Fansided

Predicting the first round of the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs

By Griffin Youngs

LAS VEGAS, NV - JUNE 07: Alex Ovechkin #8 of the Washington Capitals and Marc-Andre Fleury #29 of the Vegas Golden Knights shake hands after Game Five of the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Final between the Washington Capitals and the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena on June 7, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Capitals defeated the Golden Knights 4-3 to win the Stanley Cup Final Series 4-1. (Photo by Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - JUNE 07: Alex Ovechkin #8 of the Washington Capitals and Marc-Andre Fleury #29 of the Vegas Golden Knights shake hands after Game Five of the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Final between the Washington Capitals and the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena on June 7, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Capitals defeated the Golden Knights 4-3 to win the Stanley Cup Final Series 4-1. (Photo by Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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EDMONTON, AB – DECEMBER 31: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins #93 of the Edmonton Oilers collides with Tucker Poolman #3 of the Winnipeg Jets on December 31, 2017 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images)
EDMONTON, AB – DECEMBER 31: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins #93 of the Edmonton Oilers collides with Tucker Poolman #3 of the Winnipeg Jets on December 31, 2017 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Central

C1 Winnipeg Jets vs. WC2 Edmonton Oilers

Before the beginning of last year, this would’ve been a very reasonable playoff match-up if the tables were turned. The Jets are where the Oilers were projected to be after their 2017 playoff run, but they fell off in a big way last year. Can they sneak back into the postseason and pull of a massive upset over the juggernaut Jets?

Why Winnipeg is in

The Winnipeg Jets are easily the most stacked team in the NHL in terms of talent on all fronts. Their offensive core simply cannot be matched by any team in the league at the moment.

Patrik Laine came in second in the league in goals with 44 goals and has nowhere to go but up in his third full season. Mark Schiefele is still one of the most underrated centers in the league, Blake Wheeler is coming off a 91-point season, and Nikolaj Ehelers and Kyle Connor are both developing into elite forwards at left wing. The average age of that core? Just 23 years old. They are going absolutely nowhere for a long time.

As for their defense, Dustin Byfuglien is still at the top of his game 33 years old, Josh Morrissey proved last year he is a reliable top pair defender, and while Jacob Trouba and Tyler Myers catch a lot of criticism, they are absolutely top four defensemen on any team in the league.

Why Edmonton is in

It takes a lot of effort for a team led by Connor McDavid to miss the playoffs for two years in a row. Absolutely everything went wrong for the Oilers last year outside of McDavid, and if only half of it goes right for them this year they should make it into the postseason. McDavid has won back-to-back Art Ross trophies with 100-plus point seasons and back to back Ted Lindsey trophies, and is still just 21 years old. All you have to do around him is be average and this is a playoff team.

Cam Talbot had a bad season last year due to being overworked the last few years, but this season the Oilers brought in a steady backup in Mikko Koskinen that can give him the breaks he needs or keep the team afloat if he is to get injured again. If Talbot can bounce back and give the Oilers at least decent goaltending, they become that much more dangerous. Oscar Klefbom had an injury-riddled season, and his bounce back can make the Oilers defense at least not a mess this season.

Who wins

This is a series that could go really ugly for the Oilers. The Jets simply just have them beat everywhere badly, and the Oilers would have their work cut out for them to even steal a game to avoid being swept for the second straight year. Connor McDavid can only do so much and can maybe steal them a game, but no matter what goes right for them the Jets are just too good.

Jets over Oilers in five games

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