original post was at 2:38am on 4/19/2024

Below you will find the matchups for the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

I've made it easy for you to copy and paste and entries should be in by Saturday at 3pm ET.

Non-members can post their picks on X and I will add them to the comment section.

from John Niyo of the Detroit News,

“You look at the black-and-white improvement, we improved 11 points,” said head coach Derek Lalonde, whose team went from 35 wins and 80 points a year ago to 41 wins and 91 points this season. “You can also look at it, black-and-white, we missed the playoffs. That's been hockey for 100 years, making the playoffs.”

For Lalonde, that should be the mandate now, even if it’s an unspoken one. A whopping 10 NHL coaches were fired this past season, and though he’s only been in Detroit two full years, Lalonde has a longer tenure than half of his peers around the league. Still, all this talk of improvement inevitably will take a back seat to black-and-white results.

Lalonde gets high marks from players for his even-keeled approach — “You know what you’re gonna get, and I really respect that,” captain Dylan Larkin says — and he and his staff deserve some credit for the way the team responded down the stretch after a disastrous month of March.

“Obviously, we weren't perfect,” Yzerman said. “But the most important thing from my vantage point was that our players are motivated, our players are determined and there's a good atmosphere within the locker room. And part of that is the coaching staff helps foster that or create that. So overall, I'm happy with the direction we're going, the coaching that we have.”

Still, what we have here is a team that improved dramatically on one end of the ice this season — Detroit’s scoring was up nearly a half-goal per game to finish ninth overall in the NHL — yet also allowed the ninth-most goals in a league where none in the bottom 10 made the postseason.

more ($)

from Mark Cannizzaro of the New York Post,

For the players on the Rangers who were with the team a year ago, which encompasses the majority of their dressing room, the sting hasn’t fully subsided.

And it won’t. Not until more is done this month, next month and possibly in June.

The Rangers exited the Stanley Cup playoffs far too early commensurate with their expectations when they lost a 2-0 series lead and fell to the Devils in seven games in the first round last spring.

The exorcism of those demons begins Sunday afternoon at the Garden, where the Rangers will play Game 1 against a Washington Capitals team they’re expected to dispatch en route to a deeper run into these playoffs.

“Going home early, that’s obviously hard and it sits with you,” Rangers captain Jacob Trouba said. “Throughout the season you’re constantly thinking about, ‘How can I be more prepared for this moment?’ It’s been something that we’ve been working for the whole year, trying to get back to this point and prove to ourselves that we can do it.’’

In the playoffs.

continued

* After the full playoff bracket was finalized in the last 81 seconds of regulation play in the 2023-24 regular season, the focus shifts to night one of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs as four teams embark on their championship-seeking journeys Saturday.

* The first night of the playoffs features two matchups between familiar foes: the Islanders and Hurricanes are meeting for the third time in six postseasons, followed by the Maple Leafs and Bruins renewing a 99-year-old rivalry that will now include four playoff series since 2013.

* NHL CommissionerGary Bettman joined Ryan and AshleySmith, owners of the new NHL franchise in Utah, for a press conference at Delta Center, where the club will begin play in 2024-25.

from Emily Sadler of Sportsnet,

Arizona Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo says he’s "sorry" for how things have unfolded in the desert, calling the decision to sell and relocate the team's hockey business to Utah "the most painful decision" of his business career.

During a press conference in Arizona less than 24 hours after the NHL officially announced the deal that moves the team from the desert to Salt Lake City under the ownership of Ryan and Ashley Smith, both Meruelo and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman expressed their condolences to fans and players for how things unfolded. They also offered up additional explanations about how and why the arrangement came to be....

Bettman closed the press conference by quoting American general Douglas MacArthur: “We shall return.”

much more

via TNT Sports,

via the NHL PR department,

The 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs open April 20th, the start of a two-month rollercoaster of upsets, overtime games, unsung heroes, and memorable moments. Whether you are wondering which fanbase has waited the longest for a Stanley Cup, what veteran you should root for or what players can climb NHL all-time lists this postseason, the #NHLStats team has you covered with a quick-hit cheat sheet.

from Kevin Allen of Detroit Hockey Now,

The Red Wings’ defense situation for next season is complicated. With Simon Edvinsson showing this spring that he’s ready to play in Detroit full-time, Detroit GM Steve Yzerman now have seven defensemen under contract.

The Red Wings also have Albert Johansson playing well for the Grand Rapids Griffins. He won’t be waiver-exempt next season. That means he must make Detroit’s roster or go through waivers to be sent down to the Griffins. He is a quality young defender with a penchant for sharp outlet passes. He won’t clear waivers.

All of that makes it more challenging to bring back soon-to-be-unrestricted free agent Shayne Gostisbehere next season. But Yzerman made it clear Friday that he plans to try.

“I’d like to see if we can figure out a way to do it,” Yzerman said. “He’s a valuable player for how we’re set up on the back end.”

continued plus talk on Detroit's UFAs.

If you missed Lalonde and Yzerman today, you can watch them in two separate videos below.

via the NHL PR department,

It started with the highly-anticipated debut of an 18-year-old No. 1 pick, was filled from startto finish by star-powered performances not seen in generations, spanned three countries (and four continents when including the preseason) and culminated with “sweet, beautiful, end of the season mayhem” that featured down-to-the-wire scoring and playoff races that had people calling 2023-24 the “greatest regular season in NHL history.”

via the NHL PR department,

via the Detroit Red Wings YouTube page,

Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde and executive VP/general manager Steve Yzerman speak to the media following the 23-24 Detroit Red Wings season.

Live now, watch below.

10 goals in just over 10 minutes.

The audio will start with the Kane talk, it's a short one.

via TSN's YouTube page,

On the eve of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Michael Farber examines the season-long resiliency of the four Canadian teams gunning for a championship.

I'll have the embed code up at the appropriate times.

from Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun,

Brady Tkachuk is as sick of this same old song and dance every spring as you are hearing him talk about another early summer.

As the Ottawa Senators gathered at the Canadian Tire Centre to hold exit meetings with Steve Staios, the president of hockey operations and general manager, the club’s captain was trying to come to grips with another spring of missing the playoffs.

This departure day was the most difficult to swallow because this season started with promise and hope, but ended in a disastrous fashion.

“We took a couple of steps back, it’s frustrating and it’s difficult,” Tkachuk said Wednesday. “I’m not going to lie to you, I had high hopes coming into this year and, for it not to happen, it’s pretty disappointing. I’m sad, frustrated and all the words you can use here.”

“Whether you want to be vocal or not, everybody knows I just finished year six and I haven’t done a thing,” Tkachuk said. “I haven’t played in those meaningful that I’ve imagined and the rest of the group has imagined.

“But in saying that, I have full faith and trust in Steve, the rest of management and (owner Michael) Andlauer.”

read on

from Dave Stubbs of the NHL's website,

Wally Harris, a former NHL referee who in retirement became the League’s first Director of Officials and subsequently an influential, highly respected supervisor of game crews, died Thursday in a Montreal-area hospital following a short illness.

He was 88.

Harris refereed 953 regular-season games and another 85 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs between 1966-83, working Stanley Cup Final series in 1973, 1975, 1976, 1980, 1982 and 1983. He also officiated in two NHL All-Star Games -- the League’s 28th in 1975 at the Montreal Forum, and the 34th in 1982 at the Capital Center in Landover, Maryland.

The native of Montreal-suburban Lachine took ill during a recent trip to Florida. He returned home and was hospitalized in late March, remaining in the facility’s care until his passing.

“With a personality that would light up the room, Wally Harris was respected and revered by all officials he managed,” said Stephen Walkom, NHL Senior Vice-President and Director of Officiating. “There was an assuredness and confidence that he instilled in his people and an absolute love for the game of hockey.

“Wally understood the importance of officials in hockey and worked non-stop to pass along his great wisdom to the next generations. When he needed to be serious and get his point across, he did this exceptionally well, with both team executives and the rank and file on the ice.”

continued

* The final two First Round matchups were confirmed thanks to a tying goal with 81 seconds remaining in regulation during the 1,312th and final game of the regular season, with the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs bracket highlighted by several rematches from 2023 and beyond.

* The NHL announced the dates, starting times and national television coverage for the First Round, which begins Saturday, April 20. Click here to read more.

* Nikita Kucherov and Auston Matthews won the Art Ross and Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy, respectively, while Connor Hellebuyck took home the William M. Jennings Trophy after the Jets allowed one fewer goal than the Panthers.

* The NHL’s Board of Governors approved the establishment of a franchise beginning with the 2024-25 season in Utah, that will be owned and controlled by Smith Entertainment Group, which is led byRyan and Ashley Smith.

NEW YORK (April 19, 2024) – The National Hockey League today announced the dates, starting times and national television coverage for the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs First Round, which begins Saturday, April 20. All times listed are ET and subject to change.

NEW YORK (April 19, 2024) – The 2023-24 National Hockey League regular season concluded with Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Nikita Kucherov capturing his second career Art Ross Trophy as the League’s scoring champion, Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews winning his third career Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy as the NHL’s goal-scoring leader and the Winnipeg Jets’ Connor Hellebuyck earning his first career William M. Jennings Trophy as the goaltender who plays at least 25 games for the team allowing the fewest goals.

The NHL's Board of Governors approved the establishment of a franchise beginning with the 2024-25 season in Utah. In addition, a plan was approved that renders the Arizona Coyotes franchise inactive, with a right to reactivate if owner Alex Meruelo has fully constructed a new, state-of-the-art facility appropriate for an NHL team within five years. The TSN Hockey Insiders have more.

Watch at TSN

added 8:02pm, or watch it below.

NEW YORK (April 18, 2024) – The National Hockey League’s Board of Governors today approved the establishment of a franchise beginning with the 2024-25 season in Utah, that will be owned and controlled by Smith Entertainment Group, which is led by Ryan and Ashley Smith. In addition, the Board approved a plan that renders the Arizona Coyotes franchise inactive, with a right to reactivate if owner Alex Meruelo has fully constructed a new, state-of-the-art facility appropriate for an NHL team within five years.

from Damien Cox at the Toronto Star,

Of course, Toronto’s ugly playoff drought against the Bruins also could have ended in Game 7 in 2018, but it didn’t. It could have ended with the Leafs holding a 3-2 series lead in 2019, but then Toronto’s finest could only score three goals in the final two games and went down to defeat again.

Which brings us to 2024, and another meeting between the two clubs. This time, someone of a conspiratorial mindset might think that this matchup was deliberately orchestrated by the Bruins, another chance to pummel the Leafs.

All Boston had to do, after all, was beat hapless Ottawa at home on Tuesday night to win the Atlantic Division. Instead, the Bruins made Anton Forsberg look like Vladimir Dzurilla and mailed in a 3-1 loss. That allowed the Florida Panthers, who beat the Leafs that night, to win the division and allowed the Bruins to draw the Leafs in the first round.

Was that Boston’s preference all along? If you had Boston’s record against Toronto, wouldn’t you have done the same? The Leafs haven’t bested the Bruins in a playoff series since 1959, and currently are on a seven-game regular-season losing streak against their Atlantic Division “rival.”

Just this season, it’s been all Boston. Four games, four wins. The Bruins held the powerful Toronto offence to nine goals and the vaunted Leafs power play to nine per cent efficiency. Boston goes right at the strengths of the Leafs and takes them away.

If teams were permitted to choose their first-round playoff opponent, we can agree the Leafs would have been Boston’s No. 1 pick. And maybe that’s exactly the preference the Bruins expressed in losing to the Senators.

more