NHL Playoff TV Schedule 2012: Breaking Down Thursday Night's Pivotal Matchups

The 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs are getting down to the nitty-gritty and now the conference semifinals series are shifting venues. The Nashville Predators took advantage of their home ice with a 2-0 Game 3 win over the Phoenix Coyotes while the New York Rangers pulled out a 2-1 win in triple-overtime over the Washington Capitals in DC on Wednesday night.

As a result, we can be sure that at least three of the four final-eight series will be at 2-1 after three games.

But what might Thursday night's games have in store for hockey fans across the NHL landscape?

Philadelphia Flyers at New Jersey Devils, 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network

The Flyers will head up I-95 on Thursday night, hoping to reclaim home-ice advantage from the Devils in their Eastern Conference semis series. Philly's fortunate to be tied at 1-1, though, after squeaking out a 4-3 overtime win in Game 1 and getting dominated by the Devils in Game 2.  

Ilya Kovalchuk's absence seemed to spark New Jersey to that fantastic 4-1 effort. The Devils figure to be even better with him back in the lineup for Game 3.

That, along with the change of venue to the Prudential Center, doesn't necessarily guarantee success for New Jersey, though it certainly doesn't hurt its chances. 

If the Flyers are going to turn their fortunes around, they'll need to play with the same fire that propelled them past the Pittsburgh Penguins. Otherwise, they figure to find themselves locked in a battle of goaltenders, one in which Martin Brodeur is going to beat Ilya Bryzgalov more often than not.

St. Louis Blues at Los Angeles Kings, 10:00 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network

These two teams seemed to be as evenly matched as any two who've yet faced off in the postseason.

That is, until they actually took to the ice, and the Kings took it right to the Blues. L.A. outplayed St. Louis in nearly every way through the first two games, to which its 2-0 series lead serves as a shining testament.

How the Kings—who entered the season with the second-most-feeble offense in all of hockey—have managed to put eight goals past the stingy Blues is a mystery, albeit one that the Vancouver Canucks know a thing or two about.

That being said, there's still plenty of hope for the Blues. They played much better after a terrible first 21 minutes or so in Game 2 and will welcome ace defenseman Alex Pietrangelo back after losing him to a rough check from Dwight King in Game 1. His return should give St. Louis a solid spark to make Game 3 an interesting (and increasingly chippy) affair, at the very least.

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