2015 NHL Playoffs Round 1 Preview - Playoffs Start Today

(A1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (W1) Ottawa Senators

Everything screams Ottawa. Better possession numbers? Ottawa. Season series? Ottawa. Coach that optimizes lines better? Ottawa. Emotional storyline? Ottawa. Hamburgers? Ottawa. It's hard not to look past the Habs though. Carey Price is coming off a Hart winning candidate season and could single-handily win the series. The Habs also have the advantage on defense, as the Sens are not as deep. The biggest question may be in Ottawa's net. Andrew Hammond had a hell of a run to propel the Sens into the playoffs, but will it last long enough see his team advance or will his play drop off? This series seems primed to be a long one. Habs in seven.

Side note: our condolences to the family and friends of Senators assistant coach Mark Reeds, who passed away Tuesday.


(M2) Washington Capitals vs. (M3) New York Islanders

This one is a coin flip (literally, I flipped a coin for my pick). The Islanders were the better possession team during the season, but didn't end the season overly well while the Capitals fared better. Comparing goalies, Holtby was statistically better than Halak (0.923SV% compared to 0.914SV%). Both teams are pretty even on offense and defense (although the Islanders might have better depth up front). Even the storylines for each team doesn't help. Should the Islanders end their tenure in Nassau Coliseum on a high note or does Ovechkin (and the Caps) finally break though and have a serious push for the Cup? Time to get the coin. Heads = Capitals, tails = Islanders. Washington in seven.


(C2) Nashville Predators vs. (C3) Chicago Blackhawks

Talk about slumping your way into the playoffs. The Predators went from potential Presidents' Trophy winners to just hanging on to home-ice advantage for the first round thanks to a six-game slid. They face off a very playoff-experienced playoff team in the Blackhawks, who will get Patrick Kane back for this series. Chicago has the clear edge in forwards while Nashville has an edge on defense. Corey Crawford and Pekke Rinne ended with similar save percentages (Rinne did play more games). The Blackhawks are likely to advance, but the Predators will put up a fight. Chicago in six.


(P2) Vancouver Canucks vs. (P3) Calgary Flames

Yes, the Flames went on a year-long PDO-fuelled run to, not only make the playoffs, but finish third in the division (and knocked the defending champions out in the process) and should have been in the Conner sweepstakes instead of the Cup sweepstakes. They face the Canucks, who rebounded from an off year to make the playoffs. While both teams finished with a sub-50 CF%, Vancouver was far better than Calgary (49.5% compared to 44.4%). The theme with the Flames though is don't count them out, as they produced comeback after comeback this year. The inexperienced Eddie Lack (0.921SV%) starts against Jonas Hiller (0.918SV%) who looks to rebound after a poor playoff performance with Anaheim last year. Vancouver should have an edge in both offense and defense, especially with Giordano out for Calgary. Still, the Flames are the Flames, and could very well find a way past the first round. Calgary in seven (probably after going down 3 games in the series).