The first round of the NHL’s Stanley Cup Playoffs is in the books and featured goaltending controversies and injuries, two Game 7 thrillers, and another heart-breaking ouster for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Now, the hockey world turns its attention to the second round, so we’re putting together a quick pair of preview articles for what to look for in this next set of games, starting in the Eastern Conference.

The Seattle Kraken are already out working on their golf game, but the team’s front office is busy trying to fill the head coaching position as well as finding some needed scoring for next season. Here, we will consider each of the second-round playoff matchups and call out any unrestricted free agents (UFA’s) that might be of interest to the Kraken, focusing on forwards with an offensive touch. Hopefully, that can give you some players to watch while you are unable to root for the Kraken.

New York Rangers vs Carolina Hurricanes

Season series between Carolina and New York

• Nov. 2 – New York Rangers won 2-1
• Jan. 2 – Carolina Hurricanes won 6-1
• Mar. 12 – New York Rangers won 1-0

The Rangers also jumped out to a 1-0 series lead with a 4-3 win at Madison Square Garden in Game 1 on Sunday.

New York Rangers overview

The New York Rangers hold the season series edge at 2-1, but that is a little deceiving. In those games, Carolina only gave up four total goals and scored seven on Igor Shesterkin. Plus, Frederik Andersen sat out most of the year due to a blood clotting issue but returned in early March. Since returning, Andersen has played in 15 games (including playoffs) and went 13-2.

The Rangers won the Presidents Trophy for a reason. They scored 3.39 goals per game (seventh in the league during the regular season), have an excellent goaltender in Shesterkin, and their power play and penalty kill are top three in the NHL. Key additions at the deadline were former Seattle Kraken Alex Wennberg and former Columbus Blue Jacket Jack Roslovic. Both of these players are shoring up the depth for New York, but Wennberg is still contributing on 5-on-5, power play, and penalty kill scenarios.

One item of note for Kraken fans, Seattle received New York’s second-round draft pick in 2024 for Wennberg. If New York were to lose this series, four teams would finish above them, and the pick would improve to No. 61 (from No. 65). There are 33 picks in the second round because the Philadelphia Flyers have a compensatory pick for not signing their 2018 first-round draft pick, Jay O’Brien. If the New York Rangers win the series, Seattle’s acquired pick will fall in the 63-65 range.

Carolina Hurricanes overview

The Carolina Hurricanes are no slouch either and finished just three points behind the Rangers. The Hurricanes were eighth in the NHL in scoring in the regular season, have a very good goaltending tandem in Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov, have the second-best power play in the league and the best overall penalty kill. Key additions at the trade detail were Jake Guentzel and Evgeny Kuznetsov. Guentzel has been a perfect fit with the team’s offense and has scored 29 points in 22 games since arriving in Carolina.

Both of these teams have a legitimate shot at winning the Stanley Cup if they can make it out of the second round. Expect this series to go the distance or close to it.

Key UFA’s to watch during this series:

Prediction: Carolina wins in seven games

Florida Panthers vs Boston Bruins

Season series between Florida and Boston

• Oct. 30 – Boston Bruins won 3-2 in overtime
• Nov. 22 – Boston Bruins won 3-1
• Mar. 26 – Boston Bruins won 4-3
• Apr. 6 – Boston Bruins won 3-2 in overtime

The Boston Bruins swept the season series, but they were all close games with two being decided in overtime. Both Boston and Florida played better on the road in the season series. The Panthers have home-ice advantage, but does that mean Boston actually has the edge in this series?

The teams are also evenly matched when looking at goals scored, power play, and penalty kill.

The Bruins are more likable than they used to be, thanks to former Kraken Morgan Geekie joining the fold.

Goaltending

The difference in this series could come down to goaltending. As a team, Florida statistically had the best goaltending in the league and relied heavily on Sergei Bobrovsky playing 57 games with Anthony Stolarz playing the remaining 25. Boston’s duo of Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark was the fifth-best tandem in the league but had a much more even split of games with Swayman playing 43 and Ullmark playing 39.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out, as Stolarz was excellent in the regular season. Stolarz actually led the entire NHL in save percentage (.925) and goals-against average (2.03), but it should be noted that out of Stolarz’s 25 games, only seven were against teams that made the playoffs and zero were against teams still remaining in the playoffs. Even with Florida being the No. 1 goaltending duo, the depth that Boston has at the position is an asset. We would expect Bobrovsky to play every game for Florida, assuming he doesn’t get hurt or have a stinker, and the Bruins to continue rotating.

If things go haywire in the crease for the Panthers, Kraken legend Magnus Hellberg is waiting in the wings.

Trade deadline additions

Boston did struggle to score in their last three games, only potting four total goals. That will not get it done against Florida, and the Bruins will have to find their scoring touch again. Boston did not add any key players at the deadline, other than Patrick Maroon who has played in four Stanley Cup Finals, helping his team win in three of them.

Florida added two players of note at the deadline, Vladimir Tarasenko and Kyle Okposo. Tarasenko has been a good fit and has chipped in 14 points in 19 games. Okposo has not worked out as well and has seen his playing time reduced to 7:19 per game in the playoffs.

Key UFA’s to watch during this series:

Prediction: Boston wins in six games

Wrap up

Any one of the four teams in the Eastern Conference is good enough to hoist the Stanley Cup this year. Both series should be hard fought and exciting to watch.

Unrelated, if you’re looking for a hockey fix that has more relevance to the Seattle Kraken, the Coachella Valley Firebirds are playing a best-of-five series against the Calgary Wranglers in the AHL’s Calder Cup Playoffs.

• Game 1 – May 3, 6:00 pm in Calgary (4-1 Loss)
• Game 2 – May 5, 3:00 pm in Calgary (4-3 Win in overtime)
• Game 3 – May 8, 8:00 pm in Coachella Valley
• Game 4 – May 10, 7:00 pm in Coachella Valley
• Game 5 – May 12, 3:00 pm in Coachella Valley (if needed)