With the second round of the playoffs underway, the chances of a perfect bracket are slim to none. According to NHL.com, there are only five perfect brackets left.
Because of the chaos, there have been many surprises that have come since the first game of the 2019 NHL playoffs. We are going to look into the biggest shocks of the first round.
Lightning retreated home thanks to the Blue Jackets
- Led by head coach John Tortorella, the Columbus Blue Jackets swept the President’s Trophy winners, even after Tampa’s historical regular season.
- They were one of the best offensive teams in the league but were outscored 19-8 in the series, despite scarce offense from their best players.
- With 128 points in the regular season, Nikita Kucherov registered only two assists in four games for the Bolts.
- This is the first time in NHL history that a number one overall seed has been swept in the first round of the playoffs.
The Jets were grounded after six games
- After making it all the way to the Western Conference Finals last season, the Winnipeg Jets were the most favored Canadian squad to make it to the Stanley Cup Finals.
- They lost in six games to the St. Louis Blues, who have won have won 12 of their last 16 dating back to March 16th.
- All of Winnipeg’s losses came by one goal as well as both their wins.
- Even in their own arena during game five, they allowed three goals in the 3rd period and lost the game 3-2.
Some of the league’s top players were shut down
- Arguably the best player in the past decade, Sidney Crosby, registered one assist in the playoffs — the lowest postseason point total in his career. He finished with a -4 in four games, which was the worst in his postseason career.
- Calgary’s Johnny Gaudreau also finished with one assist in five games with a -2 rating after scoring 99 points in the regular season.
- Ryan Johansen has a goal and an assist for the Predators and was not much of a factor and the Dallas Stars took advantage, taking the series in six.
- Steven Stamkos also had a goal and an assist, with a plus/minus of -8. You could say he was a defensive liability for the Lightning.
Golden Knights get robbed in Game 7
- Up 3-0 in Game 7, Vegas’ Cody Eakin cross-checked San Jose’s Joe Pavelski to the ice. Eakin was given a 5 minute major and a game misconduct.
- San Jose has an unreal comeback, netting four goals on the five minute power play to take the lead, with two of those goals coming from Logan Couture.
- The Sharks won in with two minutes left in overtime thanks to a goal from Barclay Goodrow, who only played two shifts the entire period.
- On Thursday, the NHL apologized to the Golden Knights for the miscue and admitted that the referees were incorrect on the Eakin’s penalty. But, that does not change anything or the Golden Knights.
The “Bunch of Jerks” beat the defending champs on the road in Game 7
- One of the biggest underdogs in the playoffs, the Carolina Hurricanes took the Washington Capitals to double overtime and advanced on a goal from Brock McGinn.
- Alex Ovechkin had seven goals in the series but finished with a -2. He was a force in the offensive end but not so much on defense.
- Warren Foegele lead the Canes with four goals in playoffs. In 77 regular season games, he had 10 total goals. The 3rd liner has been great in his first ever playoff.
- The Hurricanes advance to the second round for the first time since 2009 when they made it to the Eastern Conference Finals.