Richard T Gagnon/Getty ImagesThe playoff bracket as of April 11 would feature:
- Bruins (Atlantic Division 1) vs. Lightning (Wild Card 1)
- Panthers (A2) vs. Maple Leafs (A3)
- Rangers (Metropolitan Division 1) vs. Capitals (WC 2)
- Hurricanes (M2) vs. Islanders (M3)
Spotlight: Boston Bruins
Despite an uncharacteristically sluggish 4-1 loss to Carolina Wednesday, the Bruins had strung together four straight wins prior and are among the teams most likely to represent the Eastern Conference in the Stanley Cup Final.
Some of that can be attributed to quality offense and defense, not to mention a goalie situation that is the best in the league.
Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark make up the NHL's best one-two punch in net.
Ullmark, the reigning Vezina Trophy winner as the league's best goaltender, has been slightly better than his teammate of late, with a save percentage of .922. Swayman currently sits at .900.
Ullmark figures to get the start in the postseason because of his sharper play, Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic wrote, but it is the manner in which coach Jim Montgomery uses his goalies that could very well determine whether Boston is a force in the postseason or if they are one-and-done for the second year in a row.
Does Montgomery rotate the two in and out of net based on the opponent's strengths and weaknesses, or does he take the more logical approach of playing the hot hand? Should he go the alternating route, he already has an idea of what that would look like.
"I think if we commit to a rotation, it's gonna be Game 1, Game 2, Game 3, [then] Game 4 if that's what we end up deciding and then we can go from there."
In a game that can be very momentum-based, the idea of rotating goalies just to get both in the net in the postseason is a risky proposition. Given how good both have been while essentially splitting duty in 2023-24, it would not be surprising if they managed to buck the trend and make it work.
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