NHL Eastern Conference: Round 1 Preview and Picks
By RYAN STETSON
Washington Capitals (1) vs. Montreal Canadiens (8) – season series (2-1-1 for Washington)
Expect a bunch of goals in this series. Both teams put everything at the net and neither have the goaltending to win 2-1 games. Ovechkin gets all the headlines, but it’ll be Nicklas Backstrom who gives the Caps the boost they’ll need.
The Canadiens limped into the postseason and don’t have the makeup to compete with Washington, especially when the Caps get the puck deep and start circling and cycling.
Hal Gill and the rest of the Montreal defense are going to have a terrible time chasing the puck in their own end and the team’s under-sized forward unit will need a lot of power play goals to make this series interesting.
Pick: Capitals in five games
New Jersey Devils (2) at Philadelphia Flyers (7) – season series (5-1 for Philadelphia)
You can’t knock Philadelphia’s intensity. The Flyers hung on down the stretch of the regular season and look to overcome some questionable goaltending (what else is new?) with gritty play, leaning on their big defense. They’ll have their hands full, too.
Don’t be surprised if Ilya Kovalchuk takes hold of this series, his first taste of NHL playoff hockey. The Devils have enough depth up front that he doesn’t feel like he needs to do everything for this club and everybody seems to be gelling in the dressing room. He might be just what New Jersey needs to help Brodeur make another deep run.
Pick: Devils in six games
Buffalo Sabres (3) vs. Boston Bruins (6) – season series (4-1 for Boston)
The Bruins are a tough read here. Injuries have ripped this team apart, rookie goalie Tuukka Raask has emerged to put reigning Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas on the bench and Boston’s offense has been terrible all year. So there are some question marks with the Bruins.
Buffalo, meanwhile, has one constant: goaltender Ryan Miller, a Hart Trophy candidate this season. Miller can win this series on his own if it comes down to it.
Keep an eye on the totals for this series. We could be in for a lot of unders.
Pick: Buffalo in four games
Pittsburgh Penguins (4) vs. Ottawa Senators (5) – season series (2-2 tie)
It’d be easy just to pencil Pittsburgh past the Sens, but Sidney Crosby’s club has some work ahead of it. Jason Spezza shook off a bad start to the season to finish strong and Daniel Alfredsson continues to roll along as one of the better captains in the league.
Ottawa will need both of those guys to step up huge with the enigma Alex Kovalev on the shelf. Meanwhile, Brian Elliott is holding the fort in goal, or was during the regular season anyway. This will be his first taste of the postseason.
The Pens look to be rounding into form just in time for the start of this series. Evgeni Malkin’s really hitting his stride over the last week or two (remember, he topped the playoff scoring board last year) and Jordan Stall is as steady as ever. This is the best team down the middle in the league, which means a lot this time of year.
Pick: Penguins in five games