Stanley Cup playoffs: Looking at conference semis
And then there were eight. In the National Hockey League, that’s how many teams remain in the 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs. After eight terrific first-round series that only saw one sweep, we have a quartet of conference semifinals matchups to salivate over.
In the Eastern Conference, the top-seeded New York Rangers dispatched the Pittsburgh Penguins in five games (including two overtime thrillers) to earn advancement. The Rangers are playing the Washington Capitals, a tough, physical group that came into Madison Square Garden and beat New York on Thursday night with a second remaining in regulation of Game 1.
Washington barely got to this point, having to fight tooth-and-nail to defeat the New York Islanders in seven games. The Rangers are the most talented team in the conference, boasting a cavalcade of stars including Henrik Lundqvist, Rick Nash, Martin St. Louis and more. However, they face a virtual must-win on Saturday afternoon.
The other Eastern matchup features a contrast in styles. The Tampa Bay Lightning are squaring off against the Montreal Canadiens, meeting for Game 1 on Friday night in the Bell Centre. Tampa Bay had to win Games 6 and 7 against the gritty Detroit Red Wings to advance, while the Canadiens dispatched the Ottawa Senators in six games after winning the first three.
Montreal plays a defensive game centered around superstar goaltender Carey Price, a contender for the Vezina Trophy. Tampa Bay has solid goaltending in Ben Bishop, but its calling card is a wide array of offensive talents, ranging from Steven Stamkos and Ryan Callahan to Tyler Johnson and Nikita Kucherov.
Out West, we have a pair of interesting clashes. In the Pacific Division, we have the Anaheim Ducks and Calgary Flames. Anaheim took Calgary apart in Game 1 at the Honda Center, scoring a half-dozen goals en route to a 6-1 victory on Thursday evening. Corey Perry led the Ducks with a pair of goals and two assists, giving him 11 points in five playoff games this year. Anaheim is yet to lose in the postseason after sweeping the Winnipeg Jets in the first round.
Calgary is the Cinderella story of the 2014-15 season and continued the narrative in the first round, beating the Vancouver Canucks in six games. The Flames have plenty of firepower themselves, ranking sixth in scoring in the regular season. Johnny Gaudreau is the main name to watch, having notched 24 goals and 64 points as a 21-year-old.
In the last series, we have a titanic matchup between the Chicago Blackhawks and Minnesota Wild. Chicago and Minnesota both moved on in six games from the quarterfinals, beating the Nashville Predators and St. Louis Blues, respectively. Chicago is perhaps the most talented team in the league but Minnesota won’t be a pushover.
The Wild are an excellent defensive team which employed the best penalty kill in the regular season and came in sixth in goals allowed. The top defenseman is Ryan Suter, who has logged a team-high 26:05 of ice time per game in the postseason. Minnesota also has star forward Zach Parise, who has seven points in six games thus far in the playoffs.
