With the Tampa Bay Lightning’s loss to the Blue Jackets last night, and another Boston Bruins win, there is only one point separating the two teams with one game to play in the regular season. This means if the Bolts lose to the Islanders, and the Bruins beat the Leafs, we could see the Lightning drop down to the first Wild Card position.
In the first Wild Card, the Lightning would get the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round and would move forward through the Metro Division rather than the Atlantic. I gotta say, that sounds like a much better proposition than playing the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round and possibly the Florida Panthers in the second. Those two are currently the first and third teams in the East.
A Toronto loss to Boston, along with a Tampa loss, would mean the Bruins and Leafs would get set to face each other for 4-7 games right away, and for the third playoffs in five years. There’s a lot of history between those two teams, and while the Leafs are the better team on paper, there is a whole psychological aspect that could come into play. Also the Bruins are one of the best defensive teams in the league and Patrice Bergeron is still having one of his best seasons ever.
On the last day of the season, there is a lot to play for.
Who would you rather face in the first round and onwards?
| Toronto and the Atlantic | 54 |
| Carolina and the Metro | 151 |
In a vacuum, who would you rather see in a playoff series?
| Toronto | 91 |
| Carolina | 88 |
Which do you think would be the more entertaining/fun series?
| Toronto | 146 |
| Carolina | 42 |
In other Tampa Bay news, the Bucs traded down their first round pick, so they’ll get to start their drafting today at the NFL Draft. Check out our sibling site, Bucs Nation, covering the team for SBN.
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2022 NFL Draft Tracker
Part of the reason the Lightning are in their current first round opponent dilemma is because they lost last night to the Blue Jackets after beating them on Tuesday night. [Raw Charge]
“The Tampa Bay Lightning lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets 5-2 on Thursday night in a game that ultimately meant little aside from seeding in the playoffs (no matter who the Lightning play, it will be a tough challenge). Nikita Kucherov and Corey Perry scored for the Lightning. Jakub Voracek, Cole Sillinger, Jack Roslovic, Oliver Bjorkstrand, and Andrew Peeke scored for the Blue Jackets. Brian Elliott stopped 30 of 34 shots while Elvis Merzlikins stopped 25 of 27.”
The Leafs know their first game is on Monday at home. Will the Bolts be flying into town, or will the Bruins get an extended stay over the weekend?
Sheldon Keefe says Game 1 for the Leafs is on Monday night
— Mark Masters (@markhmasters) April 28, 2022
Carolina won the Jennings trophy this year as the team who allowed the fewest goals in the league. Andersen is injured at the moment and heading into the playoffs.
The Carolina Hurricanes tandem of Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta have won the 2021-22 William M. Jennings Trophy, presented annually to the goaltenders who play a minimum of 25 games for the team allowing the fewest goals during the regular season.https://t.co/tBBK11NxPs
— NHL.com (@NHLdotcom) April 29, 2022
Chicago hired John Greenberg out of the MLB. I read this as the team doesn’t trust rookie GM Kyle Davidson and they’re bringing a professional to possibly replace him. It’s especially telling it’s for the role “associate” rather than “assistant.”
Big news in NHL/MLB circles: Former @Cubs exec Jeff Greenberg joins Blackhawks, per @emilymkaplan. https://t.co/3NuNc9eIEo
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) April 28, 2022
Dustin Brown is retiring at the end of these playoffs.
Dustin Brown, a two-time Stanley Cup champion and the Kings all-time leader in regular-season games played, announced today his retirement from the NHL at the conclusion of the 2022 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs.
https://t.co/HkRzx5ruMJ— LA Kings PR (@LAKingsPR) April 28, 2022
