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Stanley Cup Playoffs 2024: Predicting the Conference finalists for East and West
It seems crazy, but we are oh so close to the Conference Finals of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Although all four conference semi-final series have had some trouble coming to a close, we head into Thursday night with another team having the chance to advance.
Before we get to that matchup, here are my predictions for which two teams will represent the East and West in the conference finals next week.
Predicting the four teams in the Eastern and Western Conference Finals of the Stanley Cup Playoffs
Eastern Conference
The East's series has gone by far quicker than the West in this year's playoffs. Until the past few nights, that is.
One team that has been dominant is the New York Rangers. The Rangers swept the Washington Capitals in the first round, as expected. The Caps limped into the playoffs with an impressive streak at the end of the regular season. And although they put up a decent fight in each game, the Rangers were too much for them and won four straight.
New York continued its undefeated streak into the second round, winning the first three games against the Carolina Hurricanes. The Canes have won two straight and have a chance to force Game 7 at home tonight, but I think the Rangers will survive and advance.
The Florida Panthers have had a similar path to the Rangers. Florida made quick work of the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games of the first round and quickly jumped up to a 3-1 series lead over the Boston Bruins in round two.
Boston was able to win Game 5 in Florida on Tuesday, I believe the Panthers are not only going to advance but are also the team to beat in the East.
Western Conference
Arguably the best team in the entire playoffs has been the Dallas Stars.
Dallas won the Central Division and Western Conference. And their reward? The defending champion Vegas Golden Knights in the very first round. Keep in mind, this was also a Vegas team that added Tomas Hertl and Noah Hanifin at the deadline and was motivated by the heroic return of Mark Stone from LTIR.
And Vegas looked lethal early on. Dallas lost the first two games at home, but eventually found their game and won four of the next five to knock off the Golden Knights in seven.
In the second round, Dallas lost its sixth straight Game 1, in overtime to the Colorado Avalanche. But the Stars once again turned it on and won three straight before losing in Game 5 on Wednesday.
The Stars should handle business on the road Friday in Game 6 and advance. And after those two steep tests, I would be surprised if anyone in the West could handle them.
Lastly, the Edmonton Oilers have made things very tricky for themselves in the playoffs. What else is new? Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl have been on fire, as usual, but the Oilers' goaltending has just been awful, as usual.
Calvin Pickard took over for Stuart Skinner and got his first career playoff win, a huge win over the Vancouver Canucks in Game 4 to tie the series 2-2. If Pickard can be just average, the Oilers should knock off a Canucks team with some key players that are really struggling.
So, here are my predicted Western Conference and Eastern Conference Finals matchups:
West - Dallas Stars vs Edmonton Oilers
East - New York Rangers vs Florida Panthers
Do you agree?
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