NHL Playoff TV Schedule 2012: Ranking Friday's Most Exciting Games

The Stanley Cup playoffs are in full swing.

On Friday, the last outstanding Game 1 will be taken care of, and three other series will move on to Game 2. The fun all starts at 7:00 p.m. ET, and it will continue through the night.

Here's a complete rundown of Friday's postseason games, ranked in order of how exciting they promise to be.

4. Detroit Red Wings at Nashville Predators (Game 2)

Time: 7:30 p.m. ET 

TV: CNBC

At the outset of this series, the big question was whether the Red Wings could beat the Predators despite not having home-ice advantage.

So far, not so good for the Red Wings. They played the Predators tough in Game 1, but not tough enough to avoid losing 3-2.

The Red Wings can prolong this series because of how good they are at home, but they can ill afford to fall into an 0-2 series hole. The good news for them is that they managed to kill all six of Nashville's power-play opportunities in Game 1, which is a very positive sign seeing as how Nashville was the top power-play team in the league during the regular season.

But how long can Detroit possibly contain Nashville on the power play? Does Detroit have enough depth and firepower to match Nashville goal for goal?

If yes, Detroit will even the score in this series. If no, the Predators are going to be well on their way to the next round.

3. New Jersey Devils at Florida Panthers (Game 1)

Time: 7:00 p.m. ET

TV: NHL Network

This is an odd matchup, as it features a moderately well-balanced Devils team going up against a Panthers team that is a little light in scoring punch. 

The Panthers were, however, one of the top power-play teams in the league during the regular season, a habit that they used to their advantage.

The problem the Panthers will be facing in this series is the fact that the Devils were the top penalty-killing team in the league.

That's enough to make you think this series could end in an upset, and you have to like the way the Devils played down the stretch this season.

At the same time, you have to appreciate the fact that the Panthers are in the postseason at all. This team is better than the sum of its parts, and it will look to prove itself against a battle-tested Devils team.

2. Los Angeles Kings at Vancouver Canucks (Game 2)

Time: 10:00 p.m. ET

TV: NBC Sports Network

Game 1 of this series was a lot of fun. The Kings and Canucks went back and forth in the first two periods, but the Kings came up big in the third period to steal a crucial road win.

The top-seeded Canucks will look to even the score, but it looks like they'll have to do so without Daniel Sedin again. The Vancouver Sun reported on Thursday night that Sedin is still feeling the effects of a concussion and that he likely won't be able to go against the Kings on Friday.

Absent their leading goal-scorer, the Canucks will have no choice but to hope Roberto Luongo can play better in Game 2 than he did in Game 1, and that's anybody's guess.

This series looked like an upset in the making as soon as it was set in stone. The Canucks will be in deep trouble if they go down 0-2.

1. Philadelphia Flyers at Pittsburgh Penguins (Game 2)

Time: 7:30 p.m. ET

TV: NBC Sports Network

Seven games may not be enough to decide this series.

Game 1 of this series was awesome. The Penguins jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead in the first period, but the Flyers pretty much owned the game after that, eventually winning it in overtime. The game itself was just as chippy as we all thought it would be.

And that was just Game 1. Going forward, we're going to see even more chippiness, more goals and more drama.

And like I said, seven games may not be enough. This series will be over when one of the teams spontaneously combusts.