2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs Preview

 The last week of the NHL regular season was unlike anything seen in recent history. The dust from the 82-game grind settled, and jaws dropped as a once cloudy playoff picture became clear. Seven teams from the previous year's Stanley Cup Playoffs would not be returning to the postseason.
 The unfathomable turn of events saw some of the last decade's powerhouses checking April tee times, while some of the most wildest stories the league has ever seen led certain squads to the quest for Lord Stanley's Cup. Some teams simply had incredible runs, others got off to an unexpected hot start and never looked back, and others defied the odds in the most literal sense possible to clinch a playoff spot.
 However, whatever success or misfortune experienced during the past six months is meaningless now. A whole new season begins as the NHL's 16-best squads begin the hellacious quest for ultimate glory. The field is set, and much like the season that preceded it, the first round looks tantalizingly unpredictable.

2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs Preview

 16 wins is all it takes. After 82 games spanning from October to April, the teams that were good enough to qualify for the playoffs only need 16 wins to achieve their childhood dreams and lift the most iconic trophy in the world over their heads as champions. Easy enough, right?
 Well once you consider there are 15 other teams determined on reaching those 16 wins before your team does, a task that seems menial to a playoff contender suddenly becomes a grind like none other.
 In pursuit of 16 wins, players are ready to skate through brick walls and hell fire to defeat their opponent. They know blood will be shed, their legs will quiver from fatigue but find a way to push off another stride, and broken bones will be ignored like paper cuts.
 All of this madness will be done for one shining, three-foot, 34 lbs trophy. It's the Stanley Cup.

 The race for 16 wins starts tonight, and all eight first round match-ups have their own unique quirks and storylines ready to play out on the ice. The Hart of Hockey has a breakdown of every series in preparation of the Stanley Cup Playoffs dropping the puck tonight with a little prediction for the outcome of these match-ups.