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Playoff Preview 2021
In our 100-page Playoff Preview, we have full-page breakdowns on each team with analysis, depth charts, fantasy rankings and more. Also, we've got features on Patrick Marleau, Darnell Nurse, the New York Islanders, Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning and 15-year-old sensation Connor Bedard, plus a roundtable discussion on which Canadian team has the best Cup hopes.
STANLEY CUP STALLIONS
ANDREI VASILEVSKIY IS A unicorn. When he raised the Stanley Cup above his head last June, er, September, he did so as the first goalie to win 18 games during a single post-season. Shining in the Tampa Bay Lightning’s crease, Vasilevskiy started 25 playoff games in less than two months. Including the regular season, he started 77 of Tampa’s 95 games, good for an 81-percent piece of the puck-stopping pie – all while the league-wide trend of burning goalies to the wick has actually been dissipating. Looking at the past 20 full 82-game seasons, from 1997-98 to 2018-19, reveals a gradual shift toward spreading out workloads. From 1997-98 to 2011-12, an average of 3.4 goalies per season started more than 70 games. From 2013-14 through 2018-19, only three goalies in total…
MONTREAL CANADIENS
WHEN THE SEASON began, the Canadiens were a high-flying offensive juggernaut that was evoking memories of the distant past and, like those teams, was winning games and making believers of almost everyone. But as the months passed, the Habs regressed and were doing none of those things under a new coach and revamped roster. As the final quarter dawned, all the optimism they created with a 5-0-2 start had dissipated into another seemingly lost season. Not everything is the same, but there are parallels to last season, when the Canadiens were invited to the playoff dance only because the NHL offered a bigger tent. And once that happened, Montreal rode the hot goaltending of Carey Price and went further than anyone thought possible. So, on that historical precedent, can Habs fans expect…
THE STRONG, SILENT TYPE
THERE’S NOTHING like a Doberman Pinscher invasion to throw a pail of cold water on a conversation about plus-minus. So there’s Darnell Nurse being a great big good guy, all respectful, polite and well-spoken, talking about how, even when you’re near the top of the league in the category, plus-minus isn’t the be-all and end-all, especially when there are 72 other defensemen in the league who have more defensive-zone starts than you have. Then in bounds Stan Lee, a 10-month-old Doberman that Nurse and his fiancee got after binge-watching all the Marvel movies during the first quarantine. Stan Lee has just returned from a field trip as part of his obedience training, and he’s all excited to see Darnell and two-year-old Arya, Nurse’s other Doberman. It will definitely be a…
VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS
TALK ABOUT THE attributes of the Golden Knights and dialogue typically starts with snipers Mark Stone and Max Pacioretty. Then you get into the next wave of offense – William Karlsson, Jonathan Marchessault, Alex Tuch. And don’t forget about Norris Trophy vote-getters Shea Theodore and Alex Pietrangelo on the blueline. This team can get you in so many ways. But truth be told, it’s mostly about defense in Vegas. The Golden Knights are the stingiest team in the league. That’s a trademark of coach Peter DeBoer. He guided teams in San Jose, New Jersey and Florida in much the same way. Take care of your own end first, and the offense comes when it comes. Vegas is the highest-scoring team in the third period, so it’s a formula that works. The Golden…
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