Eastern, Western 2nd Round bold predictions by NHL.com staff

A wild and crazy first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs ended Sunday when the Winnipeg Jets defeated the St. Louis Blues 4-3 in a Game 7 that stretched into double overtime and became an instant classic.

That game came one night after the Dallas Stars rallied late in the third period to win 4-2 against the Colorado Avalanche in Game 7 to advance.

Each game featured a multigoal comeback.

The Carolina Hurricanes, Edmonton Oilers, Florida Panthers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vegas Golden Knights and Washington Capitals also advanced in less dramatic fashion, but with their own share of fireworks.

So, what chaos awaits us in the second round, which starts with the defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers in Toronto on Monday (8 p.m. ET; CBC, TVAS, SN, ESPN)?

And what will happen than some fans won't see coming?

We asked NHL.com writers who will provide our second-round coverage their bold predictions for the next round.

Here are their answers.

Andersen saves the day for Hurricanes

It's always tough to bet big on Frederik Andersen given how often he's injured. That happened once again to the Hurricanes goalie in the Eastern Conference First Round against the New Jersey Devils, though Carolina ultimately prevailed in five games. With Andersen returning to practice Friday, his first action since leaving Game 4 on April 27 after a collision with Devils forward Timo Meier, I'm predicting that he will come back strong and lift the Hurricanes past the Capitals in the second round. Andersen proved how good he can be when healthy, with a 1.59 goals-against-average and .936 save percentage in the first round. Here's saying he'll do that again against the Capitals. -- Amalie Benjamin, senior writer

Stars shine brighter

I'm not feeling bold about my predictions based on my record in the first round. (Don't look it up!) The best I can do is to pick the Stars to make the Western Conference Final for the third year in a row. I picked the Avalanche to defeat them in the first round, mainly because they didn't have Miro Heiskanen, their No. 1 defenseman, and Jason Robertson, the forward who led them with 35 goals in the regular season, each because of a lower-body injury. The Stars overcame the Avalanche, anyway, and now Heiskanen and Robertson are expected to return sometime during the second round. Mikko Rantanen went into beast mode against his former team. Here's betting the confidence he gained helps him continue to lead the Stars to victory against the Jets. -- Nicholas J. Cotsonika, columnist

Marchand will be a thorn in the Maple Leafs' side again

Brad Marchand came out on the winning side in a playoff series against the Maple Leafs four times when he was with the Boston Bruins (2013, 2018, 2019, 2024), winning in seven games each time. After being traded to the Panthers on March 7, Marchand will face the Maple Leafs again and continue his postseason magic. The 36-year-old forward has 29 points (10 goals, 19 assists) in 28 playoff games against Toronto. His four game-winning goals in the playoffs against the Maple Leafs are tied for the second most in NHL history behind only Jean Beliveau's five. Expect Marchand to torture the Maple Leafs again and help the Panthers advance to the Eastern Conference Final for the third straight season. -- Tom Gulitti, senior writer

Perfetti will factor big in second round

Not sure how bold this is but here goes. If anyone was watching the Jets-Blues series, you noticed a rising playoff star in Winnipeg: Cole Perfetti. It took a bit for the 23-year-old forward to get points in the first round, but as the series progressed, he capitalized with three goals in his past two games, including his dramatic tying goal in the third period of Game 7. I think he's going to help the Jets in the second round, and he's needed for two reasons: We still don't know center Mark Scheifele's status after his injury in Game 5. And the Jets need secondary scoring past Scheifele and Kyle Connor. Perfetti's providing it. His postseason coming-out party will continue against the Stars. -- Tracey Myers, staff writer

Hellebucyk will carry Jets past Stars

Connor Hellebuyck had his struggles for the Jets in the first round, getting pulled in each of the three games in St. Louis, but he stood tall when he needed to in an epic double-overtime Game 7 win Sunday and he's going to carry that confidence into the second round against the Stars. The Jets are the higher seed, but the Stars are clearly the favorite to win this series, especially with Rantanen playing out of his mind, but Hellebuyck will be locked in. He got the first-round monkey off his back and will lead the Jets to the series win. You heard it here first. -- Bill Price, Editor-in-Chief

Edmonton's dynamic duo dimmed in Vegas

Yes, I know that Connor McDavid had 11 points (two goals, nine assists) in six games against the Los Angeles Kings in the first round. And, yes, I know Leon Draisaitl, who led the League with 52 goals, had 10 points (three goals, seven assists). I saw McDavid win the Conn Smythe Trophy in a losing effort last season with 42 points (eight goals, 34 assists) in a run to Game 7 of the Final against the Panthers. I also saw the Golden Knights figure out the two titans two postseasons ago, in this very round. Draisaitl had six goals in the first two games and then nothing after. He was minus-7 in the final four games. McDavid had five points in the first two games and five in the next four. Vegas center Jack Eichel played a huge part in doing that and so did William Karlsson. Each are back and better than ever. They won't silence McDavid and Draisaitl but will limit them and let the Golden Knights' depth carry the day. -- Shawn P. Roarke, senior director of editorial

No goals for Ovechkin

Andersen will return to the Hurricanes net and play the biggest role in shutting down Alex Ovechkin, keeping the greatest goal-scorer in NHL history off the board for the entire series to help his team to the Eastern Conference Final. Ovechkin scored four goals in five games against the Montreal Canadiens in the first round after scoring 44 in the regular season. He also scored four goals in seven games against Carolina in the 2019 playoffs, the one previous time he and the Capitals have faced the Hurricanes in the postseason. He has 52 goals in 93 regular-season games against the Hurricanes. None of that will matter. Andersen and the Hurricanes will not allow Ovechkin to score, and Carolina will win the series in six. -- Dan Rosen, senior writer

Skinner to bounce back against Vegas

Stuart Skinner was replaced after the first two games of the Western Conference First Round against the Kings, but I get a sense we have not seen the last of the Oilers goalie. I predict Skinner will get back in the net at some point in the second round against the Golden Knights and play well, helping the Oilers advance to the Western Conference Final for the second consecutive season and third time in the past four. Skinner didn't have much help in Game 1 and Game 2 against the Kings, giving up 11 goals, and was replaced by Calvin Pickard for the remainder of the series. Pickard played well and the Oilers began to find their stride after limping into the postseason. Skinner did help the Oilers to Game 7 of the Final last season, and in what I expect will be a long and tough-fought series against the Golden Knights, he will be needed at some point and deliver. -- Derek Van Diest, staff writer

Pesky trio rules for Panthers

When the Panthers acquired Marchand before the NHL Trade Deadline on March 7, general manager Bill Zito's son told him what many Florida fans were thinking: Put him together on a line with Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett. Whether coach Paul Maurice decides to unite them early in the second round remains to be seen. Tkachuk and Bennett played on the second line when the Panthers eliminated the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round, while Marchand was effective in his checking role on the third. But it says here that at some point in the Toronto series, when a physical tone needs to be set, the three will find themselves put together with the intent of creating the type of havoc that includes getting under the skin of their opponent. Not only will they successfully help the Panthers get past the Maple Leafs, but they'll also help them to a third consecutive trip to the Final, a journey when they'll create a lot of entertaining chaos along the way. Bring it on. -- Mike Zeisberger, staff writer