It's the best time of year — the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs are here.
Always a high-octane affair with the speed and skill turned up a notch, one little bounce can change the entire course of a game, series or even a team's destiny.
Who will advance is always an unknown but our Sporting News hockey experts attempted to look into the future and see which teams will stay on the road to the Stanley Cup and which teams will be parking their car instead.
SN STAFF PREDICTIONS:
Eastern Conference | Western Conference
Jackie Spiegel
| FIRST ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning (A1) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (W2) | Tampa Bay in 4 |
| Boston Bruins (A2) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (A3) | Toronto in 7 |
| Washington Capitals (M1) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (W1) | Washington in 6 |
| New York Islanders (M2) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (M3) | New York in 7 |
| Calgary Flames (P1) vs. Colorado Avalanche (W2) | Calgary in 6 |
| San Jose Sharks (P2) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (P3) | San Jose in 7 |
| Nashville Predators (C1) vs. Dallas Stars (W1) | Nashville in 5 |
| Winnipeg Jets (C2) vs. St. Louis Blues (C3) | St. Louis in 7 |
| SECOND ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Toronto Maple Leafs | Tampa Bay Lightning in 5 |
| Washington Capitals vs. New York Islanders | Washington in 6 |
| Calgary Flames vs. San Jose Sharks | San Jose in 5 |
| Nashville Predators vs. St. Louis Blues | St. Louis Blues in 6 |
| CONFERENCE FINALS | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Washington Capitals | Tampa Bay in 5 |
| San Jose Sharks vs. St. Louis Blues | San Jose in 6 |
| STANLEY CUP FINAL | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. San Jose Sharks | San Jose in 6 |
Conn Smythe: Joe Pavelski
Brandon Schlager
| FIRST ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning (A1) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (W2) | Tampa Bay in 5 |
| Boston Bruins (A2) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (A3) | Toronto in 7 |
| Washington Capitals (M1) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (W1) | Washington in 6 |
| New York Islanders (M2) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (M3) | Pittsburgh 6 |
| Calgary Flames (P1) vs. Colorado Avalanche (W2) | Colorado in 6 |
| San Jose Sharks (P2) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (P3) | San Jose in 7 |
| Nashville Predators (C1) vs. Dallas Stars (W1) | Nashville in 6 |
| Winnipeg Jets (C2) vs. St. Louis Blues (C3) | Winnipeg in 6 |
| SECOND ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Toronto Maple Leafs | Tampa Bay in 7 |
| Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins | Pittsburgh in 6 |
| Colorado Avalanche vs. San Jose Sharks | San Jose in 5 |
| Nashville Predators vs. Winnipeg Jets | Nashville in 6 |
| CONFERENCE FINALS | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Pittsburgh Penguins | Tampa Bay in 6 |
| Nashville Predators vs. San Jose Sharks | Nashville in 7 |
| STANLEY CUP FINAL | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Nashville Predators | Tampa Bay in 6 |
Conn Smythe: Steven Stamkos
Steve Kournianos
| FIRST ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning (A1) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (W2) | Tampa Bay in 6 |
| Boston Bruins (A2) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (A3) | Toronto in 6 |
| Washington Capitals (M1) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (W1) | Carolina in 7 |
| New York Islanders (M2) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (M3) | New York in 7 |
| Calgary Flames (P1) vs. Colorado Avalanche (W2) | Calgary in 6 |
| San Jose Sharks (P2) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (P3) | Vegas in 5 |
| Nashville Predators (C1) vs. Dallas Stars (W1) | Nashville in 7 |
| Winnipeg Jets (C2) vs. St. Louis Blues (C3) | Winnipeg in 7 |
| SECOND ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Toronto Maple Leafs | Tampa Bay in 5 |
| New York Islanders vs. Carolina Hurricanes | New York in 6 |
| Calgary Flames vs. Vegas Golden Knights | Vegas in 7 |
| Nashville Predators vs. Winnipeg Jets | Winnipeg in 6 |
| CONFERENCE FINALS | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. New York Islanders | Tampa Bay in 5 |
| Nashville Predators vs. Vegas Golden Knights | Nashville in 6 |
| STANLEY CUP FINAL | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Nashville Predators | Tampa Bay in 5 |
Conn Smythe: Andrei Vasilevskiy
Dave McCarthy
| FIRST ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning (A1) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (W2) | Tampa Bay in 5 |
| Boston Bruins (A2) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (A3) | Boston in 7 |
| Washington Capitals (M1) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (W1) | Washington in 5 |
| New York Islanders (M2) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (M3) | Pittsburgh in 6 |
| Calgary Flames (P1) vs. Colorado Avalanche (W2) | Calgary in 6 |
| San Jose Sharks (P2) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (P3) | Vegas in 6 |
| Nashville Predators (C1) vs. Dallas Stars (W1) | Dallas in 7 |
| Winnipeg Jets (C2) vs. St. Louis Blues (C3) | Winnipeg in 7 |
| SECOND ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Boston Bruins | Tampa Bay in 6 |
| Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins | Washington in 7 |
| Calgary Flames vs. Vegas Golden Knights | Vegas in 6 |
| Winnipeg Jets vs. Dallas Stars | Winnipeg in 5 |
| CONFERENCE FINALS | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Washington Capitals | Tampa Bay in 7 |
| Winnipeg Jets vs. Vegas Golden Knights | Vegas in 7 |
| STANLEY CUP FINAL | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Vegas Golden Knights | Tampa Bay in 6 |
Conn Smythe: Steven Stamkos
Mike Murphy
| FIRST ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning (A1) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (W2) | Tampa Bay in 5 |
| Boston Bruins (A2) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (A3) | Boston in 6 |
| Washington Capitals (M1) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (W1) | Washington in 6 |
| New York Islanders (M2) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (M3) | Pittsburgh in 7 |
| Calgary Flames (P1) vs. Colorado Avalanche (W2) | Calgary in 5 |
| San Jose Sharks (P2) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (P3) | San Jose in 7 |
| Nashville Predators (C1) vs. Dallas Stars (W1) | Nashville in 6 |
| Winnipeg Jets (C2) vs. St. Louis Blues (C3) | St. Louis in 6 |
| SECOND ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Boston Bruins | Tampa Bay in 6 |
| Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins | Washington in 5 |
| Calgary Flames vs. San Jose Sharks | Calgary in 7 |
| Nashville Predators vs. St. Louis Blues | St. Louis in 6 |
| CONFERENCE FINALS | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Washington Capitals | Tampa Bay in 7 |
| Calgary Flames vs. St. Louis Blues | Calgary in 5 |
| STANLEY CUP FINAL | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Calgary Flames | Tampa Bay in 6 |
Conn Smythe: Brayden Point
Murray Pam
| FIRST ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning (A1) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (W2) | Tampa Bay in 5 |
| Boston Bruins (A2) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (A3) | Boston in 7 |
| Washington Capitals (M1) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (W1) | Washington in 6 |
| New York Islanders (M2) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (M3) | Pittsburgh in 7 |
| Calgary Flames (P1) vs. Colorado Avalanche (W2) | Calgary in 6 |
| San Jose Sharks (P2) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (P3) | Vegas in 7 |
| Nashville Predators (C1) vs. Dallas Stars (W1) | Nashville in 6 |
| Winnipeg Jets (C2) vs. St. Louis Blues (C3) | St. Louis in 7 |
| SECOND ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Boston Bruins | Tampa Bay in 7 |
| Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins | Washington in 7 |
| Calgary Flames vs. Vegas Golden Knights | Calgary in 7 |
| St. Louis Blues vs. Nashville Predators | St. Louis in 7 |
| CONFERENCE FINALS | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Washington Capitals | Tampa Bay in 6 |
| Calgary Flames vs. St. Louis Blues | Calgary in 6 |
| STANLEY CUP FINAL | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Calgary Flames | Tampa Bay in 6 |
Conn Smythe: Brayden Point
Lyle Richardson
| FIRST ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning (A1) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (W2) | Tampa Bay in 4 |
| Boston Bruins (A2) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (A3) | Boston in 6 |
| Washington Capitals (M1) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (W1) | Washington in 5 |
| New York Islanders (M2) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (M3) | Pittsburgh in 7 |
| Calgary Flames (P1) vs. Colorado Avalanche (W2) | Calgary in 5 |
| San Jose Sharks (P2) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (P3) | Vegas in 7 |
| Nashville Predators (C1) vs. Dallas Stars (W1) | Dallas in 6 |
| Winnipeg Jets (C2) vs. St. Louis Blues (C3) | St. Louis in 6 |
| SECOND ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Boston Bruins | Tampa Bay in 6 |
| Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins | Washington in 7 |
| Calgary Flames vs. Vegas Golden Knights | Calgary in 6 |
| St. Louis Blues vs. Dallas Stars | St. Louis in 5 |
| CONFERENCE FINALS | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Washington Capitals | Tampa Bay in 6 |
| Calgary Flames vs. St. Louis Blues | Calgary in 6 |
| STANLEY CUP FINAL | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Calgary Flames | Tampa Bay in 6 |
Conn Smythe: Nikita Kucherov
Sammi Silber
| FIRST ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning (A1) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (W2) | Tampa Bay in 5 |
| Boston Bruins (A2) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (A3) | Boston in 7 |
| Washington Capitals (M1) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (W1) | Washington in 6 |
| New York Islanders (M2) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (M3) | Pittsburgh in 7 |
| Calgary Flames (P1) vs. Colorado Avalanche (W2) | Calgary in 6 |
| San Jose Sharks (P2) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (P3) | Vegas in 7 |
| Nashville Predators (C1) vs. Dallas Stars (W1) | Nashville in 6 |
| Winnipeg Jets (C2) vs. St. Louis Blues (C3) | Winnipeg in 5 |
| SECOND ROUND | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Boston Bruins | Tampa Bay in 6 |
| Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins | Washington in 7 |
| Calgary Flames vs. Vegas Golden Knights | Calgary in 5 |
| Nashville Predators vs. Winnipeg Jets | Winnipeg in 5 |
| CONFERENCE FINALS | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Washington Capitals | Tampa Bay in 7 |
| Calgary Flames vs. Winnipeg Jets | Winnipeg in 5 |
| STANLEY CUP FINAL | WINNER |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Winnipeg Jets | Winnipeg in 6 |
Conn Smythe: Blake Wheeler