Now that most of the first round games are out of the way, let the speculations begin. Who is performing? Who is disappointing?

With the salary cap system, it appears that teams are a lot closer in the playoffs. Both the Sharks and the Capitals, the tops seeds in their conference, lost their playoff openers. Most other games were decided by a one goal margin. So is it anybody's game? Not quite. There are still powerhouse teams that will most likely edge their competitors to make it to the finals.

The East

Out of the four top seeds in the East, only the Sabres managed to win their first game. The first games definitely brought many surprises in the NHL betting world. However, Buffalo was outworked by Boston and Ryan Miller had to keep them in the game. He is bound to tire out, if not in the first round, then definitely in the second.

The Capitals are still the favorites to win the conference. Yes, they did have a poor showing by their standard in the first game, but watch out for game two. They will shake up the lineups and will create more room for Ovechkin. Capitals will win this series and most likely the conference. They have too many offensive tools to fall. The Capitals are hungry, young, and on top of their game. Pittsburgh will try to stop them again this year, but they will fall short. It was close last year, but this year Washington will have the edge.

The West

Of the four top seeds in the West, Vancouver and Phoenix were able to pull off wins, San Jose lost, and Chicago is playing their first game on Friday night. The Blackhawks are heavy favorites according to sportsbook to win the first game.

The Blackhawks are the favorites to make it to the finals and for good reason. They are, like Washington, young, hungry, and very skilled. They fell a bit short last year, but Detroit will not deter them this year from the finals. Chicago has all the tools necessary to win. A strong offense and defense leaves goaltending as the only real question mark. Niemi is skilled, but young and inexperienced. Can he get past the playoff jitters and settle in to give a strong performance? Having a strong defense in front of him will definitely help him to settle down into a grove.

The Finals

Capitals vs. Blackhawks.