The 2024-25 NHL regular season has come to an end, and the Stanley Cup Playoffs are finally underway. Sixteen teams are competing in a gruelling journey that will last two months for the team that earns the right to hoist Lord Stanley’s chalice when all is said and done.
There are several key matchups to keep an eye on in the first round of the playoffs. In the East, two territorial battles highlight the slate, with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators duking it out in the battle of Ontario, and the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning clash in the battle of Florida.
In the West, the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings meet in the first round for the fourth consecutive season, and two of the top teams in the League, the Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars, will have to see who gets sent home early in a high-octane Round 1 matchup.
Here are Sportsnaut’s latest NHL power rankings at the start of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
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30. Nashville Predators (30-44-8) – Eliminated
The Nashville Predators capped off a huge let down of a season considering the talent they added in the offseason. Looking ahead, they’ll get a nice reset with a long summer break, and a likely top-three pick in the draft as well. With the names on Nashville’s roster, it’s hard to imagine they’ll have another season as bad as this one. Expect them to rise in the rankings come October.
29. Philadelphia Flyers (33-39-10) – Eliminated
The Philadelphia Flyers were poised for a solid season when they found out they’d be getting rookie sensation Matvei Michkov earlier than expected. Michkov had a strong season, scoring 63 points, but the Flyers themselves struggled to find wins at a consistent rate. After firing John Torterella, their priority will be to find a new bench boss, as well as build around Michkov to create their core of the future.
28. Boston Bruins (33-39-10) – Eliminated
No one expected the Boston Bruins to miss the playoffs this season, let alone finish 28th in the League standings, but that’s exactly what happened after Jeremy Swayman struggle following his contract drama and the Bruins were forced to eventually trade their captain Brad Marchand to the Florida Panthers. Once that happened, the Bruins pretty much packed it up, winning just three games of their last 16. Expect a better effort next season from one of the better teams over the last decade.
27. Seattle Kraken (35-41-6) – Eliminated
The Seattle Kraken had a finish their season six games short of NHL .500, and have just fired coach Dan Bylsma after just one season behind the bench. A surprising move considering he had so much success with the Coachella Valley Firebirds, Seattle’s AHL affiliate. They’ll begin interviewing for their next coach as the offseason begins, looking to build around young players like Matty Beniers and Joey Daccord.
26. Buffalo Sabres (36-39-7)
The Buffalo Sabres capped off another year of missing the playoffs, though they showed signs of being a good hockey team, especially late in the season when they went on a 8-1-0 run. The problem is how they follow that up with a 1-3-1 stretch to end the regular season. Still, there’s plenty to build on for Buffalo this season, as they begin yet another year-long quest to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2011.
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25. Anaheim Ducks (35-37-10) – Eliminated
The Anaheim Ducks ended a sub par season two games below NHL .500, and subsequently relieved Greg Cronin of his coaching duties. The expectation in the Ducks organization is that they will make the playoffs next season, which is going to take a lot of work, starting with a new coach behind the bench. Anaheim is loaded with young talent, and if they can all take a significant step next season, there’s no reason why they can’t contend for a playoff spot.
24. Pittsburgh Penguins (34-36-12) – Eliminated
The clock is ticking on Sidney Crosby’s Hall of Fame career, and the Pittsburgh Penguins want to make the most of what he has left, which includes another shot at the Stanley Cup. They’ll have to make some serious improvements to do that, which is hard to do while keeping the trio of Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang together. We’ll see what Kyle Dubas elects to do this offseason, including his handling of Mike Sullivan and if he’ll remain behind the bench for the Penguins.
23. New York Islanders (35-35-12) – Eliminated
The New York Islanders main priority is to get healthy in the offseason and return with players like Mat Barzal and Ilya Sorokin at full health. They managed to finish at exactly .500 on the season, and will look for young guns like Simon Holmstrom to build on an impressive season. The Isles rookie netted 20 goals on the year and will be a key component of next season’s squad.
22. New York Rangers (39-36-7) – Eliminated
There was no bigger disappointment in the NHL this season than the New York Rangers. For their fans, it’s a sigh of relief that this nightmare season came to an end. While they capped off the year with wins over the Panthers and Lightning, coach Peter Laviolette was fired after he oversaw a 29-point drop-off on his watch. So, the Rangers will look to get back to the playoffs next season with a new coach, while important decisions loom for long-time Rangers like Chris Kreider.
21. Detroit Red Wings (39-35-8) – Eliminated
The Detroit Red Wings were close to finding a playoff berth, but came up five points short in the wild card race in the Eastern Conference. The pot was stirred by captain Dylan Larkin at Detroit’s breakup day, as he said that he and the team were unhappy with general manager Steve Yzerman’s decision not to add at the trade deadline. We’ll see what kind of response that warrants as the offseason begins for Detroit.
20. Utah Hockey Club (38-31-13) – Eliminated
The Utah Hockey Club wrap up a middle of the road season, missing the playoffs by seven points. It had to have been a difficult adjustment for the players coming over from Arizona and beginning a new franchise this season, but they didn’t do all too bad. Utah is a young team with a core led by Clayton Keller that should only improve next season.
19. Columbus Blue Jackets (40-33-9) – Eliminated
The Columbus Blue Jackets ended the season with a strong push, making it all the way until game 82 before being eliminated from playoff contention. While they won’t be fighting for the Stanley Cup, the entire team and organization deserve their flowers for playing as well as they did in light of the tragedy of losing Jonny Gaudreau. Columbus has a bright future ahead as they look to break into the postseason in 2025-26.
18. Vancouver Canucks (38-30-14) – Eliminated
The Vancouver Canucks put an end to a drama-filled season that saw J.T. Miller get shipped out and the Canucks underperform as a whole, missing playoffs after being one of the better teams in the League last year. Now a new rift has entered the organization after general manager Jim Rutherford revealed that Quinn Hughes wants to play with his brothers Jack and Luke. Whether that’s in Vancouver or New Jersey is open for interpretation, but it’s certainly another dramatic piece to the puzzle in Vancouver.
17. Calgary Flames (41-27-14) – Eliminated
The Calgary Flames were the best team in the NHL to miss the playoffs at 15th League-wide. It was a close race between them and the St. Louis Blues as they both finished with 96 points, though St. Louis won the tie breaker with more regulation wins. Still, the Flames should be proud of their season, and have plenty to build around starting with rookie goalie Dustin Wolf who was incredible. He’ll be in the running for the Calder this season.
16. Montreal Canadiens – Round 1 vs WSH
The Montreal Canadiens have been one of the best teams in the NHL since the 4 Nations break, and soared into the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. They draw a tough matchup against the Washington Capitals, but with their momentum and the addition of Ivan Demidov, look out for a potential first round upset.
15. New Jersey Devils – Round 1 vs CAR
The New Jersey Devils limped into the playoffs after losing Jack Hughes for the remainder of the season. They’re heavy underdogs in round one against the Carolina Hurricanes, but could sneak through to the second round if players like Jacob Markstrom, Jesper Bratt, and Nico Hischier really step up. It’ll be hard for the Devils to match the Hurricanes pressure and physicality, a staple of their game for so long.
14. St Louis Blues – Round 1 vs WPG
The St. Louis Blues were almost overtaken by the Flames for the final wild card spot in the Western Conference, but were able to hold on and secure a first round matchup against the Presidents’ Trophy winners in the Winnipeg Jets. It’s already making out to be one of the best contests of the first round featuring a rematch of the team Canada and team USA goalies from the 4 Nations Face-off, Jordan Binnington and Connor Hellebuyck. The two players who very well could decide the series.
13. Minnesota Wild – Round 1 vs VGK
The Minnesota Wild secured the second wild card in the Western Conference, but with that comes a round one battle against the Vegas Golden Knights who are primed to make a deep playoff run. A lot of people are counting the Wild out of this one, but they did just get Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson-Ek back from injury, two key players in their lineup.
12. Ottawa Senators – Round 1 vs TOR
The Ottawa Senators make half of one of the highest-anticipated first round matchups in the battle of Ontario with the Toronto Maple Leafs. These two historic teams will go at it, with the Leafs entering as the heavy favorite. Don’t count out the Senators, who were red hot to end the regular season. They’ll need Linus Ullmark and Brady Tkachuk to be at the top of their games if they want to take down Auston Matthews and the Leafs.
11. Florida Panthers – Round 1 vs TBL
The Florida Panthers are set up to take part in the battle of Florida against the Tampa Bay Lightning in what should be a hard-hitting first round. It won’t be an easy task for the Panthers as they look to defend their championship, but if they enter round one at full health, they’re as good of a bet as any to take down Tampa Bay in round one.
10. Carolina Hurricanes – Round 1 vs NJD
The Carolina Hurricanes draw a favorable matchup against the New Jersey Devils in the first round, but it’s hard to see their path to the Stanley Cup going much further than that. They’ve been snake-bitten in the second round in recent years, so we’ll see if they can break that trend this time around. They’ll have to get through the Devils first, however, who are no pushover.
9. Edmonton Oilers – Round 1 vs LAK
The Edmonton Oilers will face off against the Los Angeles Kings for the fourth season in a row. This time around, the Oilers certainly have their work cut out for them, especially since their no where near full health. They also do not have home ice advantage in the series, while the Kings have been the best team in the NHL at home. We’ll see if Connor McDavid can finally earn his first Stanley Cup, and it all starts with an uphill battle against Los Angeles.
8. Tampa Bay Lightning – Round 1 vs FLA
The Tampa Bay Lightning enter the battle of Florida as one of the top teams in the NHL with Nikita Kucherov and Andrei Vasilevskiy leading the way. They’re one of the deepest and most complete teams in the playoffs this season, and are looking to make a deep run at the Stanley Cup. The Florida Panthers will not go down easy. Expect this series to go the distance.
7. Los Angeles Kings – Round 1 vs EDM
The Los Angeles Kings were the best team on home ice in the NHL during the regular season, and will have home ice advantage against the Edmonton Oilers in Round 1. Still, Connor McDavid is on a quest for the Cup, and he’ll have to be somewhat contained if the Kings want a chance to finally advance to the second round. If Darcy Kuemper can stay hot, they’ll have a good chance, especially on home ice.
6. Dallas Stars – Round 1 vs COL
It’s a shame that one of the Dallas Stars or Colorado Avalanche will have to go home after round one, but that’s the situation these two teams find themselves in to start the playoffs. While the Stars have dominated the West, the Avalanche look like the better team, especially with Dallas missing Miro Heiskanen. With Gabe Landeskog on the verge of returning to the lineup for the Avs, it’s going to take a lot from the Stars to advance to the second round.
6. Toronto Maple Leafs – Round 1 vs OTT
The Toronto Maple Leafs enter the playoffs expected to handedly take care of the Ottawa Senators in the battle of Ontario. Not so fast. Ottawa is a scrappy team that has been on a roll as of late, and could be one of the favorites to pull of the first round upset. But, Auston Matthews and the “core four” are primed to finally make a deep run, and this could be the year it happens.
5. Colorado Avalanche – Round 1 vs DAL
The Colorado Avalanche look like a dominant team with plenty of momentum heading into their first round matchup against the Dallas Stars. With captain Gabe Landeskog on the verge of his NHL return, the Avs could be getting a massive boost not only in their lineup, but to their overall morale. A return of this magnitude can do a lot for a team emotionally, so expect the Avalanche to ride that high as long as their playoff run lives on.
4. Vegas Golden Knights – Round 1 vs MIN
The Vegas Golden Knights were the most-picked team to complete a first-round sweep of the Minnesota Wild, and they very well could. They’re a deep team that rolls four lines, has solid defense, and great goaltending in Aidin Hill. They have all the tools needed, but the Wild got some key players back into their lineup and won’t go down without a fight. Still, the odds are stacked heavily in favor of the Golden Knights.
2. Washington Capitals – Round 1 vs MTL
The Washington Capitals ended the regular season on a 2-4-0 stretch, but their still one of the favorites to win the Stanley Cup. They’re the heavy favorites against the Montreal Canadiens, who would shock the NHL world if they were to advance to the second round. The Capitals, still riding the high of Alex Ovechkin setting the all-time NHL goals record, should have no problem taking care of the Habs.
1. Winnipeg Jets – Round 1 vs STL
The Winnipeg Jets remain in the No. 1 spot after clinching the Presidents’ Trophy on their way to a first round matchup against the St. Louis Blues. It’s actually a tough draw, considering how good the Blues have been since the 4 Nations break. Nonetheless, the Jets are the heavy favorites here. They do, however, have a lot of pressure on them after the season they just had, and because of what happened to them in the first round of last years’ playoffs.