Stanley Cup Playoffs Round 2 Eastern Conference Preview
By Ryan Ritchie
Stanley Cup Playoffs Round 2: Eastern Conference Preview, Predictions (Tampa Bay vs. NY Islanders, Washington vs. Pittsburgh)
Stanley Cup Playoffs round 2 kicks off on Wednesday night as the Tampa Bay Lightning play host to the New York Islanders.
Washington is also set to face-off against Pittsburgh in another epic battle of Sidney Crosby vs. Alex Ovechkin, while Dallas is set to square off against St.Louis. The San Jose Sharks will play the winner of Wednesday’s game seven between Anaheim/Nashville.
Looking back at our round one predictions (which can be found below), we pegged six of seven winners (thus far), while also included two winners plus series length.
Our only loss was Chicago, although we correctly predicted it going the distance. Anaheim/Nashville was also predicted to go the full seven games.
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Round 1 Predictions:
Anaheim def. Nashville 4-3
Result: Nashville wins 4-3
San Jose def. Los Angeles 4-3
Result: San Jose wins 4-1
Dallas def. Minnesota 4-1
Result: Dallas wins 4-2
NY Islanders def. Florida 4-3
Result: NY Islanders win 4-2
Washington def. Philadelphia 4-2
Result: Washington wins 4-2
Chicago def. St.Louis 4-3
Result: St.Louis wins 4-3
Pittsburgh def. NY Rangers 4-3
Result: Pittsburgh wins 4-2
Tampa Bay def. Detroit 4-3
Result: Tampa Bay wins 4-1
Winners: 6/8
Stanley Cup Playoffs Round 2 Preview
New York Islanders vs. Tampa Bay Lightning
Tampa Bay Lightning
Give the Lightning credit, they dominated Detroit in their opening round series. Ben Bishop was a monster, arguably the team’s MVP, while familiar faces Tyler Johnson and Nikita Kucherov led the way in scoring.
They also got an unexpected boost from Jonathan Drouin whose suddenly receiving top-tier minutes. One might wonder what happened behind close doors this year after a mess exposed a clear issue between players and head coach Jon Cooper.
Let’s be honest though, the banged up Lightning are not a very dominant team right now without a key defender (Anton Stralman) and superstar forward (Steven Stamkos). The Red Wings might have hit the quarter century mark for straight playoff berths, but had little chance of escaping the opening round regardless of the opponent.
Tampa Bay’s X-Factor: Ben Bishop
The Lightning face-off against Johnny T and the underrated Islanders who have an ability to fill the net. John Tavares, Kyle Okposo, and Frans Nielsen carried this team offensively against the Panthers. If Brock Nelson, Ryan Strome, Shane Prince, Josh Bailey, or Nikolay Kulemin decide to wake up in round two, Ben Bishop will need to be Tampa Bay’s best player.
More puck prose: Lightning Eliminate Red Wings in Opening Round
New York Islanders
Thomas Greiss showed an ability to carry the load in 2015-16 filling in for Jaroslav Halak. Heading into the Stanley Cup Playoffs, experts had reasonable concerns on whether this career-backup could steal a series or two. While Halak’s return would be significant, there’s reason to have confidence in the German netminder. Greiss has a 1.79GAA and .944 save percentage through six games.
If the New York Islanders want to continue in their pursuit of a Stanley Cup, secondary players will need to step up. Johnny Boychuk for example has played solid shut down defense, but zero points in six games in unusual for a offensive-minded two-way defender.
Other players such as Ryan Strome and Shane Prince can be difference makers the same way they proved to be down the regular season’s final stretch.
NY Islanders X-Factor: John Tavares
The offense runs through John Tavares. Shut him down, you can shut down the Islanders, or at least force secondary players to step up. Only one problem; if Aaron Ekblad/Brian Campbell were unable to contain him, what chance do the Lightning have? This could be a coming out party for Tavares in the second round.
Prediction: New York Islanders win series 4-3
More puck prose: Tampa Bay vs. NY Islanders Preview, Prediction
Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
Washington Capitals
Washington made the hockey world nervous when they dropped game’s four and five after winning the first three. They’ve had trouble closing out series in the past, but showed resilience in game six riding on the shoulders of Braden Holtby. The likely Vezina winner had a tantalizing 0.84GAA and .968 save percentage in the opening round.
It was a veteran presence that stepped to provide the offense for Washington with Nicklas Backstrom, John Carlson, Marcus Johansson, Alex Ovechkin, and T.J. Oshie leading the way in scoring. Regular season points leader Evgeny Kuznetsov scored a lone goal in six games. Held pointless in six games was Daniel Winnik, Andre Burakovsky, Tom Wilson, and Mike Richards.
Washington’s X-Factor: Braden Holtby and Alex Ovechkin
Holtby is coming off a Carey Price-like season from the previous year. He will need to prove that he’s the best goaltender in the world against a high-octane offense in Pittsburgh. Not only that, he needs the outplay the rookie netminder at the other end. What good was that Presidents’ Trophy winning season, and Vezina/Hart worthy performance if he can’t get it done when it matters most.
Both Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby are in their 10th year in the league. What better than an epic showdown in the next edition of Ovie vs. Crosby. These are historically intense match-up’s between these two teams, and it shouldn’t take long for things to heat up. Can Ovie rise above in 2016 on his quest for a first Stanley Cup?
More puck prose: Capitals Eliminate Flyers in Opening Round
Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh was dominant in their opening round victory, continuing their hot play that made them arguably the best team down the stretch. This promises to be one of the most exciting second round series of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The Penguins continue to get production from not only their stars (Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel, Kris Letang), but as well from their support group. When you’ve got players such as Conor Sheary stepping up to make a difference, it goes to show the depth this Pens roster has offensively.
It also seems that Phil Kessel plays better when he’s made the focal point. If splitting the big three up on separate lines works, why mess with a good thing? Sure, you’d love for Phil to find some chemistry with Geno or Sid somewhere down the road, but for now, it pushes them closer to that 12-deep forward group, something a team needs to win a Stanley Cup.
If they tighten things up defensively the way they did in their final two games versus the Rangers, Pittsburgh should be able to challenge Washington to a lengthy seven game series. They’ll also need rookie Matt Murray to continue his hot play.
Next: NHL Weekly Roundup: Offseason, 2017 NHL Draft, and More
Pittsburgh’s X-Factor: Kris Letang
He’s averaging over 27 minutes/game so far, and will likely be depended on for heavier minutes against Ovechkin and company. After a late surge put his name in the Norris Conversation, Letang needs to be exactly that against the Caps – the best defenseman. Whatever he’s able to provide offensively is great, but he needs to shut down a high-scoring Caps offense.
Prediction: Washington wins series 4-3