The battle of Florida promises to be a grind for both sides. After their incredible run in the 2022-23 playoffs, the Panthers shouldn’t be underestimated by anyone. Florida was the NHL’s top defensive squad this season, averaging just 2.41 goals against per game. On top of this they’ve received great goaltending from the tandem of Sergei Bobrovsky and Anthony Stolarz and play a tough physical game. Tampa Bay is no easy out having gone 12-4-2 to close out the regular season, plus their playoff pedigree is one of the most impressive in the league. The Lightning have the NHL’s top power play (28.6 percent efficiency), and their penalty kill (83.3 percent) is third-best in the Eastern Conference and fifth-best in the league. I am excited for the series and had a lot of trouble picking a winner but after their postseason run last year and better consistency this year I'm slightly leaning Panthers.

The clash of these two Original Six rivals promises to be one of the most emotional of the playoffs. Given that Boston won all four regular-season games, I see why they are the market favourite. The Bruins still want to avenge last season’s first-round exit against Florida, and the B's have the type of goaltending depth most other teams would kill for. Boston’s experience and coaching could put them in position to knock off the Leafs.

Despite being swept in the season series with Boston, Toronto has god reason to believe they could come out on top, especially when you consider the Bruins won the first two games after regulation time. To say the Leafs have enormous pressure on them is a colossal understatement, but considering that most have Boston as the favourite, the Leafs are in a place where they can shake off the shackles of expectation and emerge as the winner here. The Leafs don’t have the best pedigree but they shouldn’t be underestimated. They’ve got a deep, experienced group. While they’ll only go as far as their core four forwards take them, superstar Auston Matthews has grown his game to new heights, and he very well could get hot and be the difference maker in the series.

The Rangers won this season’s Presidents’ Trophy as the top team in the league through 82 games. Nothing we’ve seen from the Capitals, even in their late-season push to qualify for the playoffs, indicates that the Blueshirts are going to have problems with the Caps.

The teams split their season series 2-2, but let’s be real here: the Rangers have the best goalie in the series in Igor Shesterkin and they also have a far more potent offence (averaging 3.39 goals-for per game) than Washington (2.63 goals-for per game). Barring and otherworldly performance from Ovie this feels likely to be a short series

Carolina went 2-1-1 against the Isles this season. While the Hurricanes may not have the best goaltender in the series, they do have capable veterans Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov between the pipes. The Hurricanes’ offence is far superior to the Islanders’ offense, and Carolina’s defence corps is far superior to the Islanders’ group of defensemen. They're regarded as a legitimate Cup threat, while the Isles are really just happy to be in the postseason mix.

The Islanders have one of the league's best goalies in Ilya Sorokin he is fully capable of stealing games, maybe even a series, especially if the boys from Long Island get big-time performances from stars Mathew Barzal, Bo Horvat and Noah Dobson they can potentially upset the Hurricanes. The Isles wont go without a fight but the Canes have the overall depth, elite skill, and speed to take them out with relative ease.

My eventual pick for eastern conference winner is the Carolina Hurricanes. When the trade deadline rolled around, the Hurricanes did something that they traditionally shy away from; they made a splash. Carolina acquired star winger Jake Guentzel and forward Evgeny Kuznetsov to bolster a forward group that was already quite talented. Both have been sensational since arriving in Raleigh, especially Guentzel, making this team all the more dangerous. The East certainly has worthy foes, but it's worth noting that the Hurricanes were nipping at the Rangers' heels down the stretch after not having goaltender Frederik Anderson for the majority of the year. My runners up or Rangers and Leafs