The first round of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs have concluded. There was a record number of overtime games this year and that would indicate we had some close battles, but there were no Game 7's to enjoy.
Here are some quick thoughts on round one.
The goaltender position hates Bruce Boudreau. He is never on the right side of it. His team outplayed St. Louis for the entire series and he got Halak'd by Jake Allen of all people.
He's not wrong in the least bit. There really isn't much more to say. The problem for Minnesota (other than obviously losing) is that they played the rental game this year and got nothing for it. That's the risk any team takes while doing it. The Parise and Suter contracts will never be better than they are in this moment and they aren't even close to ending.
San Jose got beat by the Edmonton Oilers and the problematic part about it was that Connor McDavid only had four points. The Sharks reached their pinnacle last year and unfortunately for them ran into the Pittsburgh Penguins buzzsaw. I see things getting worse before they get better in San Jose. The Joe Thornton situation is very intriguing. He can go whereever he wants for how much he wants. Will he stay loyal to the Sharks or chase a Stanley Cup (like he should).
Anaheim had their way with Calgary. If the Flames can shore up their depth they will be a very good team. Also, Brian Elliott did not play well enough for them. Look for Calgary to be active on the goalie market that will have options like Ben Bishop, Scott Darling, and Marc-Andre Fleury.
Nashville is very good. The Blues are going to have their hands full in that series. Will Jake Allen continue to lead the NHL in save percentage or will he turn back into a pumpkin?
Boston's injuries were too much to overcome and Erik Karlsson is a freak of nature. Boston had what I thought was a free pass to the Conference Finals being on that side of the bracket, but Torey Krug and David Krejci are good players that they couldn't replace. It's a fairly big missed opportunity for Boston. Ottawa on the other hand has a great draw. They get the Rangers who aren't the Penguins or Capitals.
Montreal decided to load up on the character and grit this year and they fell flat on their face. They have some nice players on the roster, but when you fill out your depth forwards with possession black holes void of offensive talent it doesn't matter if Carey Price is in net. Carey Price's presence doesn't give the general manager a free pass to screw up a bunch of roster moves. Even Price isn't good enough to overcome that. The King is still the King in New York. The Rangers might not possess the puck well, but they do roll four lines that can skate and attack on transition. Sometimes that is enough in a seven game series with Hank. It was in round one and could be in round two.
Toronto put up a great fight against the league's top team. Their skill and style of play should be applauded. They are the kind of team the league should want. Very fun. The speed of Toronto gave Washington fits, but the Capitals have a deep and talented roster. Pittsburgh is the adult version of Toronto so I see no reason why Pittsburgh's speed can't give Washington the same fits. Might come down to goaltending...
I have no original thoughts about the playoff format. I don't think the Capitals were rewarded for their season by having to play the most talented Atlantic Division team and then one of the best teams in the league in round 2. One of Washington or Pittsburgh will be done. One of New York or Ottawa will be moving on. That's rough.
I think given how successful Nashville was against Chicago they should be able to replicate that performance against St. Louis who will need .956 goaltending again. If Rinne doesn't implode I don't see how the Blues can get by.
Edmonton slayed one California team, but I'm not sure they can make it two. Anaheim can run Hampus Lindholm out there against McDavid and while nobody can completely shutdown Connor McDavid I think Lindholm's skating ability and talent lends itself to doing the best job a player can do.
I see the New York Rangers as a slight favorite against Ottawa. They have a deep group of forwards and one of the best goalies ever. Ottawa has some nice forwards on their side and Erik Karlsson. If Andersen can match Hank, which he could, it would really make for a good series.
I'll have a lot more on Washington and Pittsburgh in the coming days. Here's the schedule
I'm not so sure about that, Nick.
Thanks for reading!
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