Stanley Cup Playoffs: 1st-round predictions

The first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs begins Wednesday night, and your favorite sports app's NHL editors have made their opening-round picks. Remember: We can predict the future. It's one of the perks of working at theScore.

Shall we?

Eastern Conference

Canadiens vs. Rangers

Editor	Pick
Craig Hagerman	MTL
Flip Livingstone	NYR
Sean O'Leary	MTL
Sonny Sachdeva	MTL
Navin Vaswani	NYR
Cory Wilkins	NYR
Josh Wegman	MTL
Josh Gold-Smith	MTL
Ian McLaren	MTL

• Montreal gets the edge, with six editors to three, but still, this series could go the distance.

Senators vs. Bruins

Editor	Pick
Hagerman	BOS
Livingstone	OTT
O'Leary	BOS
Sachdeva	BOS
Vaswani	BOS
Wilkins	OTT
Wegman	BOS
Gold-Smith	BOS
McLaren	BOS

• This one's 7-2 in favor of Boston. That bodes well for the Senators, who've been doubted all season.

Capitals vs. Maple Leafs

Editor	Pick
Hagerman	WSH
Livingstone	WSH
O'Leary	TOR
Sachdeva	WSH
Vaswani	WSH
Wilkins	WSH
Wegman	WSH
Gold-Smith	WSH
McLaren	WSH

• Mr. O'Leary's a dreamer, and we dig that about him.

Penguins vs. Blue Jackets

Editor	Pick
Hagerman	PIT
Livingstone	CBJ
O'Leary	PIT
Sachdeva	PIT
Vaswani	PIT
Wilkins	PIT
Wegman	PIT
Gold-Smith	PIT
McLaren	CBJ

• Fifty wins and a record 108 points, and the Jackets get the defending champs in the first round. Life ain't fair.

Western Conference

Blackhawks vs. Predators

Editor	Pick
Hagerman	CHI
Livingstone	CHI
O'Leary	CHI
Sachdeva	CHI
Vaswani	CHI
Wilkins	CHI
Wegman	CHI
Gold-Smith	CHI
McLaren	CHI

• We love Nashville as a city, but Chicago wins the Cup every two years since 2013. So, yeah, sorry Predators fans.

Wild vs. Blues

Editor	Pick
Hagerman	STL
Livingstone	MIN
O'Leary	STL
Sachdeva	MIN
Vaswani	STL
Wilkins	MIN
Wegman	STL
Gold-Smith	MIN
McLaren	MIN

• Another tight one, with five editors taking the Wild over the Blues. This one's going seven, too.

Ducks vs. Flames

Editor	Pick
Hagerman	ANA
Livingstone	ANA
O'Leary	ANA
Sachdeva	ANA
Vaswani	ANA
Wilkins	ANA
Wegman	CGY
Gold-Smith	ANA
McLaren	CGY

• We're going to assume Mr. Wegman's and Mr. McLaren's Flames picks were typos.

Oilers vs. Sharks

Editor	Pick
Hagerman	EDM
Livingstone	SJS
O'Leary	EDM
Sachdeva	EDM
Vaswani	EDM
Wilkins	SJS
Wegman	EDM
Gold-Smith	EDM
McLaren	EDM

• We're not giving last year's Cup finalists much respect, but they're up against Connor McDavid. And, let's face it, the spring will be more entertaining with at least two rounds featuring the sport's most dynamic player.

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