NHL Playoff Bracket 2019: Matchups, Predictions and Saturday's Round 1 Schedule

Don't worry about missing any NHL playoff action on Saturday. Beginning at 3 p.m. ET, there will be four games with no overlapping start times (pending potential overtimes), meaning it will be a great day for hockey fans.

The first round of the postseason continues with four matchups, with teams either looking to avoid 2-0 deficits or obtain 2-0 leads ahead of arena shifts for the next two games of the series.

Here is the full bracket for this year's NHL playoffs.

Saturday Playoff Schedule

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

Saturday Predictions

Four teams are looking to take 2-0 series leads. However, only one team will make that happen.

The Calgary Flames had a convincing 4-0 win in their first game against the Colorado Avalanche, and they should have no problem taking a 2-0 series lead before the series moves to Denver. Veteran goalie Mike Smith had an impressive 26-save performance in the shutout win.

The 37-year-old praised the Calgary fans after Thursday's victory.

"Honestly, I haven't quite heard anything like that before in my career," Smith said, according to the Associated Press (h/t ESPN.com). "It honestly gives you some confidence, obviously, when you're hearing your name get chanted. I haven't quite experienced what I experienced tonight in my 13 years in this league."

Derek Leung/Getty Images

Expect another strong performance from Smith to lead the Flames to another postseason win.

The Washington Capitals may have won the Stanley Cup last year, but they had their share of postseason struggles before that. And although they beat the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 1, it was a close game.

The Hurricanes scored two third-period goals after the Capitals had taken an early 3-0 lead, and they had the chance to tie the game late. The resilience Carolina showed will lead to it notching a Game 2 win and tying the series before it moves to the Hurricanes' home ice.

In order to do that, Carolina knows one thing that must improve from Game 1.

"Obviously our power play has to better, a little crisper and create more chances, more shots," center Jordan Staal said, according to Chip Alexander of the News & Observer.

The Nashville Predators and Boston Bruins each lost Game 1 of their series on their home ice. They both need to win their respective Game 2s to avoid facing 2-0 deficits when they head on the road for the next two games of their series.

They will both find ways to get that done. The Predators and Bruins were strong teams during the regular season, and they are going to make their series, with the Dallas Stars and Toronto Maple Leafs, respectively, competitive.