The NHL’s eastern conference was the first to have every playoff spot clinched, and seeding was final after Tuesday evening. With Florida out of the playoff picture, many wonder if Carolina and Tampa Bay can finally return to the conference championships or go further. Many believe the Hurricanes or the Lightning will make the finals. Elsewhere, Montreal, Ottawa and Philadelphia improved this season but drew difficult first round opponents. Boston and Pittsburgh have the capabilities to make deep playoff runs. The Buffalo Sabres didn’t just return to the Stanley Cup playoffs, they did so by dominating the last four months and won the Atlantic division. Only four teams will advance to the second round. Time to break down which four have the best chance.
#8 Ottawa Senators v. #1 Carolina Hurricanes
Two of the NHL’s hottest teams should have a fun first round series. Ottawa and Carolina mirror each other in several ways. From hard-hitting goal scorers to questions in net all season, the Senators and Hurricanes are a great test for each other.
In this case, the more veteran team should win this series. This is the second postseason appearance for coach Travis Green’s roster, and it’s against a finals favorite opponent. Carolina’s one of the most complete NHL teams and have a lot more depth in every position. Ottawa’s defense has improved, but their penalty kill remains one of the league’s worst. The Hurricanes’ better defense and offensive firepower might be too much for the younger Senators the longer this series goes.
Prediction: Hurricanes win series 4-1
#7 Boston Bruins v. #2 Buffalo Sabres
Congratulations to Buffalo for snapping their 14 year playoff drought. No NHL team had gone that long missing the postseason. It is still bizarre to see the Sabres this good after they started the first two months of the 2025 regular season playing sub-.500 hockey.
Still, Buffalo is a serious threat for any team wanting to reach the finals. Boston is a good test for the most inexperienced NHL playoff team. The veteran Bruins also surprised viewers with their scoring depth and shutdown defense. Although star forward David Pastrnak has been in a goal drought this month, Boston had a top 15 (11th) offense and a top ten (ninth) power-play. Despite those accomplishments, it’s the Sabres offense that will swarm the Bruins defense each game, much like they did almost every other opponent since mid-December. Boston’s playoff experienced offense has more advantages against a bend-but-don’t-break Buffalo defense. That latter matchup favors Boston in an inevitable long series.
Eastern conference upset prediction: Bruins win series 4-2
#4 Montreal Canadiens v. #3 Tampa Bay Lightning
This series closely resembles the Ottawa-Carolina series. We see two great teams with the potential to make this the best first round series. One team is led by a young, talented core of hard-hitting scorers while the other is filled with championship veterans and a respected Stanley Cup winner behind the bench. Both teams pushed each other around in their regular season matchups.
Unlike the Senators though, the Canadiens were great almost the entire season. However, they’re still an inexperienced playoff team. The Lightning may not have captain and franchise star defenseman Victor Hedman (due to a leave of absence), but they want to rid their memories from the last few disastrous postseason trips. A younger Montreal in the first round is a perfect opponent to get back to their championship winning ways. This series should go longer than Ottawa-Carolina, but the result will be the same.
Prediction: Lightning win series 4-2
#6 Philadelphia Flyers v. #5 Pittsburgh Penguins
Talk about an unexpected first round series matchup! Neither team was expected to make the playoffs for a number of reasons. Coaching was a big factor. After a decade of Mike Sullivan, Pittsburgh moved on and hired Dan Muse. Muse instantly turned things around for both the defense and special teams. Defenseman Erik Karlsson plays like the former Norris trophy winner older fans remembered. Forward Anthony Mantha led the team with 32 goals after he was poached in free agency from Washington. Rickard Rakell and Bryan Rust added depth scoring and made the power-play more dangerous.
Philadelphia’s coach Rick Tocchet made sure the offense took a few steps forward while the defense retained its identity and stability. It was important free agent addition Trevor Zegras had a breakout season and Matvei Michkov grew in his sophomore year. The Flyers offense benefitted from both of them helping out forwards Owen Tippett, Christian Dvorak and long-time veteran Travis Konecny to get on the scoreboard almost every game.
This series should go the distance since neither team has a complete edge in any one area except special teams. Pittsburgh has the edge on offense, but Philadelphia has the edge on defense. Special teams easily favor the Penguins since the Flyers were dead last on the power-play. However, this is an intense in-state rivalry, meaning anything could happen any given night. Regardless of what the rosters look like, Pittsburgh is the more determined team and has a more experienced roster that will get them past any hardships the younger, energetic Philadelphia throws at them.
Prediction: Penguins win series 4-3
Regular season eastern conference playoffs prediction record: 3-5
JD's Sportscorner 