NHL Playoffs 2019: 1st-Round Schedule, Ranking Top Stanley Cup Contenders

Will the Tampa Bay Lightning keep dominating in the playoffs? Can the Washington Capitals repeat as Stanley Cup champions? And which team from the Western Conference has the best chance to win it all?

There are plenty of storylines as the NHL playoffs are set to get started on Wednesday. Five first-round series will begin that night, followed by three more on Thursday night.

Get ready, hockey fans, because the next seven weeks will be filled with the best teams in the NHL battling it out for the Stanley Cup.

First-Round Schedule (All Times ET)

*If necessary

Games can be live-streamed on NBC Sports Live

Wednesday, April 10

Game 1: Columbus at Tampa Bay, 7 p.m., USA Network

Game 1: Pittsburgh at N.Y. Islanders, 7:30 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Game 1: St. Louis at Winnipeg, 8 p.m., NHL Network

Game 1: Dallas at Nashville, 9:30 p.m., USA Network

Game 1: Vegas at San Jose, 10:30 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Thursday, April 11

Game 1: Toronto at Boston, 7 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Game 1: Carolina at Washington, 7:30 p.m., USA Network

Game 1: Colorado at Calgary, 10 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Friday, April 12

Game 2: Columbus at Tampa Bay, 7 p.m., CNBC

Game 2: Pittsburgh at N.Y. Islanders, 7:30 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Game 2: St. Louis at Winnipeg, 9:30 p.m., CNBC

Game 2: Vegas at San Jose, 10:30 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Saturday, April 13

Game 2: Carolina at Washington, 3 p.m., NBC

Game 2: Dallas at Nashville, 6 p.m., CNBC

Game 2: Toronto at Boston, 8 p.m., NBC

Game 2: Colorado at Calgary, 10:30 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Sunday, April 14

Game 3: N.Y. Islanders at Pittsburgh, 12 p.m., NBC

Game 3: Tampa Bay at Columbus, 7 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Game 3: Winnipeg at St. Louis, 7:30 p.m., CNBC

Game 3: San Jose at Vegas, 10 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Monday, April 15

Game 3: Boston at Toronto, 7 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Game 3: Washington at Carolina, 7 p.m., CNBC

Game 3: Nashville at Dallas, 9:30 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Game 3: Calgary at Colorado, 10 p.m., CNBC

Tuesday, April 16

Game 4: Tampa Bay at Columbus, 7 p.m., CNBC

Game 4: N.Y. Islanders at Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Game 4: Winnipeg at St. Louis, 9:30 p.m., CNBC

Game 4: San Jose at Vegas, 10:30 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Wednesday, April 17

Game 4: Boston at Toronto, 7 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Game 4: Nashville at Dallas, 8 p.m., USA Network

Game 4: Calgary at Colorado, 10 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Thursday, April 18

Game 4: Washington at Carolina, 7 p.m.

Game 5: Vegas at San Jose, TBD*

Game 5: St. Louis at Winnipeg, TBD*

Game 5: Pittsburgh at N.Y. Islanders, TBD*

Friday, April 19

Game 5: Columbus at Tampa Bay, TBD*

Game 5: Toronto at Boston, TBD*

Game 5: Colorado at Calgary, TBD*

Saturday, April 20

Game 5: Carolina at Washington, TBD*

Game 5: Dallas at Nashville, TBD*

Game 6: Winnipeg at St. Louis, TBD*

Game 6: N.Y. Islanders at Pittsburgh, TBD*

Sunday, April 21

Game 6: Tampa Bay at Columbus, TBD*

Game 6: Boston at Toronto, TBD*

Game 6: San Jose at Vegas, TBD*

Game 6: Calgary at Colorado, TBD*

Monday, April 22

Game 6: Washington at Carolina, TBD*

Game 6: Nashville at Dallas, TBD*

Game 7: St. Louis at Winnipeg, TBD*

Game 7: Pittsburgh at N.Y. Islanders, TBD*

Tuesday, April 23

Game 7: Columbus at Tampa Bay, TBD*

Game 7: Toronto at Boston, TBD*

Game 7: Vegas at San Jose, TBD*

Game 7: Colorado at Calgary, TBD*

Wednesday, April 24

Game 7: Carolina at Washington, TBD*

Game 7: Dallas at Nashville, TBD*

Ranking Top Stanley Cup Contenders

1. Tampa Bay Lightning

The Lightning enter the playoffs as the heavy favorite to win it all, as they appear to be the team most equipped to make a run to the Stanley Cup.

Not only were they the best team by far in the NHL during the regular season, but this is a team that nearly made it to the Stanley Cup finals a year ago. Tampa Bay lost to Washington in seven games in the Eastern Conference finals last season.

"You know, we came into this season with a little chip on our shoulder with the way the season ended last year," Lightning center Steven Stamkos said, according to the Tampa Bay Times. "And now's the time to show it."

That's what Tampa Bay is going to do. There's little chance that the Lightning lose early in the playoffs. Their biggest obstacle may be getting past the defending champion Capitals in an Eastern Conference finals rematch, should that scenario arise.

But this is a team that led the NHL in points (128), wins (62) and goals (325), as it had three players—Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point—each score more than 40 goals. The Lightning will be difficult to beat.

2. Washington Capitals

Nick Wass/Associated Press

Gone are the days when the Capitals dominated during the regular season only to choke during the playoffs.

Longtime star Alex Ovechkin finally won a Stanley Cup in his 13th season last year, as Washington moved past its prior postseason failures. Now, Ovechkin—who led the NHL with 51 goals—and the Capitals are looking to win back-to-back championships.

"I feel like it's just a different game in the playoffs," Washington center Nicklas Backstrom said, according to The Washington Times. "It's just a tighter game, too. Players are more aware of mistakes than in the regular season."

But the Capitals now know what it takes to be successful in the postseason. And although they have a first-year coach at the helm in Todd Reirden, they also have veteran leadership on the ice to help guide them through the playoffs.

3. Calgary Flames

Jae C. Hong/Associated Press

The Flames are the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, so they'll have home-ice advantage that they'll use to get through their side of the bracket and into the Stanley Cup finals.

Their toughest obstacle will come in the second round, when they will play either the San Jose Sharks or the Vegas Golden Knights. But Calgary will get past that and go on to win the Eastern Conference.

It'll be tough for the Flames to win the Stanley Cup, having to face either the Lightning or Capitals in the finals, but if there's any team in the Western Conference that can knock off one of those two Eastern Conference powers, it's Calgary.

No Canadian team has won the Stanley Cup since the Montreal Canadiens in 1993, so the Flames are looking to end that drought.