NHL Playoffs 2016: Stanley Cup Bracket, Schedule and Predictions

The Philadelphia Flyers saw a wide-open door, and they were happy to burst through it Saturday.

Outside of the playoffs at the start of Saturday's action, the Flyers saw the Detroit Red Wings lose their season finale to the New York Rangers and the Boston Bruins get blown out at home by the out-of-contention Ottawa Senators.

Knowing they only needed two points from their two remaining games to make the playoffs, the Flyers beat the red-hot Pittsburgh Penguins 3-1 and clinched the No. 2 wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

The playoffs will get underway Wednesday, March 13, and the NHL will announce the complete schedule upon the completion of the regular season.

Despite their loss to the Rangers, the Red Wings sealed a 25th straight playoff appearance. The Red Wings and Bruins were tied for the No. 3 spot in the Atlantic Division, but Detroit had one more regulation win.

Conference	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	Prediction
Eastern	Washington	Philadelphia	Washington
Eastern	Tampa Bay	Detroit	Detroit
Western	Dallas	Minnesota	Dallas
Western	St. Louis	Chicago	St. Louis
*No predictions on series involving the New York Rangers and New York Islanders because their playoff positions have not been determined. The same is true for the Los Angeles Kings and the Anaheim Ducks.

Boston was in first place in the division in early March, but the Bruins went into a prolonged slump that lasted through the end of the season. After winning the Presidents' Trophy with the league's best regular-season record in 2013-14, the Bruins have missed the playoffs in back-to-back seasons.

The Washington Capitals are the No. 1 overall seed in the playoffs as a result of winning the Presidents' Trophy this season. They will have home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs, and they will meet the Flyers in the first round.

The Florida Panthers will meet the No. 1 wild-card winner in their first-round matchup. The Rangers have 101 points and are third in the Metropolitan Division. However, they could slip to the No. 1 wild-card spot if the New York Islanders beat the Flyers in the final regular-season game Sunday night. If the Islanders fail to win that game, they will be a wild-card team and face the Panthers.

The Red Wings can take a deep breath now their playoff place is secure and start to prepare for the second-place Tampa Bay Lightning. Those two met in the first round last year, when Detroit jumped out to a 3-2 lead before Tampa Bay came back and won the series.

The Penguins are the hottest team in the Eastern Conference despite their season-sending loss to the Flyers. They will meet the Rangers in the postseason for the third straight year.

In the Western Conference, the Dallas Stars beat the Nashville Predators 3-2 Saturday night while the St. Louis Blues dropped a home game to the Capitals 5-1. That meant Dallas earned the No. 1 spot in the Central Division and the Blues finished second.

Elsewhere on Saturday, The Los Angeles Kings built a 3-0 lead over the Winnipeg Jets, but they could not hold that advantage and lost a 4-3 shootout decision.

The Kings are in first place by one point in the Pacific Division, but the Anaheim Ducks can steal the division title by beating the Capitals on the road Sunday. If the Ducks send the game to overtime and lose, the Kings will win the division because they hold the tiebreaker edge.

The Pacific Division winner will play the Nashville Predators in the first round of the playoffs, while the runner-up will face off against the San Jose Sharks, who finished third in the division.

Predictions (on series that are finalized as of April 10)

Jeff Roberson/Associated Press

The Capitals were the best team in the Eastern Conference by a wide margin this year, and there does not appear to be any possible opponents that could get the best of them. However, the Caps' history is steeped in playoff failure. With that comes a great deal of pressure.

The Flyers surged to earn a spot in the playoffs, but playing in the postseason and actually winning therein are two different things. Claude Giroux, Wayne Simmonds and Jakub Voracek are good enough to push the Capitals hard and possibly win two games, but look for Washington to take the series in six games

Detroit may have the most favorable matchup of any team that does not have home-ice advantage in the first round. Tampa Bay will not find its offense without Steven Stamkos—who will likely miss the first round because of a blood clot—and the Red Wings will get revenge after losing last year's series. Detroit wins in five games.

In the Western Conference, the St. Louis Blues will try to overcome their history of playoff failures against the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks. This time, the Blues will score the clutch goals and beat the Blackhawks in seven games.

The Dallas Stars won the Central and came away with the best record in the Western Conference. They will face the Minnesota Wild, the No. 2 wild-card team in the first round. The Wild will win a couple of games, but the Stars will survive and advance.