With the start of the Stanley Cup playoffs just a day away, matchups on both sides of the league are officially set. Last week, we took a look at what the Western Conference may bring. This week, let's preview the Eastern Conference.
The Washington Capitals are the President's Trophy winners (again), meaning they notched the most points out of any team in the league and will hold home-ice advantage through the duration of their playoff run. They will face off against the upstart Toronto Maple Leafs, who have made a complete 180 since finishing in last place in 2016.
Their prize from the 2016 draft lottery, Auston Matthews, is a major reason for the Leafs' turnaround. Matthews scored 40 goals this year and finished with 69 total points. Though he was the capstone of an incredibly strong draft class, I will be astounded if he does not win the Calder Trophy for the best rookie later this year.
However, Matthews was not
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Lastly, the Boston Bruins will play the Ottawa Senators. However, Boston will be without two of its key defensemen for at least the beginning of the round: Torey Krug and Brandon Carlo were injured in the last few games of the regular season and have not yet returned to the ice.
On the other hand, they will have rookie defenseman Charlie McAvoy to give them a boost. Boston draftee McAvoy just joined the organization days ago after Boston University was knocked out of its postseason run, and spent a few games with the Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League.
With Carlo and Krug both out, the big club decided to burn a year of McAvoy's entry-level contract and get him some ice time now. Though it's baptism by fire, McAvoy is more than up to the