NHL Playoff Standings 2015: Seedings, 1st-Round Schedule and Stanley Cup Outlook
Wednesday marks the beginning of the 2015 NHL Playoffs, the most exciting brand of hockey this side of the Olympics.
The beginning of the postseason typically marks the end of regular-season factors—most notably fighting and all other sorts of WWE-like antics—that tend to bog the game down. Openness and fluidity reign supreme, which is why red-hot goaltending supremacy so often makes the biggest difference over these next two months.
While we have no chance of knowing who will get hot and push their team to the Stanley Cup Final, one thing's for certain: It'll not be the same dudes as last year. The Los Angeles Kings' inconsistencies came back to bite them down the stretch, as they finished two points out of the West's final playoff spot. Add in Boston's elimination, and only Chicago remains among the recent threesome of domination.
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With that in mind, let's take a look at the full first-round outlook and check in with the favorites to hoist the Stanley Cup.
1st-Round Schedule
| 1 | Wednesday, April 15 | 7 p.m. | Ottawa at Montreal | CBC, TVA Sports, NHL Network |
| 2 | Friday, April 17 | 7 p.m. | Ottawa at Montreal | CBC, TVA Sports, CNBC |
| 3 | Sunday, April 19 | 7 p.m. | Montreal at Ottawa | CBC, TVA Sports, NBCSN |
| 4 | Wednesday, April 22 | 7 p.m. | Montreal at Ottawa | CBC, TVA Sports, USA |
| 5* | *Friday, April 24 | TBD | Ottawa at Montreal | CBC |
| 6* | *Sunday, April 26 | TBD | Montreal at Ottawa | CBC |
| 7* | *Tuesday, April 28 | TBD | Ottawa at Montreal | CBC |
| 1 | Thursday, April 16 | 7 p.m. | Pittsburgh at NY Rangers | NBCSN, CBC, TVA Sports |
| 2 | Saturday, April 18 | 8 p.m. | Pittsburgh at NY Rangers | NBC, CBC, TVA Sports |
| 3 | Monday, April 20 | 7 p.m. | NY Rangers at Pittsburgh | NBCSN, CBC, TVA Sports |
| 4 | Wednesday, April 22 | 7 p.m. | NY Rangers at Pittsburgh | NBCSN, SN 360, TVA Sports |
| 5* | *Friday, April 24 | TBD | Pittsburgh at NY Rangers | TBD |
| 6* | *Sunday, April 26 | TBD | NY Rangers at Pittsburgh | TBD |
| 7* | *Tuesday, April 28 | TBD | Pittsburgh at NY Rangers | TBD |
| 1 | Wednesday, April 15 | 7 p.m. | NY Islanders at Washington | USA, Sportsnet, TVA Sports |
| 2 | Friday, April 17 | 7 p.m. | NY Islanders at Washington | NBCSN, Sportsnet, TVA Sports |
| 3 | Sunday, April 19 | Noon | Washington at NY Islanders | NBC, Sportsnet, TVA Sports |
| 4 | Tuesday, April 21 | 7:30 p.m. | Washington at NY Islanders | USA, SN 360, TVA Sports |
| 5* | *Thursday, April 23 | TBD | NY Islanders at Washington | TBD |
| 6* | *Saturday, April 25 | TBD | Washington at NY Islanders | TBD |
| 7* | *Monday, April 27 | TBD | NY Islanders at Washington | TBD |
| 1 | Thursday, April 16 | 7:30 p.m. | Detroit at Tampa Bay | CNBC, Sportsnet, TVA Sports |
| 2 | Saturday, April 18 | 3 p.m. | Detroit at Tampa Bay | NBC, CBC, TVA Sports |
| 3 | Tuesday, April 21 | 7 p.m. | Tampa Bay at Detroit | NBCSN, Sportsnet, TVA Sports |
| 4 | Thursday, April 23 | 7 p.m. | Tampa Bay at Detroit | NBCSN, CBC, TVA Sports |
| 5* | *Saturday, April 25 | TBD | Detroit at Tampa Bay | TBD |
| 6* | *Monday, April 27 | TBD | Tampa Bay at Detroit | TBD |
| 7* | *Wednesday, April 29 | TBD | Detroit at Tampa Bay | TBD |
| 1 | Thursday, April 16 | 9:30 p.m. | Minnesota at St. Louis | NBCSN, SN 360, TVA Sports |
| 2 | Saturday, April 18 | 3 p.m. | Minnesota at St. Louis | NBC, Sportsnet, TVA Sports |
| 3 | Monday, April 20 | 8 p.m. | St. Louis at Minnesota | CNBC, SN1, TVA Sports |
| 4 | Wednesday, April 22 | 9:30 p.m. | St. Louis at Minnesota | NBCSN, SN 360, TVA Sports |
| 5* | *Friday, April 24 | TBD | Minnesota at St. Louis | TBD |
| 6* | *Sunday, April 26 | TBD | St. Louis at Minnesota | TBD |
| 7* | *Wednesday, April 29 | TBD | Minnesota at St. Louis | TBD |
| 1 | Wednesday, April 15 | 8:30 p.m. | Chicago at Nashville | NBCSN, SN 360, TVA Sports |
| 2 | Friday, April 17 | 9:30 p.m. | Chicago at Nashville | NBCSN, Sportsnet, TVA Sports |
| 3 | Sunday, April 19 | 3 p.m. | Nashville at Chicago | NBC, Sportsnet, TVA Sports |
| 4 | Tuesday, April 21 | 9:30 p.m. | Nashville at Chicago | NBCSN, Sportsnet, TVA Sports |
| 5* | *Thursday, April 23 | TBD | Chicago at Nashville | TBD |
| 6* | *Saturday, April 25 | TBD | Nashville at Chicago | TBD |
| 7* | *Monday, April 27 | TBD | Chicago at Nashville | TBD |
| 1 | Thursday, April 16 | 10:30 p.m. | Winnipeg at Anaheim | CNBC, Sportsnet, TVA Sports |
| 2 | Saturday, April 18 | 10:30 p.m. | Winnipeg at Anaheim | NBCSN, Sportsnet, TVA Sports |
| 3 | Monday, April 20 | 9 p.m. | Anaheim at Winnipeg | Sportsnet, TVA Sports, NBCSN |
| 4 | Wednesday, April 22 | 9:30 p.m. | Anaheim at Winnipeg | Sportsnet, TVA Sports, USA |
| 5* | *Friday, April 24 | TBD | Winnipeg at Anaheim | Sportsnet |
| 6* | *Sunday, April 26 | TBD | Anaheim at Winnipeg | Sportsnet |
| 7* | *Tuesday, April 28 | TBD | Winnipeg at Anaheim | Sportsnet |
| 1 | Wednesday, April 15 | 10 p.m. | Calgary at Vancouver | CBC, TVA Sports, USA |
| 2 | Friday, April 17 | 10 p.m. | Calgary at Vancouver | CBC, TVA Sports, CNBC |
| 3 | Sunday, April 19 | 10 p.m. | Vancouver at Calgary | CBC, TVA Sports, NBCSN |
| 4 | Tuesday, April 21 | 10 p.m. | Vancouver at Calgary | CBC, TVA Sports, USA |
| 5* | *Thursday, April 23 | TBD | Calgary at Vancouver | CBC |
| 6* | *Saturday, April 25 | TBD | Vancouver at Calgary | CBC |
| 7* | *Monday, April 27 | TBD | Calgary at Vancouver | CBC |
Stanley Cup Favorites
New York Rangers (6-1)
The Rangers enter the playoffs as favorites for good reason. They had the highest regular-season points total (113) in franchise history, beating out an equally game Montreal squad for the top overall seed in the East. Their 49 pre-shootout victories were two more than any other team and six better than Anaheim, their top-seeded foe in the West.
“There’s a certain calmness about this team feeding off every guy,” defenseman Keith Yandle told Allan Kreda of The New York Times. “There’s no panic. You can tell guys have been through it and know how to play in every type of situation. There’s a feeling we can win every night.”
The Rangers were third in goals scored and goals allowed during the regular season. Rick Nash led the team with 69 points, one of four New York players with at least a 50-point season. Derick Brassard, Derek Stepan and Martin St. Louis, a representative sample of the wide age range on this team, were the others.
The combination of Henrik Lundqvist and Cam Talbot have been so good in net you almost second-guess who should be starting. Lundqvist, the veteran, will obviously get the first shot. He's been the club's stalwart in net for a decade and knows the playoff ropes. Talbot has been excellent since his arrival on the scene last year, though, and may start clamoring for an increased role if Lundqvist struggles.
Either way, the Rangers aren't going to have an easy skate-through to the next round. Pittsburgh is a pretty terrible draw for a No. 8 seed, a wildly talented outfit that's come nowhere close to living to its regular-season potential. There is a legitimate chance we're looking at a long series here—or possibly even an upset.
Anaheim Ducks 8-1
Chicago Blackhawks 8-1
Minnesota Wild 8-1
St. Louis Blues 8-1
The Vegas oddsmakers have grouped this foursome together, so it's only right we do the same. The reason for their lumping? No one has any clue how the Western Conference will shake out.
The conference's top six teams are separated by only nine points, and confidence varies on each of the potential contenders. Anaheim somehow wound up with the top seed despite having a goal differential of plus-10. To put that in perspective, that's the worst of any playoff team and five worse than the Kings, who are watching the playoffs from home.
Anyone familiar with the phrase regression to the mean will be watching their first-round series with Winnipeg intently. The Jets are far from a powerhouse, but Ondrej Pavelec turned in three straight shutouts to close the regular season. He could be rounding into shape at the perfect time.
St. Louis posted the West's best regular-season goal differential and has been one of the league's best all-around teams. The Blues are fourth in goals against, fifth in goals scored and a top-10 unit when it comes to power-play percentage and penalty killing. I'm unsure if you're aware of such things, but those aspects tend to be the most important when playing the sport.
Wingers Vladimir Tarasenko, Alexander Steen and Jaden Schwartz have been sensational all season, and nine different Blues players wound up with 40-plus points. They also have one of the league's hottest goaltenders, with rookie Jake Allen breaking out in the second half.
"This is the best time of the year right now and something that you should enjoy," Schwartz said, per Louie Korac of NHL.com. "They're hard games, they're big challenges. You win, you keep moving; you lose, you go home when it comes to playoff time."
Minnesota's been able to stay in the title mix thanks to some superior defense. The Wild led the NHL with an 86.3 penalty-kill percentage, buoyed by a stellar back line and Devan Dubnyk. Acquired from Arizona midway through the season, Dubnyk has a 1.78 goals-against average with the Wild and turned in five shutouts in 39 appearances.
The winner between Minnesota and St. Louis has a good chance at being the Western representative.
That said, everyone in both conferences remains fearful of Chicago, a sleeping giant with a ton of talent that might be preparing for a run. Corey Crawford, Jonathan Toews, Marian Hossa and the postseason regulars return, and they could be on the precipice of making a late-season "acquisition." Patrick Kane, who has been out since February, is nearing a return and is considered probable for Game 1, per Pat Boyle of CSN.
"REPORT: Patrick Kane is probable for Game 1. The odds of the #Preds winning the series have fallen from 0.01% to 0.0000001%
— NOT NHL Tonight (@NOTNHLTonight) April 12, 2015"
It's unclear how effective Kane will be given his absence, but his arrival would make things far more interesting in an already-crowded Western Conference.
Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter
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