The 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs are here! The teams are set, the matchups are set, and the fun starts on Saturday night. Let’s try and guess how it will all turn out. The team indicated in italics wins the series.

MassMutual East Division

Pittsburgh Penguins (1) vs. New York Islanders (4)

Call me biased all you want. Sure, the Islanders lost four of their last five games heading into the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Sure, their power play is bottom-10 in the league. Sure, Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac have only combined for three goals since arriving in New York. I don’t care.

The Islanders are the second-best defensive team in the entire league. They have the sixth-best penalty kill, third-best home record, and a Vezina-caliber goalie in net. Mike Sullivan struggles to coach against Barry Trotz in the playoffs. If NHL fans have learned anything in the last three seasons, it’s to never bet against the Blue and Orange. The Islanders will take this series in six games.

Washington Capitals (2) vs. Boston Bruins (3)

Boston has been red hot since the trade deadline after acquiring Taylor Hall from the Buffalo Sabres. He’s fit in perfectly and is hungry to go on a Stanley Cup run. Boston also had a 4-1-2 record in the season series against the Capitals. They can shut down the Caps’ power play and limit their shot opportunities. This is a great matchup for Boston. They’ll win in seven games.

New York Islanders (4) vs. Boston Bruins (3)

We can dream, right? Even though Boston is built for a deep playoff run, I’m concerned about their lack of depth. One injury during the playoffs can seriously hurt the Bruins’ chances at a Stanley Cup in 2021. However, that’s true for the Islanders too. Let’s just be optimistic. After all, we were 5-2-1 in the season series. I predict an Islanders victory in seven games.

Scotia North Division

Toronto Maple Leafs (1) vs. Montreal Canadiens (4)

If Montreal did better in the regular season, I’d give them this series, but Toronto’s firepower will be too much for the Canadiens. Additionally, the Maple Leafs allowed the sixth-least goals in the NHL this season. Montreal doesn’t even make the playoffs in any other division. I think they’ll be competitive and win two games, but you need to win four to win a series in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Edmonton Oilers (2) vs. Winnipeg Jets (3)

Connor McDavid isn’t playing the same game everyone else is. He has 104 points in only 55 games, the highest scoring rate in NHL history since 1995-96. The Jets, on the other hand, are ice cold. They only won two of their last 10 games. I think the Oilers make easy pickings of their first-round foe.

Toronto Maple Leafs (1) vs. Edmonton Oilers (2)

This will be one of the best series in the second round of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and John Tavares will face off against McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. This was a close season series, with Toronto winning five of eight games. Both teams have strong defenses and goaltending too. But I think McDavid is the difference again. He’ll relish the chance to play his hometown team in the playoffs and the Oilers will move on to the final four.

Discover Central Division

Carolina Hurricanes (1) vs. Nashville Predators (4)

I seriously considered an upset here. Nashville has been one of the hottest teams in the second half of the season. Juuse Saros and Roman Josi took this team on their backs and dragged them into the playoffs. Unfortunately, those two players won’t win them a playoff series. Carolina is an extremely deep team with strong goaltending and special teams. I expect Nashville to put up a fight, but I think Carolina emerges victorious.

Florida Panthers (2) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (3)

Florida probably deserves a series win in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs more than any other team here. They proved everyone wrong this season and finished second in their division. But they’re going up against the defending Stanley Cup champions, who finished only four points behind Florida without the services of Nikita Kucherov, and Steven Stamkos at times. Both players have a good chance of suiting up in Game one. I don’t think the Panthers’ questionable goaltending and defense can stop Tampa.

Carolina Hurricanes (1) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (3)

Unlike the seeding suggests, this is an upset. If Stamkos and Kucherov survive the first round of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Tampa should be the favorite to win this season. But Carolina has the depth throughout their lineup to go up against the defending champs. They have the:

• second-best power play
• third-best penalty kill
• seventh-best shots against per game
• and third-best faceoff win percentage in the regular season.

These are decent indicators of team success, and they should defeat the Lightning in the second round of the playoffs.

Honda West Division

Colorado Avalanche (1) vs. St. Louis Blues (4)

This might be the easiest series to predict this postseason. St. Louis has not been very good this season mostly due to disappointing goaltending and injuries. They don’t have the offensive or defensive depth to compete with Colorado. The Presidents Trophy winners will win this in five games.

Vegas Golden Knights (2) vs. Minnesota Wild (3)

This series has upset written all over it, but I’ll hold myself back. Kirill Kaprizov has blown the NHL away with his speed and craftiness. Cam Talbot and Kaapo Kahkonen have provided solid goaltending too. The problem, like the Blues, is that they lack the depth to compete with Vegas. Whatever the Wild do well, Vegas only does better. The Wild will put up a serious fight, but the Golden Knights will win this one in six games.

Colorado Avalanche (1) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (2)

Colorado was my pick to win the Stanley Cup before the season started. However, what scared me about them is happening again this year, injuries. Nathan MacKinnon is listed as day-to-day, though Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar said he’s hopeful his star center will be ready for Game one. They’ve already suffered injuries to Cale Makar, Brandon Saad, and both of their backup goalies. If Philipp Grubauer misses time again this postseason, the Avalanche will have a tough time beating Vegas.

This is easily the marquee matchup of the playoffs, if it happens, and it should go the distance. One of these teams will need to have luck on their side since they’re so evenly matched. I think it’s Vegas.

Final Four (Teams Re-Seeded)

Vegas Golden Knights (1) vs. New York Islanders (4)

Ok, this is where the dream ends. The Knights are an incredible defensive team and only got better in the offseason with the addition of Alex Pietrangelo. Their goalies also took home the William M. Jennings Trophy for the least goals allowed during the regular season. On top of that, they have four extremely potent forward lines that match up well against the Islanders. The Isles should put up a good fight, but I don’t think Barry Trotz can beat the Golden Knights again in the playoffs.

Carolina Hurricanes (2) vs. Edmonton Oilers (3) 

I’ve been singing Carolina’s praises until now, but I think this 2006 Stanley Cup Finals rematch goes to the Oilers. With each passing round in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs, it will get harder to score goals. That’s where having a star player like Connor McDavid comes in. With all due respect to Sebastian Aho or Andrei Svechnikov, they’re not McDavid or Draisaitl. I think they’ll propel the Oilers to their first Stanley Cup Final since 2006, but not before a brutal, seven-game series.

Stanley Cup Finals

Vegas Golden Knights (1) vs. Edmonton Oilers (3)

This will be the summer of the expansion teams. The Seattle Kraken will have a high bar to meet once the Vegas Golden Knights win the Stanley Cup in only their fourth season of existence. They have two incredible goaltenders, an enviable first line, and a stout defense. McDavid and Draisaitl will make it really hard (I think this is at least a six-game series), but the Golden Knights play extremely well as a team and have all the pieces to win a Stanley Cup this summer.