When the NHL puts the Pacific Division back in place for the 2021-2022 season, the Seattle Kraken will see a lot of the once mighty Los Angeles Kings. It seems like just yesterday they won two Stanley Cups in three years – the last win was 2014 – but since then the Kings have missed the playoffs in five of seven seasons.
Their two playoff appearances – in 2016 and 2018 – both ended in first-round knockouts.
The key players, like Anze Kopitar, Drew Doughty, and Jonathan Quick, from those Cup teams are still on the roster. So, what gives? Why are they bad? Time has played a role as those players are not as effective as they once were, but also, the supporting cast is gone, replaced by younger players.
Seattle should beware, however, because the Kings have cap space and some promising young prospects on the rise. Could an improving Kings team turn a division rivalry into a full-on hate fest? It’s easy not to like Doughty so the chance is definitely there for Seattle to lean into some Kings abhorrence.
Let’s get to know the Kraken division rival Los Angeles Kings
Established: 1967
Nickname history: The name ‘Kings’ came from a fan contest and was liked by original owner Jack Kent Cooke. The team’s original colors were ‘Forum Blue’ and yellow. The colors were changed to black, silver, and white for the 1997 season.
First season in NHL: 1967-1968 (31-33-10 record)
AHL affiliate: Ontario Reign
ECHL affiliate: None
Stanley Cup Final appearances: 1993 (lost to Montreal), 2012 (beat New Jersey), and 2014 (beat New York Rangers)
Presidents’ Trophies: none
Division titles: One (1990-1991)
All-time leading scorer: Marcel Dionne (1,307)
All-time leading goals: Luc Robitaille (557)
All-time leader in assists: Marcel Dionne (757)
2020-2021 record: 21-28-7 (sixth in West Division)
2020-2021 leading scorer: Anze Kopitar (13 goals, 37 assists, 50 points in 56 games)
Are you starting an NHL franchise from scratch? If so, one of the top priorities you’ll need is a defenseman who can move the puck, man the power play, and create offense. The 2021 NHL Draft is littered with such defensemen which is good for the Seattle Kraken, who it turns out are starting an NHL team from scratch. Hailing from Sweden, Simon Edvinsson is such a defenseman who just may be on the Kraken radar during July’s draft.
Seattle will know exactly where it will be selecting in the draft after the lottery on June 2. No matter where their lotto balls fall, they do know that they’ll land somewhere between picks one and five.
There is no consensus top pick in this draft class, nor is there agreement on who the top five picks are going to be. The Kraken have some offensive options to choose from along with a strong class of defensemen.
Edvinsson may be the top blueliner available and is a player to watch.
Simon Edvinsson by the numbers
Edvinsson, 18, is listed at six-foot-five inches tall and 207 pounds which means he’s already NHL sized.
Last season he played for a number of teams, including a 10-game stint with Frolunda in the SHL, Sweden’s top professional league. He also was the top defenseman for Sweden at the U18 World Championships in Texas where Sweden won a bronze medal. In seven games there, he scored a goal while adding four assists.
As is most of this draft class, Edvinsson is all over the map as far as where he’s ranked. Among the various online draft-heads, he shows up as low as ninth and as high as second in the various lists. That puts him in the crosshairs for the Kraken to select Edvinsson.
The pros at NHL Central Scouting have Edvinsson ranked as the second-best international player in their final rankings.
Simon Edvinsson the player
When you look at Edvinsson’s traditional numbers, they don’t jump off the page at you. At no point in any of the leagues he competed in was he a big scorer.
So, why is he considered a top-of-the-draft prospect and a guy who can fill that need for an offensive defenseman?
“The thing about Edvinsson is that whoever is drafting him is drafting the potential,” prospect guru Chris Peters says on his Hockey Sense site. “He’s still pretty raw, hasn’t really figured out how to use his size yet and certainly hasn’t learned how to take charge. I think he’s going to get there with time and development.”
Scouts love his size and the way he skates.
Watching his tape, the potential is there and like a lot of draft-eligible players, the development is still to come.
Simon Edvinsson, #3, LHD playing for Frölunda. 17 year old, a top prospect for the 2021 NHL Draft. pic.twitter.com/HxVnb1659z
He has good vision and ability to set up his teammates. The clip below is at even strength, but watching it you get a sense of what he would look like manning the power play for the Kraken.
While he shows the ability to work the point on the power play, Edvinsson is an excellent skater, especially for a guy his size. He has speed and can be dangerous on the rush, as seen in this clip where he moves the puck from deep in his own end all the way to the attacking zone where he finds an open teammate.
Simon Edvinsson (2021) played his first Allsvenskan game yesterday and picked up this beautiful assist after carrying the puck all the way up the ice #NHLDraftpic.twitter.com/lDW6Tx2b8D
Finally, in this clip, he gets the puck, gets his head up, and makes a smart and accurate lob pass that sets up a dangerous scoring chance for a teammate.
#Allsvenskan: Pretty good start to Simon Edvinsson's (#9 Black) game today as Vasteras takes on Karlskoga. This is a gutsy lob but he times it perfectly. Wasn't used on either special teams and sat for a long stretch but he's been physical; passes have been crisp and on the tape pic.twitter.com/DKtxXiDwCY
— The Draft Analyst (@TheDraftAnalyst) March 5, 2021
Will the Kraken take Simon Edvinsson at the NHL Draft?
It’s impossible to say where Edvinsson sits on the Kraken internal draft board. They won’t be leaking that information, but it’s safe to say he’s on the radar for an early selection.
He is a player who will need more development, so don’t expect him to be a player that moves straight to the NHL in year one. More likely he’ll play back in Sweden this upcoming season to further work on his consistency and explosiveness.
There are other impressive defensive prospects in this draft, including Michigan’s Owen Power and Brandt Clarke from the OHL’s Barrie Colts. Edvinsson is in that grouping and it may come down to how Kraken head scout Robert Kron and general manager Ron Francis rate the potential to come.
The San Diego Gulls were eliminated by the Bakersfield Condors Monday night in the AHL’s Pacific Division playoffs thanks to a 2-1 overtime decision. Head coach Kevin Dineen’s club had a strong year, finishing first within the division in points but officially in third place due to points-earned percentage – a sign of this strange Covid hockey season. With Dineen’s season over, could he be a stealth candidate to become the first head coach of the Seattle Kraken?
Seattle general manager Ron Francis has remained tight-lipped on who he is considering, only to offer that the Kraken are in no hurry and would likely not hire anyone until they have a better understanding of how the field looks.
Most of the contenders being speculated about would have to get fired, or were just fired, or ‘agreed to part ways’ – which is the nice way of being fired. So, why not go with someone who is coming off successful seasons, like Dineen?
Francis has said over and over that he prefers a coach who has prior NHL experience to join the Kraken in year one. Dineen checks that box and many others, and he could end up in the mix to be the first head coach for the Kraken.
Kevin Dineen’s coaching path
Dineen, 57, is most known for his time as an NHL player, appearing in 1,188 games between the Hartford Whalers, Carolina Hurricanes, Philadelphia Flyers, Ottawa Senators, and Columbus Blue Jackets. He scored 355 goals over his career before retiring in 2003.
It didn’t take him long to get back into hockey, as he was hired as the head coach of the AHL’s Portland Pirates in 2005. Portland was the affiliate of the Anaheim Ducks and Dineen would spend six successful seasons guiding the future Ducks.
During his tenure, he never suffered a losing season and won 45-plus games in four of his six seasons. That got the NHL’s attention, and in 2011 the Florida Panthers brought him in as head coach. His first NHL season was a good one as the Panthers won 38 games and won a division title for the first time in a decade.
They lost in the first round, however, and would struggle the following season. Dineen would be let go 16 games into his third season, ending his NHL stint with a 53-62-28 record. After Florida, Dineen took a job leading Canada’s women’s national team and would lead them to a gold medal during the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
Kevin Dineen has been the head coach of the San Diego Gulls since 2019. Photo credit: San Diego Gulls
Later that season he found himself back behind an NHL bench, as an assistant with the Chicago Blackhawks. He would spend the next five seasons with the Blackhawks, picking up a Stanley Cup ring in 2015.
The Ducks would bring Dineen back in 2019 to head up their new AHL franchise in San Diego. With the Gulls the past two seasons, he’s done well with two winning campaigns and a 56-36-1-8 record.
Having local ties isn’t the top credential to becoming the first Kraken coach, but it doesn’t hurt. Dineen is very connected, not only to Ron Francis – the two played together in Hartford and Carolina – but to the city as well.
Dineen’s father, Bill Dineen, played for the Seattle Totems from 1964-1969 and Kevin spent his early years living in Queen Anne. Bill would later coach Kevin with the Flyers, but before that he was an amateur scout with the Hartford Whalers.
Francis has shown no hesitation in bringing in people he knows to the Kraken organization. He had worked previously with assistant general manager Ricky Olzyk and head of scouting Robert Kron. He played with Dineen and there is a familiarity with the family.
Could that be a deciding factor when considering coaches?
Dineen also had his games called by Kraken television play-by-play broadcaster John Forslund.
Why would Dineen make a good coach for the Kraken?
Dineen checks off a lot of the boxes that Francis and the Kraken are going to be looking for in a head coach.
First off, he has NHL experience. His two years in Florida were a mixed bag with his second season not as fruitful as the first. That second season the Panthers suffered a number of injuries and were not able to overcome that adversity in a season shortened by labor issues. After those lessons, he continued to learn on the bench in Chicago under Quenneville, one of the best coaches in the league.
Every other year he’s been a head coach was a success with zero losing records. Dineen has been able to coach competitive teams at every level.
His AHL record is impressive. And that bodes well for the coach of an expansion team that will rely on young players and a roaster pulled together in the mash-up that the Expansion Draft will produce. Dineen is known for his deft work with young players to help them develop into NHLers.
In the AHL, rosters are constantly revolving and despite that turnover, Dineen’s clubs win hockey games, which is the bottom line. This past season’s Gulls roster had 21 players who were new to San Diego and the Ducks franchise. That sounds a lot like how an expansion team will look.
Will Kevin Dineen be the guy the Kraken turn to? We will have to wait and see, but he has the credentials and track record that make him a true contender. He may not be the big name in the room right now but might end up being the best name and ultimately, the first head coach of the Kraken.
Folks, the time has come! The NHL Playoffs are here and so far they are spectacular.
John, Andy, and Darren intentionally keep this episode of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast a bit shorter than usual to try to keep things more current, but they hope you get some good chuckles out of it along the way.
The show is rounded out with Sound Of Hockey’s Three Stars, Weekly One-Timers, and Tweets of the Week, with additional chatter about the Lightning going way over what would be the NHL salary cap in the playoffs and some compliments for the good people of Sunrise, Florida.
The playoffs kicked off over the weekend, so I threw together my annual Pacific Northwest Stanley Cup Playoff Guide. Each year, I like to run through all the rosters to identify the players and coaches that have ties to the Pacific Northwest. There should be some familiar names here, but there are a few newcomers as well.
Central Division
Carolina Hurricanes
Nino Niederreiter played two years with the Portland Winterhawks during the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons where he averaged over a point per game. Niederreiter was second on the Hurricanes in goals scored this season.
Morgan Geekie played three seasons with the Tri-City Americans and could be a Seattle Kraken target from the Carolina Hurricanes.
Morgan Geekie played three full years with the Tri-City Americans. During the 2017-18 WHL playoffs he put up 17 goals over 14 games. Geekie put up nine points for the Hurricanes over 36 games this season, and he is also on the Kraken watchlist as a potential Expansion Draft candidate.
Jake Bean also played for the Tri-City Americans for a half of a season in 2017-18. Bean has started to establish himself in the NHL this year but will most likely be a bubble player for cracking the lineup during the playoffs.
Florida Panthers
Backup goalie Chris Driedger started his WHL career with the Tri-City Americans in 2010-11 before playing the next three years with the Calgary Hitmen. Driedger has had a breakout NHL season and could be considered as a future goalie for the Seattle Kraken. If Sergei Bobrovsky falters in a game or two, we should expect Driedger to be given a shot.
Radko Gudas played his one and only season in the WHL with the Everett Silvertips during the 2009-10 season. Gudas does not put up a lot of offensive numbers, but he should contribute quite a bit defensively and physically if Florida is able to make a deep run in the playoffs.
Noah Juulsen played four seasons with the Everett Silvertips from 2013-14 to 2016-17. Juulsen only got into four regular season games this season and is not expected to get much playing time during the playoffs.
Tampa Bay Lightning
Tyler Johnson was born and raised in Spokane. He played four years with the Spokane Chiefs and was part of the Memorial Cup-winning team back in 2008. Johnson is a middle-six forward that is known to score some big-time goals in the playoffs.
Let us not forget, friend of the Sound Of Hockey podcast and the assistant equipment manager of the Lightning, Jason Berger. Berger was the head equipment manager for the Seattle Thunderbirds from 2007 to 2011.
Nashville Predators
Ryan Johansen played two seasons with the Portland Winterhawks during the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons. Johansen centers the top line for the Predators and will be needed to perform if they expect to advance past the first round of the playoffs.
East Division
Pittsburgh Penguins
Colton Sceviour played two-plus seasons with the Portland Winterhawks from 2005-06 to 2006-07. He is not a regular in the Penguins starting lineup, but as injuries start to pile up, expect Sceviour to crack the lineup.
Maxime Lagace played 11 games for the Idaho Steelheads of the ECHL in 2015-16. Lagace is the third goalie on the Penguins roster but backed up Tristan Jarry in Game 1 against the Islanders as usual backup goalie, Casey DeSmith, is currently injured.
Boston Bruins
Brandon Carlo has been a steady blueliner for the Boston Bruins over the last four seasons. He played three seasons for the Tri-City Americans from 2013-14 to 2015-16 and should get plenty of ice time during these playoffs.
Jeremy Swayman was born and raised in Anchorage Alaska and was one of four goalies used by the Bruins this season. He may not start any games, but he backed up Tuukka Rask in Game 1 against the Capitals on Saturday night.
Washington Capitals
Brenden Dillon played four years with the Seattle Thunderbirds including the last season in KeyArena and the first season at the ShoWare Center in Kent. He was also the captain in his final season with the Thunderbirds in 2010-11. Dillon had a goal in Game 1 against the Bruins.
TJ Oshie is the most local Seattle player in the playoffs this season. Oshie grew up in Mount Vernon, Washington and played for Seattle Junior until he moved away to Warroad, Minnesota for high school and for his hockey development. It’s impossible not to root for Oshie this playoff.
Nic Dowd was born in Huntsville, Alabama, but his hockey journey took him through Wenatchee, Washington. He played for the Wenatchee Wild which was then in the NAHL during the 2008-09 season. Dowd had 71 points over 56 playoff and regular season games with the Wild.
The Game 1 overtime winner had a very Pacific Northwest feel as Dillon blocked a shot in the defensive zone that triggered a rush the other way. Oshie floated a shot from the point where Dowd tipped it past Rask.
New York Islanders
Mathew Barzal played 3 years in the WHL
(Photo Credit Brian Leisse. Courtesy of the Seattle Thunderbirds)
By now you probably realize Mathew Barzal played four seasons with the Seattle Thunderbirds from 2013-14 to 2016-17 and was a huge part of the 2017 WHL Championship team. The Islanders do not play the most offensive style, but Barzal is still exciting to watch. He led the team in points this season with 45 over the 55 games he played.
Thomas Hickey also played with the Thunderbirds from 2005-06 to 2008-09. Hickey spent most of the season in the AHL with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers but managed to get into five NHL games in the middle of the season. If the Islanders have some injuries to their blueline, expect Hickey to get the nod.
Braydon Coburn played four seasons with the Portland Winterhawks in the early 2000’s. Like Hickey, he is also a depth defenseman who is expected to be called upon in case of injuries.
Kieffer Bellows played one season with the Portland Winterhawks after spending a year at Boston University. Bellows got into just 14 games with the Islanders this year, so like Hickey and Coburn, he is only expected to get playing time if there are injuries to other forwards.
West Division
Colorado Avalanche
Jacob MacDonald was born in Portland, Oregon. Prior to this year, the 28-year-old defenseman had only played two games with the Florida Panthers in 2018-19. This year, he played 33 games with the Avs. He might not start the playoffs in the lineup but expect him to get some playing time as the playoffs continue.
Avs head coach, Jared Bednar, played for the Spokane Chiefs for two years from 1991 to 1993. In his only complete season with the Chiefs, he amassed 200 penalty minutes in 62 games played.
Vegas Golden Knights
Vegas Golden Knights Defenceman Shea Theodore is off to a hot start in the playoffs. (Photo by Jeff Speer/Icon Sportswire)
Shea Theodore played with the Thunderbirds for four years from 2011-12 to 2014-15. Theodore is emerging as one of the elite defensemen in the league. Last year there was talk about Theodore as a Conn Smyth candidate. If Vegas makes a deep run in the playoffs, expect Theodore to be a big part of it.
Keegan Kolesar was also part of the Seattle Thunderbirds 2016-17 WHL Championship season. Prior to this year, “Keegs” only had one NHL regular-season game. This year he played 44 of the Golden Knights’ 56 regular-season games. Kolesar centered the fourth line in game one.
Dylan Coghlan played four years with the Tri-City Americans from 2014-15 to 2017-18. This undrafted defenseman played in half of the Golden Knights’ regular-season games. He did not start in Game 1, but I anticipate he cracks the lineup if Vegas makes a deep run.
Cody Glass was the first amateur draft pick in Golden Knights history. Glass played four seasons with the Portland Winterhawks from 2015-16 to 2018-19. He played just 27 games this season for Vegas and could crack the lineup in a limited role.
Minnesota Wild
Jared Spurgeon played five seasons with the Spokane Chiefs from 2005-06 to 2009-10. Along with Tyler Johnson, he was part of the Spokane team that won the Memorial Cup in 2008. Spurgeon was named the captain of the Wild over the offseason and logs over 22 minutes per game. He is a pillar of the Minnesota defensive corps and will be relied upon heavily if the Wild are to go on a run.
Defenseman Matt Dumba joined the Portland Winterhawks in 2013-14 for 26 regular-season games and 21 playoff games. He has been an excellent defenseman for the Minnesota Wild, and there is an outside chance he could be exposed in the Expansion Draft.
St. Louis Blues
Colton Parayko played three seasons for the University of Alaska-Fairbanks from 2012-13 to 2014-15. He has been a stable defenseman for the St. Louis Blues and was a big part of their Stanley Cup win in 2019.
North Division
Toronto Maple Leafs
Jack Campbell played 27 games for the Idaho Steelheads over two seasons in 2014-15 and 2015-16. Campbell has been carrying the bulk of the goaltending load with Frederik Andersen battling injuries the second half of the season. Freddie is back, but we anticipate the Leafs starting the playoffs with Campbell between the pipes.
Nicolas Petan played four seasons with the Portland Winterhawks from 2011-12 to 2014-15 averaging 1.4 points per game over his WHL career. He only got into seven games for the Leafs this season and will only suit up in the playoffs if there are a few injuries.
Edmonton Oilers
Kailer Yamamoto was born in Spokane and played four seasons with the Spokane Chiefs. He was the first-round pick of the Oilers in 2017 and played his first full season in the NHL this season.
Ethan Bear was another big part of the Seattle Thunderbirds WHL championship in 2017 and played for the team for four seasons. Bear’s contributions may have dropped off this year but that can all be forgiven with a big Stanley Cup Playoff performance.
Jujhar Khaira has been a steady winger for the Oilers the last four seasons. He played one full season for the Everett Silvertips where he put up 43 points in 59 games.
Caleb Jones played two seasons with the Portland Winterhawks during the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons. Jones is just starting to establish himself in the league. He played roughly two thirds of the Oilers’ games and should be getting on opportunity to contribute in the playoffs.
Oilers Head Coach, Dave Tippett, joined the organization formerly known as ‘NHL Seattle’ in the summer of 2018 to take care of a lot of the hockey operations items and strategy, including locker room designs and AHL affiliate, just to name a few. “Tip” made several public appearances on local TV shows, at WHL Games, and even on the Sound Of Hockey Podcast.
Winnipeg Jets
Nate Thompson (right) with Pearl Jam, lead guitarist Mike McCready (center) and former Seattle Thunderbird and current NHL linesman Ryan Gibbons. (Photo courtesy of the Seattle Thunderbirds)
Nate Thompson played for the Seattle Thunderbirds from 2001-02 to 2004-05. Thompson centers the fourth line and is not expected to contribute much on the offensive side of the game. Thompson is a great person and an easy guy to root for in these playoffs.
Montreal Canadiens
Carey Price has established himself as one of the best goalies in the NHL over the last 10 years, but before that he played for the Tri-City Americans from 2003-04 to 2006-07. His regular-season numbers may have dropped off this year, but Price is known for saving his best performances for the playoffs.
The Stanley Cup Playoffs are back, and the MassMutual East Division opens this weekend with a couple of enticing matchups as the Boston Bruins face the Washington Capitals and the Pittsburgh Penguins take on the New York Islanders.
It starts Saturday with a fun matchup between two veteran teams with opposite strengths, and Sunday we get to see if the Penguins are truly back. This is just the beginning so prepare your couch for heavy use as we watch it all play out over the next month and a half.
Here’s a look at the first round matchups for the MassMutual East Division:
New York Islanders (4) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (1)
The Matchup – Two years ago these teams met in another first-round matchup that resulted in a sweep by the Islanders. The Penguins come into this series hot, winners of three in a row and eight of the past 10. It’s not the same for New York, which started the season strong but has trailed off down the stretch and limped into the playoffs.
Pittsburgh had a resurgent season of sorts and after two early postseason exits in a row will have some pressure to go further this time around. Offensively, Crosby has been what you’d expect him to be and will be the focus again. The Penguins overcame some injuries this season but got Malkin back in the fold near the end of the season and are firing on all cylinders while scoring the most goals in the division and second-most in the NHL.
New York held onto top spot in the division at one point, but it’s been a struggle for coach Barry Trotz and his troops. To try and add some offensive punch, the Islanders picked up Travis Zajac and Kyle Palmieri from New Jersey. The two longtime Devils have not provided said punch, however, and have combined for just three goals.
The Penguins have the league’s fourth-best power play, which sets up a strength-on-strength situation in this matchup as the Islanders are sixth on the kill. Conversely, the Islanders are near the bottom of the stack in power-play rankings while the Penguins have struggled to consistently kill off penalties.
Wild Cards
While the trade with the Devils didn’t pan out as the Islanders had hoped, they have been getting contributions from rookie Oliver Wahlstrom who potted 12 goals and 21 points in 44 games. He could end up being a factor providing some much-needed secondary scoring for the offensively challenged Islanders.
The Penguins added Jeff Carter at the deadline and the veteran has been hot, potting nine goals. He adds more options for the already stacked Penguins attack.
Both clubs have some options for the Seattle Kraken to track in preparation of July’s Expansion Draft. Pittsburgh will have choices to make between protecting quality depth forwards Teddy Blueger, Jared McCann, or Brandon Tanev. The Islanders have some cap issues that could expose guys like Leddy, Bailey, Michael Dal Colle, or potentially rookie Keiffer Bellows.
Who’s going to win this?
In one corner the Penguins have one of the top offensive attacks in the NHL, and they’ll be facing one of the stingiest teams in the Islanders. This will come down to who can impose their will more. Trotz will try to slow things down for the Islanders to hinder Crosby and company. In the end, the Penguins have too much firepower resulting in a Pittsburgh win in six games.
Washington ended the season tied with Pittsburgh but lost out on the division title because of a tiebreaker. Both are veteran-laden teams that still have pieces from their most recent Stanley Cup triumphs, so there won’t be an experience edge for anyone. Storylines abound in this series as Boston legend Zdeno Chara returns to face the Bruins as a Capital.
Boston’s top line of Pastrnak, Bergeron, and Marchand continue to be among the best in the league and the Capitals will need Chara and Brenden Dillon to stand tall on the back end. The Bruins rely on the big three for scoring – they scored 72 of Boston’s 168 goals this year – but that might not be enough. Players such as David Krejci and Craig Smith need to find a way to score. In goal, Rask is playing in what could be his last season in Boston and that will be motivation for one more kick at the can.
Washington has been consistent all season and appears to have overcome an injury scare to Ovechkin late in the season. The Russian star can still fire the puck, and while the Bruins have one of the best defenses in the NHL, nothing seems to stop Ovechkin. One of the top goal-scoring teams, the Capitals have depth scoring and outside of their top players, T.J. Oshie, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and Tom Wilson can pick up the slack scoring wise.
Both teams are good on special teams, which should be a wash. But in any playoff matchup, discipline is key.
Wild Cards
Boston won the trade deadline’s biggest chip by landing Taylor Hall from Buffalo. Since joining the Bruins he’s been good with 14 points in 16 games. The Bruins struggled to score consistently prior to Hall arriving, and he could be the key to closing the gap with Washington. Vanecek has been a revelation for the Capitals this year, but he is unproven. The rookie has never played in a Stanley Cup Playoff game, and he’ll need to rise to the occasion to beat the Bruins in this matchup.
Kraken watch
Seattle could end up getting some key players at the Expansion Draft out of this playoff matchup. For Boston, they may end up exposing players such as Nick Ritchie up front or defenders Jeremy Lauzon or Connor Clifton. Washington is an interesting team to watch for the Kraken. Vanacek could be an option in goal but has played so well that Washington could end up protecting him and exposing Ilya Samsonov instead.
Who’s going to win this?
The Bruins are the defensively oriented team while the Capitals scored all the goals this season. It’s always a fun playoff matchup when strengths are at odds. Boston needs to find secondary scoring and could get it from Hall. Will he be enough to push the Bruins past the rookie Vanacek and into the second round? Yes, Boston in six.
