Tidd Talk

            With the Montreal Canadiens’ win over half of the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday night, the 2025 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs are officially set. In today’s edition of Tidd Talk, I will give my thoughts and predictions for all first-round matchups in the West and who I think will make it to the Stanley Cup Finals. Buckle your seat belts because you are in for quite the ride.

The Winnipeg Jets vs. The St. Louis Blues

            It is no doubt who is responsible for the Jets and their Presidents Trophy-winning season, *cough cough* Connor Hellebuyck. Goaltending in the playoffs can take you a long way or it can take you out early. Hellebuyck is not only a front-runner for the Vezina but a front-runner for the Hart as well. Finishing the season with 47 wins in 62 starts, a 2.00 goals against average, and a whopping .925 save percentage, Hellebuyck is Winnipeg’s ticket to success in this year’s playoffs. The problem with Hellebuyck is that he is not the most consistent when it comes to the playoffs, only making it out of the first round twice in his entire career, once of which was the Covid year. He will be the ticket to how far this Jets team goes. They have a solid roster as always, with guys like Kyle Connor, who posted his second career 40-goal season, and a lights-out top defensemen pair in Josh Morrissey and Dylan DeMelo. I cannot stress enough, if Hellebuyck performs, then this Jets team will be scary.

            This St. Louis Blues team came out of nowhere down the stretch after a heater of a 12-game win streak before finally dropping to none other than the Winnipeg Jets on April 7^th, 3-1. Led by Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou, this team has depth for being a wild card team that had to go on a heater of a streak to make it. Dylan Holloway has been a brilliant acquisition for this club and has made Edmonton fans wince at the name after the Oilers did not match the Blues’ offer sheet. Philip Broberg has been no scrub either, as he has posted a solid 29 points in 68 games and a +21 plus/minus. This team could be sneaky. I like their vets in Brayden Schenn, Colton Parayko, Ryan Suter, and Justin Faulk and in the playoffs, good veteran experience can go a long way, especially when you have guys who are still new to the atmosphere. The big question for the Blues will be Jordan Binnington in the net. Binnington has not been that bad for the Blues, posting a 2.69 goals against average and a .900 save percentage in 56 games played with the Blues, but he is still a shell of his former self who lead the Blue to their first Stanley Cup in 2019.

            Overall, I think this series will come down to goaltending and which goalie gets hot. I like the hockey both teams have been playing recently and think this is one of the most intriguing matchups of the entire playoffs. St. Louis is not a typical second wild card team either, as they made it with 96 points, which is nothing to forget about. I could see an upset taking place here but only if Binnington gets the upper hand on Hellebuyck. With that being said, I think the likelihood of this happening after a possible Hart season from Hellebuyck is slim. This guy is just on another level right now, and I do not see him stopping.

Prediction: Jets win in 6.

The Dallas Stars vs. The Colorado Avalanche

            Here we have our juggernaut matchup of the Western Conference. Two cup contenders who unfortunately have to see each other in round 1. It is hard not to bet against Nathan MacKinnon and the Colorado Avalanche here, especially with the depth they have in guys like Martin Necas, Brock Nelson, Devon Toews, and I can’t help but feel like I am forgetting someone *checks notes* Oh yeah, and Cale Makar. There is also the possibility of the Avalanche getting a guy by the name of Gabriel Landeskog back mid-round, as if this team is not scary enough. Now, while I am making this team sound perfect, I believe they have a flaw. Their goaltending, while good, is quite scary to go into the playoffs with. Mackenzie Blackwood will go in as their starter but he has never seen a minute of playoff hockey. Their backup, Scott Wedgewood, has only played 3 games in the playoffs for the Dallas Stars, none of which he started. Playoff experience is huge when it comes to chasing the Stanley Cup. My biggest question for the Avalanche is: Can the experience of the skater core spark the goalies to make some crucial saves for their team? I do not have an answer right now, but I think it could ultimately be a reason for Colorado’s demise.

            I am a believer in the Dallas Stars in this year’s playoffs, and I have been for years. I love the way this team has built itself over the years. They are, in my opinion, one of, if not the best, drafting teams in the league. They have been one of the more sustainable playoff teams of recent memory, and they always have a solid slew of young players to build around, along with keeping good veterans around the kids each season. It is rare you see a team have such a good younger core of guys, such as Jason Robertson, Wyatt Johnston, Roope Hintz, Miro Heiskanen, Thomas Hurley, and Jake Oettinger all while having a solid core of vets such as, Mikko Rantanen, Matt Duchene, Mikael Granlund, and Jamie Benn. I really love how Dallas builds their squad and think it is only a matter of time before they see success in the form of a Cup in the playoffs. My biggest concern for this team will be injuries. They will be starting the playoffs without Heiskanen and possibly Jason Robertson which is not what you want when your first round opponent is the Colorado Avalanche.

            The story pretty much writes itself with this matchup. Two titans are going head to head, with Mikko Rantanen facing his former cup-winning teammates. It should be a fun one to watch. With that being said, I think this series will be close and come down to who wants it more, which will likely be Nathan MacKinnon, as nobody wants it more than him. I do think it will be back and fourth and could likely be the best matchup we see in the first round.

Prediction: Avalanche win in 7.

The Vegas Golden Knights vs. The Minnesota Wild

            It would not be the playoffs at this point without Vegas being a contender. While they did not make too massive of a splash over the deadline, they did bring back a piece of the 2023 Cup team in Reilly Smith, who could serve as a solid depth piece in this year’s run. Jack Eichel has undoubtedly been the MVP of this team this season, posting 28 goals and 66 assists for 94 points in 77 games. I believe if we see another Vegas cup, Eichel will be the winner of the Conn Smythe. Vegas is always scary, they get winners. Their front office has consistently been able to go out and get guys that fit their scheme, and this team is another edition of that. Not only that, but the Golden Knights will go into this series healthy, which is massive come playoff time. They come into this series having won 5 of their last 7, with their two losses being in a shootout to the Avalanche and the Flames. I do not really have any concerns with the Vegas team as long as they stay healthy, not that I think they won’t but they do have a slew of guys with injury history.

            The Minnesota Wild are such a silent team to me for some reason. I often forget that they are decent. They have not had any sort of playoff success in almost 10 years, and other than Kirill Kaprizov, their roster does not really interest me. It is quite random, and I feel like it is always a place for random players to end up, such as Marcus Johansson or Gustav Nyquist. With that being said, they do have some solid players for the future in Matt Boldy, Brock Faber, and Marco Rossi. But this team just gives me such a weird vibe, and I often forget about them because of how much they have lost in the first round recently. Their key to success will be goaltending and Kirill Kaprizov getting hot. Filip Gustavson and Marc-Andre Fleury are not the worst pair to go in with, as Gustavson posted a 2.56 goals against average and a .914 save percentage, and Fleury has so much experience and could find himself with the hot hand if given the chance. The good news with this team being a wildcard team is that they have been playing meaningful hockey for the past few weeks and should be ready for what Vegas has to throw at them. We just have to see if it will be sustainable.

            I have no doubts that Vegas will take care of business here, and I am only really saying this based on reputation. Minnesota is not there yet, and, to be honest, their roster is just too strange in my eyes to put them in a position to upset the Golden Knights, who have been through the ringer of a cup and know what it takes to win. Maybe the Wild will prove me wrong and this will be the start of greatness in Minnesota, but who knows.

Prediction: Golden Knights in 4.

The Edmonton Oilers vs. The LA Kings

            Our final matchup in the west sees one we are all too familiar with at this point. The Edmonton Oilers are set to take on the LA Kings for the 4^th straight year, after the Oilers have won the last 3. With this being said, the Oilers are even less deep than they were in previous years. Last year, they saw the repercussion of not having depth late in the finals against the Florida Panthers. Apart from Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and Evan Bouchard this team sucks. This team will need to rely heavily on Draisaitl and McDavid, but that may just be all they need. Anytime you have 2 100-point guys on your team, you have a chance. The goaltending on this team is once again an issue, as neither of their goalies has shown any real promise. Stuart Skinner posted an atrocious .896 save percentage, and Calvin Pickard is only slightly better at .900.  The loss of Holloway and Broberg has to be weighing on the mind of the front office as well as their fan base. We will see where the depth takes them but I do not see them going far.

            This could be the year the rivalry finally turns around for the Kings. This Kings team has some solid depth as they have 8 guys over 40 points and 5 20-goal scorers. Along with this, they are getting some really good goaltending from Darcy Kuemper. They have been hot recently as well, losing just one game in the month of April. They are in a spot to make a run and could be a solid sleeper team to make it to at least the Conference Finals. I like the structure of this roster and would love to see this Kings team winning again.

            This series will still be close. I mean, you cannot count out McDavid and Draisaitl. You can put anybody on their team, and they could win a playoff series. I could see this series going 6 to 7 games.  Keep in mind that it is also Jeff Skinner’s first playoffs, which gives the Oilers the story. I hope it will be a fun series to watch, but if the Oilers win, then it is just getting old. I like the Oilers, but we need some variance in this series, and we also need it to happen later in the playoffs instead of the first round.

Prediction: Kings win in 6.

Final Thoughts

            This wraps up my predictions for the West. Overall, I think the West is wide open. Apart from the Oilers and the Wild, I truly think anyone can win it this year. Vegas and Colorado are always a safe bet, but it will be tough for Colorado with their first-round matchup against Dallas. It will be a gauntlet for Dallas or Colorado, having to face the Jets in the second round and potentially the Knights in the Conference Finals. With that being said, I believe the Conference Finals will be the Jets vs. the Golden Knights as long as Hellebuyck is consistent. Anyways, cutting this one into two parts as it is a long one. Tidd Talk will return with my Eastern predictions and possibly a Blue Jackets season review tomorrow.