings
- C2 Dallas Stars vs C3 Minnesota Wild
- P1 Vegas Golden Knights vs WC1 Utah Mammoth
- P2 Edmonton Oilers vs P3 Anaheim Ducks
The news cycle among the Western Conference teams has been mostly about Colorado’s greatness. Also, the bloodbath that the Central Division has become. The Pacific, despite all of the conversations about how much “better” the East has been, still has a couple of legitimate contenders. After all, in the last 3 seasons, the Pacific has represented the West in the Stanley Cup Final.
Let’s jump right into how these 1st Round matchups will shape up.
Colorado Avalanche vs Los Angeles Kings
The Colorado Avalanche have been the best team in the NHL all season. The entire Western Conference will most likely be waiting for them at the end of the tunnel in the Conference Final. That is, if they want a shot at Lord Stanley’s Cup. The Avalanche are 1st in the NHL in Goals Per Game, SOG Per Game, Goals Against Per Game, and Penalty Kill Rate. They also take the fewest penalties in the league. They have the best goalie tandem in the league, and just insane Center depth.
This is a fast team with incredible marquee players like MacKinnon and Makar leading the way. They have beaten every single team in the NHL at least once this season, showcasing their ability to beat any team in a 7-game series. The singular chink in their armor is an abhorrent power-play unit. It has struggled this season despite having some of the best players in the world on the man advantage.
The LA Kings are the coughing baby in the “hydrogen bomb vs coughing baby” meme. The Kings lost Kevin Fiala at the Olympics, a devastating blow. They have been treading water in that second Wildcard spot ever since. While not a “bad” team, they are not a good team. Certainly, they are not on Colorado’s level. This begs the question: Can the Kings actually upset the Avalanche? I look to their regulation win total, which is the 3rd lowest in the league, above only the Canucks and Blackhawks.
I also look at how many games they have had to take to OT. The Kings have gone into OT 33 times, an NHL record. On the surface level, that sounds like an astounding weakness, but to me, it could actually be a strength. The Kings are also 3rd in the NHL in Goals Allowed 5v5, and they have allowed the fewest 5v5 High Danger Shot Opportunities in the NHL.
If the Kings can stick around with the Avalanche in the series and take it into OT and make themselves at least hard to beat, that would give this snowball a chance in the hell that is awaiting them in the 1st round.
My prediction: Avalanche in 4 games
Dallas Stars vs Minnesota Wild
In a playoff bracket with some incredible matchups, this will be the premier matchup in Round 1. We got a taste of it in a 5-4 Dallas win a couple of weeks ago. NHL fans have been licking their lips ever since. Bill Guerin has built a monster in Minnesota. He’s creating a very heavy, highly skilled team built specifically to beat Colorado and Dallas. Gustavsson and rookie Goalie phenom Jesper Wallstedt have anchored their team despite facing nearly 30 SOG per game.
The Wild have top 10 numbers in:
Goals Per Game (10th)
SOG Per Game (7th)
Power Play Percentage (3rd)
Goals Against per Game (4th)
PIM Per Game (6th).
The addition of Quinn Hughes has totally changed the makeup of this squad. While the Stars have 40+ goal guys like Jason Robertson and Wyatt Johnston, the Wild can answer with Kaprizov and Boldy.
The Stars are another monster in the Central Division. They have been to three straight Western Conference Finals, playing in 56 postseason games compared to Minnesota’s 12 games. One of those series, the Stars got the better of Minnesota, winning in 6 games. This Wild team is clearly different, bigger, and will be much more challenging. While the Wild are top 10 in many statistical categories, the Stars are simply a razor’s edge better in many of those stats.
Goals Per Game (9th), Power Play Percentage (2nd), and Goals Against Per Game (2nd) all favor the Stars ever-so-slightly. The X-factor for Dallas will be getting Miro Heiskanen back for Game 1. In addition, they are getting a healthy Roope Hintz back in the series at some point.
This series will be absolute cinema. If you’re a neutral fan, you will enjoy this series greatly. If you’re a Dallas or Minnesota fan, get ready for the toxicity, and prepare to play Colorado afterward. Jake Oettinger is a Minnesota native and plays very well against the Wild, boasting a 9-1-4 record, .920 Save %, and 2.35 GAA. All of that being said, the Wild have not made the second round of the Playoffs since 2015, and will be incredibly hungry. This absolutely is a different beast than the 2023 team that lost to Dallas in 6 games.
My prediction: Dallas in 7 games
Vegas Golden Knights vs Utah Mammoth
The Golden Knights have been through a lot this season. Changing head coaches just weeks before a playoff run, adding to the chaos that defines this season. The Golden Knights are still a very dangerous team, rising above all of that with major contributions from Jack Eichel, Mitch Marner, and Mark Stone. Midseason, the Knights added Rasmus Andersson, who has helped push them into a comfortable playoff spot and Pacific Division title.
Tortorella is no stranger to the Playoffs, and this may be the most talented team he has coached in 2 decades. Torts has definitely settled things down, but can he push this team past Utah and onward to the Conference Final? The Knights are good at 5v5 but elite on special teams. They do an excellent job of playing patient hockey, not allowing themselves to get rattled and give up major fastbreak scoring chances, something Utah is adept at.
The Utah Mammoth, on the other hand, plays a much different style of hockey. They were a very young and fun team to watch this year. If they can stay within the parameters of their game, they can make some serious noise. Despite being a Wildcard team, the Mammoth have a much easier path to the Cup than their Western Conference counterparts (thanks, Bettman). The Mammoths play well in their defensive zone and can turn a defensive-zone faceoff into an offensive breakaway in the blink of an eye. They have some finishers, too. Clayton Keller has emerged as a star in this league. Keller has quietly notched 86 points, alongside 33-goal scorer Nick Schaltz. Going into this season, Utah was a team many thought little of. They will be thinking about them for the foreseeable future, now.
This is going to be an under-the-radar banger of a series. Youth and tenacity will match up against grit and experience. In the net, I give the edge to Utah. Vejmelka is more than capable of going on a heater and frustrating the Knights’ top-end scoring. On the other end, the Knights just seem more accustomed to playing that “playoff brand” of hockey. When the playoffs start, the ice shrinks, and those cherry-picked fast breaks dry up quickly. The main question for the Golden Knights will simply be, can Marner finally manage to turn it on in the playoffs? If he can find it, the Knights will win.
My prediction: Utah in 6 games
Edmonton Oilers vs Anaheim Ducks
The Oilers are beginning this series without Leon Draisaitl, who is now listed as day-to-day and is nearing a return. Luckily, I don’t think Edmonton really needs him that badly to win this series. Connor McDavid does Connor McDavid things, and Evan Bouchard can play defense while still being an elite threat with the puck. This season, Bouchard registered a 9.7% Shooting Percentage as a defenseman, which is astounding to say the least. The Oilers definitely have the firepower to bury opponents, but do they have goaltending? The goalie situation has been this team’s Achilles’ heel for seasons now. It has probably cost them 2 Stanley Cups by now. Will the tandem of Jarry and Igram be able to sustain the Oilers as they push for another Stanley Cup Finals run?
The Anaheim Ducks are a team kind of like the Mammoth. A young and skilled team that is able to skate well and put a ton of shots on net. Anaheim is led by Cutter Gauthier, a phenomenal scorer who hit the 40-goal plateau this season and made himself known in the NHL. As far as what kinds of advantages they have over Edmonton? I would really just say the goaltending. Dostal has been reliable this season, giving the Ducks a chance to win every game, while not being exactly excellent.
This series will most likely expose the talent divide between Vegas and Edmonton, and the rest of the Pacific. I frankly don’t view the Ducks or Kings as true playoff contenders. The Oilers/Ducks special teams discrepancy is liable to get the Ducks in trouble early on in the series, especially with Edmonton expecting Draisaitl to come back at some point. That being said, Edmonton has had some points this year when they looked straight up bad and has had a tough time stringing wins together. That will probably wind up making this series a little closer than it should.
My prediction: Edmonton in 6 games
The Western Conference has been a top-heavy affair for basically the entire season. The top 3 seeds in the Central have been locked in place since November and arguably include 3 of the top 5 teams in the league this season. Meanwhile, the Pacific has been somewhat ridiculed by hockey fans for much of the season.
Now, this is the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Major upsets do happen just about every season, and almost nobody gets a perfect bracket. I would not be surprised at all if I am wrong about a few of these series, particularly Boston vs. Buffalo, Minnesota vs. Dallas, and Tampa Bay vs. Montreal. Consider this paragraph as me covering my own butt in case I get them all wrong. I can then say, “But look! I told you all I knew nothing!”
The greatest Playoffs in sports kick off this weekend, and much like you, I can’t wait. Thank you so much for reading, and enjoy watching.
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