As I am not in this season's playoffs, and am also returning to help with awards, I thought I'd get back in the groove of write-ups and statistics with a little first round deep dive. I think it's a perfect season for me to do this as I have no dog in the fight and can give my genuine opinion on the outlook of the first round. Eastern Conference (1) New York Rangers vs. (8) Detroit Red Wings Playoff Scheduling @Stav 98: 3 playoff appearances, including 1 CF appearance (lost to S16 CAR in 6), 1 second round appearance (lost to S14 TOR in 4), 1 first round appearance (lost to S17 OTT in 6) While I don't doubt that Clutch can provide an opinion and Jay will certainly be of help, Stavio will be mainly responsible for the Rangers' scheduling in the playoffs, and for good reason. Stav is one of the few managers in these playoffs who I'd consider great at playoff scheduling and is fully knowledgeable of how and when to use his swaps. I will say that I wish he did it a little more often as I notice he's way more prone to throw curveballs when his back is against the wall, but if the Rangers do falter at some point these playoffs, it won't be due to scheduling. @Smxrsh-: First appearance as owner Smxrsh enters the playoffs as a first-time owner, and from what I can see, this will be his first time scheduling for the playoffs as the main person. I'm sure he'll have some help as Akon has a good amount of experience. Besides that it's hard to gauge or judge anything as there's no body of work there. Ultimately Stav would have the strategic advantage over nearly any manager in the East. There's not much to debate here. Playoff Scheduling Advantage: Depth Here I'm having the teams' units represented by players who have always played together down the stretch, whether it's a duo, an entire forward line, or just a focal point. As defencemen are usually the first players to get swapped when scheduling, I excluded them when considering the units. (Stretch record count weeks 6 through 9) - 1st Unit: Clutch and Kaner | Stretch Record: 6-3-2 | GF: 43 | GA: 23 | OppsOVR: 58.99 2nd Unit: Dex and Mills | Stretch Record: 8-0-0 | GF: 39 | GA: 12 | OppsOVR: 73.49 3rd Unit: Langz and Zeidell | Stretch Record: 4-1-0 | GF: 22 | GA: 10 | OppsOVR: 60.86 There's a lot to like about the Rangers' depth. I think what's most interesting is how they've switched RWs throughout the season and you can see Jay or Stav on any of the three lines depending on what is planned. Clutch has always been a great playoff performer and is set up well to play the lines he needs to beat, and get his 2-0. While the Rangers' 3rd has been a lot of mix and match this season, it's still one of the stronger 3rd lines in the playoffs as both Langz and Zeidell have had top-6 roles before. What the Rangers will truly be relying on is the performance of their 2nd line, and in normal circumstances that would be Mills centring Dex and Jay, with Ginger2001 on D who had a Norris nominee-type season. Stav's past playoffs have been costed by his 2nds not being able to get wins, and if a line who's red hot going into the playoffs with someone like Mills who had a great run last season, along with that Jay-Ginger combo can't get at least one win this round I'm really not sure what Stav can do better. On the back end the Rangers usually have Brisky with Clutch's unit, who's had a quality season for himself. I personally would see Devo being their LD option in a Game 7 scenario with Ginger, as his time with the Rangers basically brought his season record back from the dead. In net the Rangers face a challenge as DontCap hasn't played since before Christmas break, leaving Remzy to take on the task of starter while I'm sure a call-up option will be coming soon to cover backup duties. As far as I'm concerned, the team is quality enough in front of Remzy, along with Remzy being a fine goalie that there shouldn't be issues. - 1st Unit: Perry - Akon - Theos | Stretch Record: 8-1-0 | GF: 39 | GA: 14 | OppsOVR: 77.64 2nd Unit: Letang - Gunass - Jesse | Stretch Record: 6-4-1 | GF: 28 | GA: 29 | OppsOVR: 86.28 3rd Unit: Julien - Breadly - Smxrsh | Stretch Record: 6-5-0 | GF: 33 | GA: 27 | OppsOVR: 61.34 The biggest strength that Detroit has is minimal trades, causing their lines to be together for the entire season and growing with chem throughout. The first line already had that as Akon and Theos are usuals to playing together. They were accompanied this season by the DPs of Perry, Chuck and Udca. It's a mix of veterans and rookies that I think works really well for the regular season but I'm unsure how it could go for the playoffs. I don't doubt that Akon has taught them well throughout the season but trusting 3 first time playoff players to perform on your first line is a bold ask. I think Perry has complimented them well this season along with Chuck and Udca who I'd assume are slotting into a Game 7 scenario for Detroit. I have no doubt that the talent is there, I just don't know how it'll go in pressure games for the line is all. Their second is where I see the experience and calmness coming from. Jesse, who I'd see joining Theos and Akon in a Game 7 scenario, has done this a million times at this point and has banners to show for it. You also have guys who have been around the community for awhile in Gunass and Hyper (who usually is their LD) and I think this line is the X-Factor for Detroit. They've had the tougher games all season and I see there being benefits to that starting Sunday. Their roster is finished by a 3rd of Julien, BreadlyForce and Smxrsh, frankly it's an average third line that should probably be used in a sui role if the Wings want to win this series. The roster is rounded out by their starting goalie CJ who had another quality season for Smxrsh, and is fully capable of stealing a game this series. Both first lines are comparable, and I do like Detroit's 2nd, but after that when it comes to the forwards 4 through 9 and d-men 1 through 6, there's no denying the quality New York has. Depth Advantage: How do they win? - Stavio builds off how he scheduled in games 5 and 6 vs. Ottawa last season and the Rangers' roster advantage comes to play. - It has to go to 7. I just can't envision a scenario where Detroit's top two lines can win 4 games before 7, and I can't see Detroit's 3rd upsetting Clutch's line (if they even get that matchup). Akon's line gets their 2-0, Jesse and Gunass get the 1 win the Wings need to push for 7, and the defensive quality that Akon's unit has had all season shuts down the Rangers' weapons to get Detroit the upset. My take The Rangers are simply too good of a team to lose this series. I do think that Detroit 2nd actually steals a game at some point, but I also don't see Detroit's 1st being an absolute lock for 2 wins. I think while the series doesn't go to plan, New York gets a morale boost from all three lines winning at least a game, including that elusive 2nd line win. New York Rangers win in 6 games. (2) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (7) Carolina Hurricanes Playoff Scheduling @ltz0ver4u: 2 playoff appearances, including 1 second round appearance (lost to S17 OTT in 7), 1 first round appearance (lost to S16 DAL in 7) Kylian is a manager who’s been able to schedule from a position of strength both times he’s been in the playoffs. With Calgary on his first run, he didn’t rely on swaps and simply went for one of his bottom-2 lines to steal a win, which happened. Last season he scheduled how I expect him to this season, where he has two lines he’s confident in, with Basi’s being the clear line out of his top-2 to schedule in must-wins or save for elimination games. Not much of a roster swap scheduler, but understands how to set up his roster for success. @JClaus33: 7 playoff appearances, including 1 SCF win (won in 7 vs. S16 ARZ), 3 SCF appearances (lost to S11 CHI in 7 sorta, lost to S14 COL in 5 and lost to S17 VGK in 6), 1 CF appearance (lost to S10 NYI in 7), 2 first round appearances (lost to S12 TB in 5 and lost to S13 WSH in 5) Josh is the definition of a chaotic but good playoff manager. He schedules with the luxury of knowing that he’s a gamebreaker, and with that can schedule himself with any 4 around him, expecting to win. Has no real pattern of scheduling players together in the regular season. Extremely tough playoff scheduler to prepare for. ltz0ver4u is no slouch when it comes to playoff scheduling, but Josh has the advantage in any series whether he’s home or away simply because of how much he mixes his lines. Playoff Scheduling Advantage: Depth - 1st Unit: Basi | Stretch Record: 7-2-3 | GF: 34 | GA: 23 | OppsOVR: 69.1 2nd Unit: Morin | Stretch Record: 9-2-0 | GF: 32 | GA: 15 | OppsOVR: 74.26 3rd Unit: Wrecked-Mxtz-Hervieux | Record: 4-2-1 | GF: 22 | GA: 17 | OppsOVR: 76.86* While I previously mentioned that Carolina is notorious for mixing lines, Toronto has been no slouch when it comes to that as well, as they've mixed D pairings and lines throughout the stretch of the season, and still won enough games to win the Atlantic. It all starts with Basi up front. He can play with either Viperrz or Jor and either Cxcky or Reim and he makes it work. I personally think Viperrz and Reim is the duo that works better with him, as Reim provides a scoring option that lets Basi ease into a "do a little bit of everything" role, while Viperrz allows them to play with pace. Even with that I don't think you lose too much with Jor, who's a twitchy player that can drive play at his best, and Cxcky who I think has a bit of a vanilla play style in 6s but finds ways to produce with IQ and positioning. Having all these options in the Leafs top-6, with Morin rounding it out, gives Toronto several weapons and several scenarios to give different looks in a series. I'm also a fan of their 3rd. They aren't a great 3rd in terms of IQ in my opinion but have proven that they are able to keep a game low-scoring, which provides steal opportunities in the playoffs. On defence I really like how Kylian turned his team from the D by committee group he had last season, to now having two obvious Game 7 D-men in Heald and Krish, while also having great depth pieces in the rest of the group such as Jibad (19 wins by the way) and ltz0ver4u himself. Their goaltending is good but can be suspect, and I think it's the perfect duo of if one gets cold, you have the other to lean on. Both Relentlxss and Colbs have had experience as starter whether it be on PSN or Xbox and I wouldn't be surprised to see the hot hand get the bulk of games in a series, although it should be Relentless' crease to lose. - 1st Unit: JClaus | Stretch Record: 8-2-2 | GF: 52 | GA: 25 | OppsOVR: 88.18 2nd Unit: Adxm | Stretch Record: 8-4-0 | GF: 40 | GA: 26 | OppsOVR: 79.93 3rd Unit: Spors | Stretch Record: 4-1-1 | GF: 18 | GA: 16 | OppsOVR: 82.5* Carolina has several combinations to work with so I'll talk about who I see as their top at each position and work my way down. Obviously it starts with Claus who is the focal point of any Canes team. If it came to a winner take all game, I'd see Duster on his LW, as his individual playoff success and success this season speaks for itself. On RW I'd assume it'd be Droplex, who I haven't seen play yet this year but I assume he's been worth it if he stuck on the roster since bidding. The rest of the forwards I see as a group of 2nd liners on most teams, which makes it so easy for Carolina to mix lines. Josh can go from playing with Duster in one series to Kerslake and Hypa in another, and not miss a beat. Same on RW with someone like Jeff. Not only does the individual skill help but the experience of playing multiple seasons together including playoff runs helps this group a ton. Adxm was brought back to run the 2nd unit in Carolina and has done a great job this season at that, playing as the primary 2C on this team. The forwards get rounded out by Spors, who usually runs the 3rd line, and Shlarchey who I must say seemed like a weird fit on this roster with how north-south he plays, but he produced an 82-point, 17-win season with the majority in Carolina. He adds another RW for mixing lines into the equation. On D it's the usual core of Archon, Kyle and Saund, who have been successful in keeping Josh's D as win by committee for seasons on end. The two to look out for are definitely Desjy and Gerbe. Desjy of course comes with the resume that comes with someone who's won multiple Cups, and has been a pillar on D and even C for years. Gerbe is my one question mark even after seeing the success he's had the last few seasons. He has a play style that is extremely reliant on forwards being aware when he is pinching and Gerbe's never afraid to jump in the offence. Full credit, he had a great season in S18, earning 20 wins and 38 points, but I can't help but feel that his play style if untamed might eventually lead to issues if any miscommunication happens. In net, they've relied on QsASnipz to be their starter after being called up a few weeks in, and he's been great, positng a .799 SV%. With Ryan always being a capable backup, I think the goaltending is on par with how Claus' goaltending usually is for his better playoff runs. To me the difference in the two rosters are the middle options. I think Toronto has 3rd (Cxcky) and 4th (Jor) wingers that are slightly more dynamic than what Carolina has (Kerslake/Hypa, Jeff/Shlarchey), along with me trusting Jibad and Kylian slightly more than Archon and Saund or Kyle. Adxm gets the edge over Morin, I think Toronto has a better goaltending duo, but these rosters are so close that in the end I had to nitpick. These are two deep teams, but in my eyes it's advantage Toronto. Depth Advantage: How do they win? - They play cat and mouse with Claus and hopefully avoid playing Basi against him. Basi gets his 2-0, and Toronto relies on their next two units to get a win or two somewhere. Ideally, a Basi win came with at least one of Jor and Cxcky, leaving Viperrz or Reim (or both) to give Morin a little boost. - Claus wins the cat and mouse battle and beats Basi. Even if it's just one game, Basi losing one game would be so key for Carolina, forcing Toronto to play for 7. My take Everything points to this series going to 7, and I don't think Toronto can avoid that in all honesty. Josh will bring out the best deceptive mixes he has and will lure Kylian into a mistake. The thing is, I don't know if a Game 7 is really that sided in Carolina's favour. Basi has proved himself to be a big-game player, Reim has taken a step forward this season, and with the additions of Heald and Krish, I really like Toronto's chances in a Game 7. This is going to be a tight series. Carolina will force Toronto to play on the Virginia server throughout, and while I think the Hurricanes might have the overall advantage here, Toronto has so much momentum heading into the playoffs that it's really hard to see them losing this, even with it going the distance. I'm going with Duster's spotless playoff record and Claus' Canes getting eliminated by a colossal Game 7 effort from the Maple Leafs. Toronto Maple Leafs win in 7 games. (3) Washington Capitals vs. (6) Montreal Canadiens Playoff Scheduling @LOopSx91x: 2 playoff appearances, including 2 second round appearances as owner (lost to S15 CBJ in 5, lost to S17 CAR in 7) While Loops has been sporadic in making the playoffs, he has proven himself to be a tough out when he does make it. He's beaten a stingy CBJ team last season and Jay's S15 NYI team, and when you haven't been eliminated in a first round once, you have to be doing something right. @Daoustttt_12: First appearance as owner I'm very interested to see how Daoust does with scheduling. Not him, nor anyone on this team (except for maybe Bert) would be able to help him from past experience. I think he's smart enough that he's done his research and have a plan, it's just hard to trust a first-time playoff owner who has literally nobody on his team as someone to go to. Playoff Scheduling Advantage: Depth - 1A Unit: Rag - Loops - Mattkiinoo | Stretch Record: 2-2-0 | GF: 9 | GA: 10 | OppsOVR: 57.845 1B Unit: GoodWAR - Hra - Blacky | Stretch Record: 6-0-0 | GF: 34 | GA: 11 | OppsOVR: 70.27 3rd Unit: Manzyz - WesK - Marsso | Stretch Record: 5-4-2 | GF: 28 | GA: 25 | OppsOVR: 74.56 Loops mixed his lines a fair bit down the stretch, but these seem to be the main lines he has, with Rag being a big swap piece. Loops doesn't have the greatest personal record for someone who's made two second rounds (3-1-1 and 2-2), and I'm interested to see if he tries to give himself the 2nd lines this series or Hra. Just from the wingers, I trust the 1A unit more handling 2nd lines. Rag is a winger who can do a little bit of everything and is very good at baiting defenders into an east-west game, and then using his build to burn them, turning the game into a track meet. Mattkiinoo has been a mainstay on Loops' team for years at this point and has been a capable support winger for him, being able to play on any unit if he chooses to do swaps. I'm not sure if Hra has much left in the tank for this season after PM'ing everyone about how great his season was. While I fear those thumbs might still be getting iced as I type, he helps provide a great 1-2 punch down the middle for this Washington team, creating the opportunity for him and Loops to swap with each other at any momen if Loops sees fit. I really like their 3rd line. Manzyz is a winger who's ready to play in the top-6 next season, let alone now, while WesK had a respectable season for a rookie playing 3C. They had a way tougher schedule than most 3rds usually have, and most of the time that can only help a 3rd line going into the playoffs. On D, after the Game 7 D pairing of Terry and Maje, I swear that all of Frxdpel, DocFR and Hall of Fame are the same top-4 D-man. I really liked the addition of Goofy to round out this group, as he has Game 7 experience from last season on Montreal. I don't see any of these 6 D-men as a 3rd pairing guy, and it's what makes this Capitals team so tough to play against. I don't know much about their goaltenders DandG and Brastos. DandG had a nice rookie season, with a .791 SV%. Behind this defence, it looks like he's been doing his job throughout the season of saving the ones he has to save and his D takes care of the rest. - 1st Unit: Crosby - Titan - Sphyze | Stretch Record: 6-0-0 | GF: 23 | GA: 8 | OppsOVR: 90.33 2nd Unit: Daoust - Bert - Hardie | Stretch Record: 9-1-0 | GF: 30 | GA: 11 | OppsOVR: 63.29 3rd Unit: Sags - Prov - Brocc | Stretch Record: 4-2-0 | GF: 20 | GA: 17 | OppsOVR: 54.20* It's crazy how the trades Daoust made turned around this team. Crosby went from a C who couldn't score at the start of the season, to now playing on wing and, when playing with Titan and Sphyze, creates one of the best forward lines I've seen post-deadline. The chemistry these 3 have seemed instant and they actually play some really fun hockey to watch. Their 2nd line is crazy defensively. It says a lot when Daoust is a winger who finished with less than 40 points this season, but had 16 wins. I think Bert and Hardie are great fits for the defensive hockey this team wants to play after their first line, and to have 11 GA in 10 games played down the stretch proves it. When it comes to their 3rd of Sags, Prov and Brocc, I think it's the same scenario as Detroit where it's an average 3rd and they did their job throughout the season, but they shouldn't be considered to win a 3v3 and will probably see a sui role this series. On D they have a top-4 of Rosemont, Bouch, Mazzy and Sesh where all four are solid top-4 d-men and while I'd guess Rosemont and Sesh would be their Game 7 pairing, I don't see much that separates the four. In net they have Couture as their starter who quietly put up a potential Vezina-nominee season with an .813 SV% and 5 shutouts. Backing him up is Mrxzek who's proven to be a great 1B goalie at this point and if Couture falters, Mrxzek is a great option for Daoust to go to. Depth Advantage: How do they win? - Rag gets the matchup vs. the Habs' 2nd unit and takes care of the 2-0, while Loops, GoodWAR and Mattkiinoo handle Montreal's 3rd, fully staying away from challenging the Canadiens' 1st unit. - Daoust's unit stays being defensively dominant and gets two wins while Montreal's 1st has to win both of their games as well. While Montreal is comparable at forward, going to Game 7 can't be an option for the Canadiens as Washington's top pairing is too strong. My take Montreal had a great stretch and I think Daoust really found something with that first unit, but Washington's defence and ability to rotate 5 players acting as their first line will cause major problems. Washington Capitals win in 6 games. (4) Columbus Blue Jackets vs. (5) Buffalo Sabres Playoff Scheduling @G--P--3: First appearance as owner This is GP3's first time as an owner in the NHL playoffs, but he does have experience in the AHL playoffs managing. I don't value that too much if I'm being honest, but with Troy as his GM who's been around for enough playoff games as a manager, he should be capable of the task. @Wxldo62: First appearance as owner Owner who was a former AHL manager vs. another owner who was a former AHL manager. I think the issue in Wall's spot is I don't see that one person on his team who can truly help him. I'd imagine Krofto could have some input but with limited playoff runs in his LG career I can't assume he'd be the perfect help. I think GP3 has the group both on his roster and his friend group outside of his roster to get more help from than Wall for playoff scheduling. I don't think either manager will not know what they're doing, but I see Wall being more vulnerable to a mistake. Playoff Scheduling Advantage: Depth - 1st Unit: Kessely - Troy - Wally | Stretch Record: 7-2-2 | GF: 30 | GA: 23 | OppsOVR: 79.49 2nd Unit: GP3 - TomTom - Kuzy | Stretch Record: 9-3-0 | GF: 44 | GA: 22 | OppsOVR: 64.91 3rd Unit: Jesus - Newtz - FLP | Stretch Record: 8-2-2 | GF: 39 | GA: 29 | OppsOVR: 90.10 You have to start from the bottom of the depth chart and work your way up for this team, because they really don't have a 3rd line. Jesus, Newtz and FLP have played 1st line competition all season and have put up records of a 2nd line while doing it. The only real constant on D with them is Nxckles and it's worked way better than I think even GP3 could've imagined. This line has been groomed to do damage in steal spots for the playoffs and I'd even consider them the best 3rd line in the East, fully capable of stealing a game against anyone. They then have GP3, TomTom and Kuzy, who most often play with STM and one of Bidas or ct. Not that he's a bad player, but GP3 did a great job of surrounding himself with talent in order to have the role of 3rd line crusher while not diminishing his 1st. TomTom has turned out to be a great DP for him and Kuzy enjoyed a 60-point season coming back to RW. STM is someone who I've always thought of as a nice complimentary piece on a 2nd pairing and plays his role perfectly with Bidas or ct, who are both capable of filling that Game 7 LD role. Finally they have the Kessely, Troy and Wally line at the top of the depth chart with Mathieu. This is a first line that loves to suppress offence, turn the game into a neutral zone fight, and gradually grind you out of the game. I think Mathieu was the perfect addition to this unit as he provides a little offensive boost on the backend while not taking away the identity of defensive hockey from this unit. Troy has ran this style of hockey for years now and I think NHL22 is the most fitting game there's ever been for it. For goaltending they have MasonM as their starter. He was highly touted coming out of the draft and lived up to the billing, posting an .807 SV% for Columbus. To complete the tandem they have Shlangerz, who's good enough to be a starter himself. The Jackets have this duo at a bargain of 2.5M. - 1st Unit: Myzz - Smitty - Llayton | Stretch Record: 9-2-1 | GF: 42 | GA: 18 | OppsOVR: 79.21* 2nd Unit: TieUp - Wxldo - Feleh | Stretch Record: 9-3-0 | GF: 46 | GA: 23 | OppsOVR: 53.92 3rd Unit: Pinder - TGil - Fran | Stretch Record: 6-3-0 | GF: 34 | GA: 21 | OppsOVR: 71.77* The Sabres, just like the rest of the Atlantic enter the playoffs hot. Their first line boasts the 9.25M Smitty, who had a solid 17-win season coming off his draft contract. For his wingers I see both as complimentary pieces who probably aren't even the team's best wingers, but both have played well in their role and the line finds ways to score. Their second unit has TieUp, Wxldo and Feleh, a unit that loves to stretch the ice with long passes and slap plays. With Kylej joining them for nearly all of the season, it's a line that excels making the game north-south and caused problems this season with the pace they play at. I see TieUp and Feleh joining Smitty in a Game 7 scenario. Feleh had a fantastic rookie season posting 81 points and 21 wins, and has been Buffalo's true gamebreaker at forward this season, excelling in the tempo his unit plays at. Their 3rd unit has Pinder, TGil and Fran, who I see as your classic 3rd line. Pinder has looked solid in 22 and TGil has always been a high IQ player, ultimately helping this line find ways to win games. One thing I would note about how Buffalo's units are set up is that I don't see their D pairings staying with the same lines they played with in the regular season, primarily Dank/Ntrik with the 3rd unit and BobbyOrr/Bornofosirick with the 1st unit. It's no knock on that BobbyOrr pairing who have played well, including beating the bulk of Vegas' 1st in regulation, but there's just no chance you can let Smitty play what will probably be 2nd lines without dankchank, who has 45 wins the last 2 seasons combined, and ntrik, who's always a great D partner for a good D-man in a top-4. If these units stick, more power to Wall, but I'd see it as a waste. The Sabres are backstopped by Krofto, who didn't have the craziest numbers this season, but if LG ever tracked a WAR stat, he'd have to be up there. From my viewings, the amount of games Krofto either stole or kept Buffalo in was ridiculous and Buffalo will need all of that from him this series. I understand the idea of what Wall's done by having his big player surrounded by low-end 2nd liners and 3rd liners to then having his 3rd line supported by arguably his best D pairing, and it helped him get to this point. You look at Columbus though, who has 2 to maybe 3 players I'd even consider a 3rd liner, and the advantage is clear as day. Depth Advantage: How do they win? - Columbus' depth earns them at least a split each night, eventually leading to at worst forcing a Game 7, in which they'd have the advantage. Their 3rd being so good creates opportunities of chancing a 2v2/3v2 or 3v3 early in the series, and winning one of those just speeds up the series win. - Have to match Smitty's line with GP3's and Wall's with their 3rd. If Buffalo can't get that, Krofto will need to provide some playoff magic to lift them. 7 isn't necessarily a bad thing, but also isn't ideal. My take Columbus is just so deep of a team. I can't help but look at their roster and see a dark horse in the Eastern Conference. In my opinion it's just a terrible matchup for Buffalo where all 3 lines across the board are outclassed by the Blue Jackets. Wall's line gets them a win to avoid the sweep. Columbus Blue Jackets win in 5 games. Western Conference (1) Winnipeg Jets vs. (8) Dallas Stars Playoff Scheduling @Memzyy72: First appearance as owner Memory's first time in the playoffs as an owner, and although he's the main guy now, I have been told by a few that he did contribute a fair bit to Lazie's Seattle team. I'd also like to think that Memory is a decently knowledgeable manager who could probably figure it out on the fly. @jojodevil91: 2 playoff appearances, including 1 CF appearance (lost to S15 CBJ in 6), 1 first round appearance (lost to S14 TOR in 7) Honestly forgot Jojo ran the team that lost to Cmess' CBJ team in the conference finals, but yes Joseph has the experience as well as doing a solid job in both playoffs he's been in as owner. Jojo also has Brax who is somewhat a graduate of the MrPurpleCrush dojo of playoff scheduling. I didn't include his playoff appearance as S16 Vegas AGM but it's worth noting he lost in the first round that season in 7 to the Memory AGM'd Seattle Kraken. Jojo has more experience, but I'd feel confident in thinking Memory is better at playoff scheduling than him. For now, Jojo has the experience factor which is important, so he has the advantage. Playoff Scheduling Advantage: Depth - 1st Unit: Sah | Stretch Record: 8-4-0 | GF: 51 | GA: 24 | OppsOVR: 54.67 2nd Unit: Memory | Stretch Record: 7-4-1 | GF: 49 | GA: 33 | OppsOVR: 64.98 3rd Unit: Lefranck - Callz - AkSnxper | Stretch Record: 6-3-0 | GF: 26 | GA: 21 | OppsOVR: 60.45 The Jets mixed their lines for the last 2 weeks of the season so I'll stick with talking about Sah and Memory to divide their top-6. Winnipeg paid Sah to be their gamechanger and that's what he's been able to do, albeit on a questionable schedule. He's also able to play any 3 forward positions and I think if the idea for Memory was to test different combos, Sah having that versatility will help a ton. From a Game 7 standpoint, Gooch slots in at LW, as he's been a reliable top line producer any season he plays wing. When it comes to the third forward they have options. They could either go Memory at centre, who had a great 18-win season, and put Sah on wing. Or, they could go to their DP RW Wayzox, who fit in really well on a roster loaded with great draft contracts. The top-6 gets rounded out by Bombass, who was probably Boston's lone bright spot last season, and Musty, who's had a good rookie season himself. No matter how Memory wants to do it, I don't see him and Sah playing together, and that could allow him to run both lines as a 1A and 1B throughout the playoffs instead of a 1st and 2nd, depending on wingers. Their 3rd of Lefranck, Callz and Snxper was probably the best 3rd line in the NHL this season and I don't see being mixed up in the playoffs unless truly needed, as they play extremely well together. Adding BenDuguay to the 3rd D pairing with Lange made this unit even more disgusting. Their top-4 on D also features 4 players they could mix in any way, but while Hypnxtiikz and Distraqted are great 2nd pairing D-men, I think Crosby and Stiivii have been too good to not only be 1st pairing, but also Game 7 pairing. Behind this loaded group is Habs4lf, who's been a workhorse for Winnipeg this season. With the addition of Leafs as their backup as well, this is in my opinion the most complete roster in the West and Winnipeg was fully deserving of 1st seed. - 1st Unit: John - Oshlag - Form | Stretch Record: 5-6-0 | GF: 32 | GA: 35 | OppsOVR: 91.61 2nd Unit: Jojo - Crafted - Max | Stretch Record: 8-3-1 | GF: 43 | GA: 25 | OppsOVR: 75.14 3rd Unit: Brax - Tbeat - Reshuffled | Stretch Record: 4-4-1 | GF: 27 | GA: 31 | OppsOVR: 56.77 Dallas' 1st line, in true Jojo fashion, was fed to the wolves all season. Having the toughest OppsOVR out of any playoff unit, John, Oshlag and Formless have been put through the ringer and will be key if Dallas pulls off the upset. They've usually had Bugsy or Smirk and Murder on D with them, which probably/maybe won't be a thing in the playoffs. I'd assume the goal would be having Smirk and Lafleur in the games vs. 2nd lines to boost up whichever line between Oshlag's and Crafted's plays. Murder at 750k though had a quality season at that price, it's worth noting, he just shouldn't be playing with the 1st come playoff time. Dallas' 2nd has a fast-paced line in wingers Jojo and Max, who both will try to push the pace of the game for better or for worse. Crafted is a nice fit to have someone responsible on both ends. I'd imagine that this line would get the 3rd line assignment this round while having Murder or Kriptic as their RD. Their 3rd, while I love some playoff Brax and playoff Tbeat, is another 3rd that is best served being a sui 3rd these playoffs, and maybe that magic can steal a game for the Stars. The defence gets rounded out by TK, who I'd consider a high-end 3rd pairing to low-end 2nd pairing guy. The Stars D as a whole is actually pretty solid 1 through 6, it's just missing that true Game 7 LD. Smiirk probably would take that role if the situation came, and credit to him for having a quietly great season with 17 wins and 33 points. In net, I really don't have much of an opinion on either of NOVI_Toxic or Luukkonen. Both had average SV% this season, while Luukkonen did pick up some playoff experience last season with Montreal. In the end this Dallas roster is solid, there's no one or nothing that really jumps out and wows you about it but it's a solid group. It's a solid group against the most complete roster in the West. Depth Advantage: How do they win? - They don't do stupidly aggressive things like play Memory vs. either of Dallas' top-2 lines and stay the course. The team is good enough to win in 6 on cruise control, there's no need to get crazy and aim for a sweep here. - Jojo gets into the scheduling lab with Brax and mixes his lines into getting the matchups he needs. They can afford to lose 1 out of 4 games with their top-2 lines, and then chance a Game 7 where Lafleur puts in a shift and a half to get Dallas the upset. My take Winnipeg just has too many ways to win this series and Dallas has so few. Memory can juggle the lines as much as he needs to do from his top-6 to secure must-wins and Dallas finds itself in a 3-1 hole after 4, eventually losing the next day in 5. Winnipeg Jets win in 5 games. (2) Vancouver Canucks vs. (7) Colorado Avalanche Playoff Scheduling @Kylo_Reli: 3 playoff appearances, including 3 first round appearances (lost to S15 SEA in 4, lost to S16 EDM in 5, lost to S17 WPG in 6) Whether it's Reli doing the scheduling or Prodigy at this point, I think both are lacklustre at it at this point. Every series in Reli's trio had some moment where I shook my head and there's a lot to prove here in a series that he's the heavy favourite in. @Notezyy: First appearance as owner Notes makes his first appearance in the playoffs as a manager. I personally think he has zero idea what he's doing until he wakes up tomorrow. Luca probably has some idea of what they should do but it's also Luca so the communication will probably be terrible and Notes won't believe him. This series is primed for maximum chaos right from the start. Reli's track record is so bad at this point that I'll give the advantage to Notes who at least has potential of being ok at it. Playoff Scheduling Advantage: Depth - 1st Unit: Nolan - Reli - Doogs | Stretch Record: 12-0-0 | GF: 57 | GA: 16 | OppsOVR: 49.77 2nd Unit: Whale - Patches - Bweiss | Stretch Record: 10-1-1 | GF: 54 | GA: 25 | OppsOVR: 77.71 3rd Unit: eHans - Nuckzy - Mmca | Stretch Record: 7-5-0 | GF: 46 | GA: 29 | OppsOVR: 58.83 The story has been said a million times about Reli this season. He beat up shitters with Grinder, Prodigy, Nolan and Doogs when he came over in a trade. I don't think that takes away from them being a legit 1st line and threat. Grinder now even has a Game 7 win to add to his playoff experience. There's not really much to touch on with them besides that, great line, played bad players, put up god numbers, still a great line. Their 2nd unit is a great talking point. They ran Whale usually on the LW with Patches and Bweiss, along with Gwanzie. Now, first of all, I had zero idea Gwanzie had 47 points this season, so good for him. This unit has a pretty distinct style that could either bode very well for the playoffs, or catastrophic. They sacrifice a lot of defensive structure, to be corsi gods. It's a weird one for me because in my opinion you can't score your way out of problems in the playoffs, but this line just shoots and shoots and overwhelms you. It's such perfect playoff hockey yet I can't help but feel that Gwanzie is going to have to reeeeeeeeeally rein back his pinching and somewhat take away from the play style the unit has established. Will definitely be interesting to watch. They have a solid 3rd in eHans, Nuckzy, Mmca, Nav and Ostrich2face, who were able to play .500 hockey throughout the season and improved with the addition of Mmca. The strength of this forward group is definitely at RW and I wouldn't be surprised if Vancouver does any swaps, it's there. Their starting goalie is NHLBEAST, who was the starter for the last two seasons on Toronto. He'll be looking to get some personal vengeance after a disappointing first round. Their backup Sherm is still looking for his first playoff win as a goalie. - 1st Unit: Houle - Notes - Mondy | Stretch Record: 5-3-0 | GF: 30 | GA: 17 | OppsOVR: 53.64 2nd Unit: Shieldz - Reider - Pheno | Stretch Record: 7-3-1 | GF: 51 | GA: 28 | OppsOVR: 62.78 3rd Unit: Vengy - Luca - VanDerHeide | Stretch Record: 5-5-2 | GF: 29 | GA: 35 | OppsOVR: 60.84 This team looks surprisingly good on paper. I really like the Houle - Notes - Mondy line as their 1st, Houle was great this season and was always a great scorer on the wing. Mondy provides a good option to play as fast as Houle does, while Notes is there to be that defensively responsible centre. Their 2nd forward line features Shieldz, Reider and Pheno. Shieldz was the jewel of their draft, posting a 62-point rookie season. Knowing Pheno is a winger who has played fast in past games, Reider seems like a good fit on this line as he can offer a little more offensively than Notes in my opinion, but offers a little less defensively. Their 3rd line on paper has Vengy and Luca from what I've seen. I don't know if VanDerHeide is back for playoffs or not, but regardless of Luca's disappointing season if he can't be a pain for Vancouver's top-6 this series then I just think he doesn't care. He should be who Colorado is leaning on this series if they want the upset. On D, it's a pretty impressive top-4 in Hoff/Perf on the left side, and Buckeyes/Chara on the right. Even iTap and Bjacked are no slouches and they serve as the 5 and 6 options on this roster. While they struggled down the stretch, the roster definitely has the talent on paper to make some noise and could be a sleeper. They didn't treat BR like a starter after acquiring him and instead kept rollin with Lundqxist, so their goaltending usage could be something to look out for in this series also. Like I said, Colorado on paper for a 7th seed looks good. Vancouver's top-6 trumps it though, along with having a higher end D-man in Grindxr. Depth Advantage: How do they win? - Reli/Prodigy actually schedule a fine series and Vancouver cruises to the 2nd round, with their top-6 winning 4 out of 4 games. - Notes capitalizes on a scheduling mistake and gets a line advantage for the rest of the series, hopefully on night 1 (Game 1/2). All 3 lines produce to their full capability and Colorado causes a 4th straight first round exit for Reli. My take This series could literally be anything. Colorado sweeps and Vancouver fully collapses, I'd believe it. Avs get a blowout win in Game 7? Sure. Reli snatches fate for the first time ever and saves the series in 7? Why not. But like, this is the best team Reli has ever built. I really shouldn't have this much faith in him, but the pieces are there and I get the vibe that Colorado quietly doesn't want to be here. He snaps out of doing dumb things in the playoffs and gets the monkey off his back in a statement series. Vancouver Canucks win in 4 games. (3) Nashville Predators vs. (6) Minnesota Wild Playoff Scheduling @SelkeSean: 3 playoff appearances, including 3 first round appearances (lost to S17 ARZ in 5, lost to S10 TOR in 7 and lost to S8 TOR in 7) I only credited Sean's owner playoff appearances but he's had several more as a GM or while under contract. Overall I think he's a good strategist that unfortunately had two Leafs' teams stop him early. Boughs also knows a good bit about playoff scheduling and both together shouldn't have issues with scheduling ideas. @BTL_MoTi: First appearance as owner Moti also comes from the MrPurpleCrush dojo of playoff scheduling just like Boughs and myself, but I do have to somewhat question how knowledgeable he actually is. I'm assuming he did some or most of it while managing with Pepsi the last few seasons, but I still find him really hard to gauge. Moti could very well be way better at strategy in this series than I'll give him credit for at the moment but the advantage currently belongs to Nashville. Playoff Scheduling Advantage: Depth - 1A Unit: Troak - Boughs | Stretch Record: 9-2-1 | GF: 28 | GA: 19 | OppsOVR: 70.6 1B Unit: Kev - Sean | Stretch Record: 7-2-0 | GF: 27 | GA: 16 | OppsOVR: 73.64 3rd Unit: Murdr - Pastrnak | Stretch Record: 6-0-1 | GF: 35 | GA: 18 | OppsOVR: 57 Nashville is a team where they could switch who their 1st is depending on matchups they like or dislike. For me, I slightly prefer the Troak and Boughs duo. Both have winning in the playoffs experience and Boughs makes any line he plays on this season a defensive dynamo. Kev and Sean of course create the 1-2 duo punch for Nashville, and rightfully so. Sean had his best season since S8 and a lot of credit can go towards the seasons of playing with Kev and the chem they've built. The one thing I'm curious to see is if they ever get to a Game 7, who sits out. Sean can't play RW that well so one of these two combos will have to be benched and on paper they're so close that I think the hot hand approach would probably have to be used to decide (or avail). The Game 7 gets joined by Hedmxnn, who's going to be the RW they lean on for tougher games in swaps. Their 3rd has been really good this season, with Pastrnak having an 18-win season. Along with Murdr, the two went 6-0-1, and if they stick with Goalscorer and Chillos on D, it's one of the best 3rd units in the playoffs. Looking at their top-4 on D, 750k Gvnb had 21 wins this season which is absolutely wild. He seems to be someone that can play with any of the Predators' LD, and this mixing will only be a strength. With Tibby, Poland and Kipp to finish their top-4, there's so many options to swap D-men and not lose much in terms of talent, even if you include Goalscorer and Chillos. For goaltending, Kahkonen (wrong team buddy) is going to be relied on heavily as Albxrt has the 2nd-worst SV% of all playoff goalies. I know nothing about him, but he led the league in SV% and shutouts in his rookie season, so I guess he's a god. - 1st Unit: Mxkar - Actiiz | Stretch Record: 6-5-0 | GF: 42 | GA: 33 | OppsOVR: 85.15 2nd Unit: Smitty - Moti | Stretch Record: 7-3-0 | GF: 41 | GA: 20 | OppsOVR: 52.61 3rd Unit: Westy - Pagz | Stretch Record: 3-5-1 | GF: 22 | GA: 27 | OppsOVR: 74.17* Another team big on duos, Mxkar and Actiiz are the leaders on the depth chart for this team. They've gotten the toughest matchups all season, and have produced good but not great seasons, at least not up to the standards I'd have for them. Whether they play with Silkyaim or Metro, they're going to be the duo Moti needs to get 2-0s. Smitty and Moti take the 2nd unit duties, riding a 5-game winning streak. I personally don't think Moti has produced up to the standard of being that 1-2 punch with Actiiz, and this first round is a big opportunity to snap back to the Moti who was dominant last season. Smitty's adjusted well from being a playmaker to turning into a scorer playing with Moti, and I think tweaking his play style is a credit to the great player he is. Their 3rd involves Westy, Pagz and I'd assume the newly called up JcPens. Both Westy and Pagz I see as capable of playing on 2nd lines but they really struggled down the stretch, and with JcPens filling their 9th forward spot, even with an ECU playing each game for him it looks like the writing is on the wall for it to be a sui line. On D, they're all over the place with pairings. I'd assume if avail went their way, they'd have Dud - Mikey, Aries - DC, Fly - Shamzy. It's a great 6 to have, I think Aries is a bit out of place playing with DC so much and Fly would probably belong more there, but it's still a great D group. They then have a fantastic goaltending duo in Deanoo and Ryptize. Ryptize is capable of being a starter for I'd say half of the league right now, while Deanoo is arguably the best goalie in the league. There's so little to differentiate these two teams on paper. In the beginning I was leaning Minnesota, but Nashville has so many hidden gems in players like Gvnb and Kahkonen that it's hard to not give them the advantage in this series. Depth Advantage: How do they win? - Sean schedules like he can, and more importantly he wins that one game. There always seems to be that one game in a series for Sean that is pivotal, and he needs to find a way to win it. Kahkonen continues his stellar regular season play and Boughs gets a matchup or two with Moti, winning all. The 3rd line also gets a look at a 3vmixed3 night one, if Sean chooses to trust it. I think they win that depending on how heavily mixed. - It all comes down to that Moti line taking a game. Actiiz gets his 2, I don't think that's avoidable for Nashville. I don't think you can rely on the 3rd to steal one, so for Minnesota you need that win from Moti, force 7, and Actiiz/Mxkar gets a win in a tight game they're so familiar with this season. My take This could very well be the most competitive series of the first round. The only matchup I see being a potential blowout is Kev/Sean vs. Minnesota's 3rd, otherwise every game should be close. However, these are two teams that have gone in separate directions down the stretch. Nashville stayed hot and competed for the division and conference, while Minnesota fizzled out. I'll stick with the hot team to stay hot and end it before 7. Nashville Predators win in 6 games. (4) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (5) Arizona Coyotes Playoff Scheduling @AyoMoran: First appearance as owner, but has 1 SCF win (won in 6 vs. S17 CAR) While this is Moran's first appearance as owner in the playoffs, he did contribute to Vegas' playoff scheduling from last season. Although they won in dominant fashion, I wasn't a big fan of how Vegas scheduled. The Golden Knights 3rd was placed in a lot of games against 1sts and 2nds, while it worked out because they were just that good, that luxury of not caring about matchups isn't the same this season and there's not much stock to take from last season strategy-wise. @Dangs92: 2 playoff appearances, including 1 SCF appearance (lost to S16 CAR in 7), 1 CF appearance (lost to S17 VGK in 6) Whether it's Dangs or Pier (or both) who's done the scheduling for Arizona in the past, the one notable thing about their strategy always is how aggressive they are. I think being away team only plays to their strengths because of how much they love to start a series with their afro 3rd from last season, or their 1st from the season before. I think they go back to being aggressive with their 1st to start the series this time around. I think both managers could be categorized as aggressive schedulers, but Dangs has showed that he's had a purpose for doing it while Moran's catalogue just showed that Vegas was that much better than everyone else. Playoff Scheduling Advantage: Depth - 1st Unit: Tommy - Moran - Sharp | Stretch Record: 10-0-0 | GF: 59 | GA: 15 | OppsOVR: 55.28 2nd Unit: Mreed | Stretch Record: 5-4-0 | GF: 31 | GA: 24 | OppsOVR: 71.68* 3rd Unit: Dusty - AK | Stretch Record: 3-5-2 | GF: 31 | GA: 30 | OppsOVR: 87.8* Two polar opposites in terms of keeping players together. First off is Vegas, who loved to mix throughout the stretch. Regardless, Tommy, Moran and Sharp are the main attraction and are Vegas' best 3 at forward, no discussion. People like to take digs at them for having a weak schedule this season, so what. They're defending Cup champions and built a team good enough to cruise to the playoffs while playing johnny34jam's every week. Nothing to prove as far as I'm concerned until now with their back-to-back attempt. It's really hard to distinguish between their 2nd and 3rd unit. They have a south central unit with anyone from Dustymax, to Mreed, to AK, to VxD, to even Sharp, and on D Senko and Dabears. They then have two forwards who don't play on sc, to play with Snxpzy, who's supposed to be back for playoffs. In my opinion, having Snxpzy back is huge as it gives them an east secondary scoring option to play with Jakoo or Briere. Out of the south central forwards, they seem to lean towards AK and Dusty to play on east. AK picked it up a little down the stretch, but this still ended up being a disappointing season for someone who was hyped up by every west player on the platform, and who had a great rookie season for Florida. No better time for him to bounce back than playoff time. A key piece on D I haven't mentioned is J-yardy, who's been nothing but a standard of consistency throughout his contract, and has only upped his individual numbers after playing mainly with Moran and Tommy. In goal, they have Drydxn a.k.a. Murdermass, who had a great season for Vegas. For SC they have Cow, who can play on east if needed, but I expect Drydxn to have the 4 covered. - 1A Unit: Dangs - Rico - Pier | Stretch Record: 7-3-2 | GF: 38 | GA: 23 | OppsOVR: 72.91 1B Unit: Dodsy - MJBenny | Stretch Record: 6-4-1 | GF: 40 | GA: 21 | OppsOVR: 69.98 3rd Unit: Defty - Decker - Stutzle | Stretch Record: 5-4-2 | GF: 27 | GA: 23 | OppsOVR: 76.52 Now you have Arizona, who rarely shuffled forward lines, if ever. What I’d consider their 1A unit, although it's another team that could swap who they designate as their 1st depending on matchup and circumstance, is Dangs with Rico and Pier. Dangs and Pier are pillars of the previous two Arizona playoff runs. They'll be looking to make up for their 2-3 from last playoffs. Centring them this season is Rico, and I'm so glad Dangs re-signed him because I think Rico is the type of solid centre who can play any play style and play with any wingers. Seeing him stick with Dangs and Pier down the stretch is well deserved in my eyes. They've mostly had Bingo and Jenk (BestinOttawa) on D down the stretch, I don't know much about Bingo but I'm not surprised to see Jenk join Dangs' unit this season after the praise Dangs gave him since having him. Their 1B unit then has Dodsy, MJBenny, BaldingUncle (when he actually plays), noted wand enthusiast Joffman, and Bevi. Really not much to add with commentary for this unit, Dodsy and Joff have produced together for over a year now. MJBenny was a nice add down the middle, and Bevi is one of those guys I've never watched but hear a lot of good things about. Their 3rd unit, which was a strength before, was disappointing this season. I thought Defty was a great trade in the offseason, and I can't say I expected this 3rd to play below .500 hockey. Adding Decker between him and Stutzle helped, and I think there's another gear this line can reach, especially now having Kevvy and Saindou on D as well. If this 3rd finds a way to be as good these playoffs as they are on paper, this is a scary team. Backstopping this team is out of nowhere Vezina-nominee and rookie Shoobie. Looking forward to seeing if he can keep it up in the playoffs. Depth Advantage: How do they win? - There's two ways I could see Vegas winning this. They either a) use their home ice to split Tommy and Moran for a game, and have them play Arizona's 3rd twice separately, then have them play together to win a game off the 1A or 1B. 4th win comes from the SC line or from Game 7. Or b) they don't split and fully trust their SC to win two, and Moran/Tommy to win two. I think both options depend on how Arizona starts the series with their lines. - Their top two units do their thing and end the series before 7. Simple for a straightforward kind of team. My take The thing is, this series is going to be too wild to go to plan for either team. I don't know how it gets there, but it's easy to see this series going 7. So in a game 7, do I trust Tommy-Moran-Sharp with Yardy and Briere/Jakoo, or do I trust Dangs-Dodsy-Pier with Joff and Bevi/Jenk. The one major characteristic of Dods and Joff this season is they haven't played their best hockey, but have found ways to win, usually in low scoring games. That Vegas unit at the same time, arguably the best offensive unit in the league. I'll bet on the Game 7 to turn into a neutral zone clogging war, and Arizona finds a way. Arizona Coyotes win in 7 games. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hope this was enjoyable, I know this is a really long read but I tried to give every team the time of day regardless of if my knowledge of them was mid or great. Also be aware that @Smxrsh- and @FLP_Sports are hosting a playoff show that I will be joining at 5pm EST tomorrow. Good luck to all teams!
Great write up MT! but tbh i play better when i get rammed on how bad i am so maybe talk a little more shit on me i suck love ya <3
This is a great write up MT. went in to awesome detail. I hope we continue to see more from you in the future.
Wow really great write up, many thanks to you and @FLP_Sports for providing the psn side with some much needed content. I hope to see this trend continue as we desperately need stuff like this.
