NHL Playoffs: 1 bold prediction for each Game 7 on Saturday

The NHL playoffs have three Game 7’s taking place on Saturday, May 14. Here is a bold prediction for each game.

The 2021-22 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs have not been disappointing thus far, as the opening round nears its conclusion. Saturday, May 14 is a treat for all hockey fans, as there will be three Game 7’s taking place throughout the entire day!

The Carolina Hurricanes host the Boston Bruins at 4:30 p.m. ET, the Toronto Maple Leafs take on the defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning at 7:00 p.m. ET, and the Edmonton Oilers face the Los Angeles Kings at 10:00 p.m. ET.

With these contests taking place, we decided to make one bold prediction for each.

Kings pull off the upset vs. Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers were looking to overcome their playoff disappointment from years past this time around. Last year, they were swept out of the first-round by the Winnipeg Jets. They certainly seemed to have a favorable matchup against the Los Angeles Kings.

Instead, the Kings showed that they were no easy out in this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs. In fact, they held a 3-2 series lead heading into Game 6. Yet, the Oilers kept their season alive with a 4-2 win.

Given the aforementioned track record of the Oilers, we boldly predict that the Kings will advance to the second round and win their first playoff series since 2014, the very year they won the Stanley Cup.

Hurricanes vs. Bruins finally has a close game to close series

The Carolina Hurricanes clinched the top seed in the Metropolitan Division, meaning they got to face off against one of the Wild Card teams, which ended up being the Boston Bruins.

This series, well, has not been close in terms of the scores of each contest. Take a look for yourselves:

• Game 1: Hurricanes win 5-1
• Game 2: Hurricanes win 5-2
• Game 3: Bruins win 4-2
• Game 4: Bruins win 5-2
• Game 5: Hurricanes win 5-1
• Game 6: Bruins win 5-2

We predict that Game 7 of this Carolina-Boston series will be a dramatic one, and by that we mean a close game.

Maple Leafs actually win Game 7 to advance to second round

When the Toronto Maple Leafs are in the playoffs, things are never easy for them. They have suffered heartbreak after heartbreak. Perhaps the most infamous was Game 7 of their 2013 first-round series against the Bruins. They held a 4-1 lead in the third period, but lost 5-4 in overtime to Boston.

Toronto matched up in the first round against the Tampa Bay Lightning, who won the Stanley Cup the past two seasons. This series, the Maple Leafs have shown that they have much more fight than in years past. They seemingly had a chance to close out the series in Game 6, but lost 4-3 in overtime.

Game 7 takes place in Toronto. This certainly feels like this is the Maple Leafs’ year to go on a deeper run in the playoffs than normal. The Leafs win Game 7 and have their first playoff series victory since 2004.