After a day without playoff hockey, the race for the Stanley Cup resumes Tuesday night with the start of the conference finals. The star power remaining in the playoffs is incredible.
Leon Draisaitl is the favorite to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP after he and Connor McDavid led the defending Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers through two tough series. This is partly because the Oilers are also considered Cup favorites by BetMGM Sportsbook.
Mikko Rantanen is leading all players in the postseason with 19 points in 13 games, helping the Colorado Avalanche reach a rematch against the Oilers in the Western Conference finals. They are hoping this time the outcome is different.
“They’ve got one of the best playoff players of all time in Mikko Rantanen in their lineup, and that might be one factor that allows them to have the narrative be different this year and beat the Oilers,” said Ken Daneyko, a retired defenseman and three-time Cup champion. “He’s a money player. He’s big, he’s strong, he’s built for this.”
Edmonton’s answer to Rantanen and the other key players on the Avalanche — Mikael Granlund, Roope Hintz, Esa Lindell, and healthy Miro Heiskanen — is the powerful duo of McDavid and Draisaitl. McDavid has 17 points, and Draisaitl has 16. These two will be the main focus for the Stars in their series starting Wednesday night in Dallas.
“They’re a different team this year,” said Stars coach Peter DeBoer. “They’re a deeper team this year than they were last year. You see they’re getting scoring from a lot of places other than McDavid and Draisaitl, and they still have that element, obviously, every night.”
While 16 different players have scored a goal for the Oilers, the team’s success will largely depend on McDavid and Draisaitl. McDavid was the playoff MVP last year when they forced Game 7 against Florida but fell short of the championship. He might carry his team again to make it back to the finals.
The Florida Panthers took seven games to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs in the second round but still appear to be in great shape as they enter the Eastern Conference finals against Carolina. BetMGM has Florida favored to reach a third consecutive Cup final.
Jake Oettinger blocks a shot in Game 4“Nothing fazes them: They don’t care where they play, who they play,” Daneyko said. “That’s a dangerous animal. That’s a confident bunch and rightfully so.”
Trade deadline acquisitions Brad Marchand and Seth Jones played important roles in the Panthers’ Game 7 win over the Leafs. Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky also seems locked in, after leading the Panthers to their first title in franchise history last year.
The goaltender matchup in the West could be key. Jake Oettinger did not perform well for the Stars in last year’s conference final, and he was outplayed by Stuart Skinner, who had lost his starting job earlier in the playoffs.
Skinner was back in net for the Oilers last round against Vegas due to an injury to backup Calvin Pickard. Since then, he has stopped 67 out of 71 shots, including two shutouts to finish the series.
“He’s as tough as any goalie with the way he bounces back,” Daneyko said. “Oettinger’s the more constant for Dallas and one of the best goalies in the league, so a lot of people think you’ve got a little edge there. But Skinner rises to the occasion.”
Oettinger allowed just 12 goals on 170 shots in the second round against Winnipeg, with only two goals allowed in the third period of the series.
One reason the Carolina Hurricanes might be able to beat the Panthers this time, after being swept by them two years ago, is their top line of Andrei Svechnikov, Sebastian Aho, and Seth Jarvis.
Svechnikov has scored eight goals, just one behind Rantanen for the most in the playoffs. He scored the series-clinching goal in Game 5 of the second round against Washington. Coach Rod Brind’Amour said they’ve been waiting for this version of Svechnikov, and the 2018 No. 2 pick has truly come into his own at age 25.
“He’s just been great, there’s no question about it,” said captain Jordan Staal. “He’s been on it every night, shooting the puck and being physical and just being hard to play against, being the playoff player we know he is. It’s great to see the puck go in for him. He’s going to continue to lead our group.”
