2020 Western Conference Quarterfinal Preview

Sorry for the delay, but here is the West Preview. We had a few Eastern Conference GMs and a few surprises give their predictions on who they think will come out of the West.

(B1) Edmonton Oilers vs. (W2) Winnipeg Jets

The Edmonton Oilers were clearly the best regular season team in the MRFHL this season as the only 50 game winning team in the league. The Oilers were never afraid to shake it up mid-season to try and push the team in a direction to win this year, trading guys like Artemi Panarin and Johnny Gaudreau to shore up depth and get established winning veterans like Jonathan Toews. The keys have been the guys that were already there like Barkov, Giroux and Patrick Kane have been a dominant top line. Giordano and Ristolainen have been big contributors from the backend and Connor Hellebuyck has consistently been stopping pucks all season.

In Winnipeg, the team might have just had some locker room issues as they have been on a rollercoaster of a season. They were buyers and sellers this season, in that order. Early on in the season they went out brought in Nikita Kucherov in hopes of bringing in an elite winger. Months later they traded their big off-season acquisition in Zdeno Chara and their number one goalie. Every since then they've been on a tear and shockingly snuck in to the playoffs. Up front it's not hard to see, with three franchise like players in Kucherov, MacKinnon and Draisaitl. The defence past the top two is unspectacular, with guys like Ben Harpur and Matt Benning eating up minutes. The biggest shock was Linus Ullmark taking hold of the number one spot in net and almost single handedly carrying the Jets to a playoff spot. 

The Oilers should be favourites, but they have to be cursing the way the standings shook out as this doesn't seem like a reward for being the best. The Jets have the experience, they made the finals the past two seasons, losing both years so there is that feeling that they're out there to correct some wrongs. Season Series: 3-1 Oilers

(B2) Calgary Flames vs. (B3) Los Angeles Kings

The Calgary Flames have been one of the most consistent teams in the league. They have almost always been a playoff team and generally have won at least a few rounds. Most of their cup winning team from a few years ago is gone, but the consistent in that time have been Semyon Varlamov and Jordan Staal who are still key contributors to the Flames success. Early on in the season the Flames acquired Brayden Schenn and his chemistry with Matt Duchene has been off the charts, being the focal point of the teams offence. Ryan Suter who even at 35 has been logging close to 30 minutes a night for the Flames and has been great doing so, but it will be interesting to see how he fairs through a grueling playoff schedule. 

The Kings are built on defence, a veteran heavy group that can be punishing to play against which will be key as they are not as deep as other teams in the other areas of their team. The forward group took a considerable hit after dealing Phil Kessel mid-season, leaving the heavy lifting to Anze Kopitar and Tyler Toffoli who both had to shoulder the load of the offence. After being brought in from the Senators, Jaroslav Halak was given the number one role and just couldn't maintain any success, so the team turned to Jack Campbell who has been the surprise of the season with a .926 save percentage in his 14 starts 

It was battle right to the end of the season to see who would not only make the playoffs, but who would get home ice advantage. The consensus seems to lean towards the Flames, but the Kings have been full of surprises and as cliche as it is, defence can win championships and the Kings have the slight advantage there. Season Series: 4-1 Flames

(S1) Nashville Predators vs. (W1) Dallas Stars

How far the Predators go in this years playoffs begins and ends with Ben Bishop. One of the Vezina favourites this year was incredible, finally returning to form after a few rough years as the Predators starter. The defence is built on a ragtag group of veterans who are competent but mostly unassuming. The forward group is young and will continue to build together, but this is the first foray in to the playoffs for the likes of Pettersson and Boeser, so we'll see how they deal with the pressure. One of the bigger flops off the off-season was Joe Thornton who received a 2 year, 15 million dollar deal. Jumbo Joe couldn't even crack the 30 point mark, so now the team looks to him to try and earn some of that money in the playoffs. 

The Dallas Stars have been one of those teams that's constantly been building for almost a decade and unlike other teams that were in similar positions those many years ago, they have never been able to make a serious run in the playoffs. They hope this is their time. On paper it should all be there, Tyler Seguin and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins are stars (pun not intended) and somehow they managed to swindle the Boston Bruins out of Jack Eichel, who has just managed to make the offence even more deadly than it already was. The defence is young and big, with 4 of their 6 defenceman standing at 6'3 or taller, an imposing bunch for any offence to face. John Gibson is entering his 3rd straight playoff campaign as a starter and has always been excellent in every trip, now if he can sustain that and if the team in front of him can live up to expectations, it could be a long run in the lonestar state. 

Another division winner against a wildcard that seems way closer on paper than it should be. In the prediction section it is understandably tight, with the vote being split. The teams had  their own mini-playoff series as they faced off in 3 games in the last week of the season, the Stars coming out with 2 wins which helped secure their playoff spot. Both of these teams have some of the best goaltending in the league and it may really come down to which goalie can outduel the other for four games. Season Series: 4-3 Stars

(B2) Chicago Blackhawks vs. (B3) Colorado Avalanche

The Blackhawks have entered every season as one of the cup favourites since probably the last time they won the cup back in 2009. So there can be a sense of disappointment that they have only won one game in a Conference finals since then (they've made two trips to the conference finals since 2009, a 4-0 sweep to the Kings in 2011 and a 4-1 series loss to the Coyotes in 2016). Again the Blackhawks should be there. The offence is loaded with a mix of young and experienced players. The defence has an imposing top two of Hedman and Jones, who can shut down the best of offences any time they step on to the ice. The Hawks decided to turn to the more experienced Henrik Lundqvist instead of investing in a younger goalie, but King Henrik has a good track record in the playoffs despite no cup and the Hawks are hoping that bet will pay off finally this season. 

The strategy in Colorado seems to be loading up on experience and size. The Avalanche are easily the oldest team in the playoffs with an average of 32 years old, over 2 years older than any other team in the playoffs. And in size the "smallest" guys on the roster is Frank Vatrano, who stands at a measly 5'11 and then of course they have giants Zdeno Chara and Tyler Myers on the roster. It's an imposing roster but also has some impressive skill with Sebastian Aho and Sean Monahan not only filling the youth subset of the team, but also the keys to the offence as the pair combined for almost 200 points this campaign. The Avs set out to help shore up the defence this season as they acquired the likes of PK Subban, Zdeno Chara and Marco Scandella all during the season and they have been greatly rewarded for doing so. The team invested heavily in signing Thomas Greiss this off-season, a goalie who hadn't made a start in years, and he has been excellent, starting nearly every game this year for the Avs. 

Despite having home ice advantage the prediction series seems to go against the Blackhawks, the perpetual playoff underachievers. Of all the playoff series in the West, this has the recipe for the most intense battle and in all likelihood will go the full 7. Season Series: 3-2 Blackhawks