2024 NHL Playoffs: B/R Staff Takeaways for Every Playoff Team’s First Game

The journey to the Stanley Cup Final has begun. And nothing sets the tone for a playoff series like Game 1.

Our B/R NHL Staff will have reactions to every playoff team’s Game 1 performance, breaking down the best and most controversial moments.

Do you have your own thoughts on the postseason? Feel free to fire off your hot takes in the comments section of the B/R app.

Nothing is guaranteed, but the Rangers shouldn’t have major issues on home ice against this Caps team. A 4-1 win is a satisfying way to get the job done.

The big source of optimism is that the Rangers’ perceived weaknesses did not look like weaknesses. The bottom six, which has plagued the team all season, looked great. The third line dominated possession and, with the trio of Will Cuylle-Alex Wennberg-Kaapo Kakko on the ice, the Rangers out-attempted Washington 11-2. The fourth line scored two goals, with the first goal in particular being the result of a full 200-foot effort and great cycle behind the net. K

Defenseman K’Andre Miller looks a whole lot better alongside Braden Schneider and the sheltered Jacob Trouba-Erik Gustafsson pairing didn’t bleed chances. Most importantly, the Rangers did not give up any rush offense.

It’s only a matter of time before the power play gets going. The Rangers got two goals from Artemi Panarin and Chris Kreider but their top players didn’t need to dominate this game to comfortably win. We know that the Vincent Trocheck line, Adam Fox, and the power play can single handedly win games. We know the Rangers can come back from behind. But can they get meaningful contributions from their depth, limit chances against, and protect the neutral zone with a lead? They succeeded with all of that in Game 1 against Washington. That’s a hopeful bellwether for the rest of the series and a potential second-round matchup against Carolina.

– Adam Herman

If the Capitals are going to have even a fighting chance in this series they will need a few things to go their way.

First, goaltender Charlie Lindgren will have to stand on his head. He was okay at best, stopping 27 of 31 shots. While he can’t be directly blamed for any individual goal against, he could have made saves on those by Artemi Panarin and Jimmy Vesey.
Second, the Capitals need some magic from the power play and, particularly Alexander Ovechkin. The power play went 0-4. Ovechkin is a player who can score from anywhere and that’s a massive boon for a team that doesn’t generate many great looks. Any type of look will do. The Rangers basically took Ovi out of the game, shadowing him on the PP and keeping him out of the offensive zone at even strength. Ovechkin attempted just three shots and all missed the net.

Third, the Caps need to grind the game down to a halt. The 2024 Capitals don’t have the talent to keep up in a track meet with other top teams. They did a good job in the first period with both teams combining for 11 shots on goal. It got away from them in the next two periods.

The Capitals have a narrow path to victory in a best-of-seven series against the Presidents’ Trophy Winners. They got none of the necessary conditions in Game 1. It leaves a sliver of optimism because the Caps may have a chance if Lindgren and Ovechkin get going and their neutral zone defending improves. More likely, it foreshadows a swift playoff exit.
– Adam Herman

The most important thing for the Florida Panthers in this series against the Tampa Bay Lightning is to stay out of the box and in Game 1 they did that reasonably well.

Sure, the Bolts did score on the power play but it was after it was 3-1 and with 10 seconds left in the game. If that’s how it’ll go for Florida, they’ll take it.

But their Game 1 effort saw everything that’s made the Panthers so tough this year. Sam Reinhart being a menace around the net, Aleksander Barkov being a monster all over the ice and physical presence that makes it hard to do anything. There’s also Sergei Bobtovsky in goal.

But this wasn’t a dominant effort. Tampa Bay still looked dangerous with Nikita Kucherov being a threat every time he had or was near the puck and Steven Stamkos still being so brilliant in the offensive zone. What should be more concerning for the Panthers is how good Andrei Vasilevskiy was, particularly early on.

Still, Florida gets the win but holding it down on home ice could be the thing that ultimately decides the series.

– Joe Yerdon

The latest installment of “The Battle of Florida” saw the Tampa Bay Lightning drop a 3-2 decision to the Florida Panthers in Game 1 of their opening-round series.

It was all Panthers for the first 16 minutes of the first period, with Sam Reinhart’s tip-in opening the scoring at 6:17. The Lightning struggled to get going and would’ve fallen further behind on the score sheet if not for Andrei Vasilevskiy’s solid goaltending.

The Lightning were outshot 9-0 before Brandon Hagel tied the score with less than four minutes remaining in the first. That sparked the Bolts as they generated five more shots before the end of the period.

That effort carried over for the Lightning into the second period as both clubs settled into a tight-checking mode. However, a holding penalty by Bolts forward Nick Paul late in the frame resulted in Carter Verhaeghe restoring the Panthers lead with a power-play goal early in the third.

Tampa Bay pressed for the equalizer but was stymied by Florida’s aggressive forecheck. Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky made a pair of big saves on Lightning forwards Brayden Point and Steven Stamkos.

Lightning coach Jon Cooper pulled Vasilevskiy with 3:08 left in the third. However, an empty netter by Matthew Tkachuk put the Panthers up 3-1.

The Lightning got a sliver of hope when Verhaeghe took a cross-checking penalty with 1:11 left. Cooper pulled Vasilevskiy again for a six-on-four power-play. Stamkos got them within one with 9.3 seconds left but the Bolts ran out of time.

– Lyle Richardson

The Hurricanes had been haunted by Evgeny Kuznetsov’s eagle celebrations of playoffs past when he was a sniper for the division rivals Washington Capitals

That script flipped Saturday night as that eagle landed in Raleigh minutes into Game 1, but the pesky Islanders answered right back.

This was one of the most boring Game 1s you’ll see this playoffs, and that is exactly what the Islanders needed. It still wasn’t enough in this lopsided matchup.

In what was a general snoozefest, three things stood out.

1. Kuznetsov has the potential to be a real feel-good story by the end of this playoff run.

2. The Islanders did everything right, suppressed the Hurricanes’ shots, and yet still lost. It’s looking bleak for the rest of the series.

3. Freddie Andersen came back from that first questionable goal allowed with complete confidence and some gusty saves. I wonder what his story will be at the end of this run.

– Sara Civian

The New York Islanders did a good job of containing the Carolina Hurricanes’ offense through most of Game 1 of their opening-round series. However, it wasn’t enough as the Hurricanes prevailed, 3-1.

A power-play goal by the Hurricanes’ Evgeny Kuznetsov put the Islanders on their heels early in the first period. However, they battled back to tie it when Kyle MacLean capitalized on a goalmouth scramble.

The second period was all Islanders. Their solid defensive play stymied the Hurricanes while outshooting them 13-6. Carolina goaltender Frederik Andersen made a couple of big saves in the period, but the Isles had difficulty getting more high-danger scoring chances.

The Hurricanes regained the lead on a Stefen Noesen deflection in the third period. Martin Necas put it away with an empty netter late in the period.

The Islanders showed they can neutralize the Hurricanes offense for long stretches but need their best scorers to step up. Mathew Barzal, Bo Horvat, and Brock Nelson were held scoreless while Anders Lee collected an assist on the MacLean goal.

This looked like a repeat of last year’s close-checking opening-round series between these two clubs with four of the six games decided by one goal. The Hurricanes prevailed in that series and could do so again if the Isles fail to generate more offense in this matchup.

– Lyle Richardson

One thing about the Bruins and the Leafs? You absolutely have to win at home.

Leave it to the likely Bruins heroes … Johnny Beecher, Jesper Boqvist, and Pat Maroon to strike first and early to ensure that end.

Then it was another likely Bruin — stay-at-home defenseman Brandan Carlo — to make it 2-0.

As sarcastic as we’re being, actual Leafs menace Jake DeBrusk tucked away two to confirm the 4-1 win.

The Bruins are in good shape if it’s a sign of things to come. Boston will need all hands on deck if they’re to have a deep run this time, and like many former Presidents’ Trophy winners before them, they learned that the hard way. The Bruins had been humbled after their historic 2022-23 regular season ended in a 2023-24 first-round exit and the loss of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. Perhaps that humility combined with the best goalie tandem in the league was what they needed all along.

But perhaps, despite the lore between the Leafs and the Bruins, this series is as always a mismatch. Possibly the regular-season dominance of the Bruins against the Leafs made this result obvious.

1. The Leafs always needed a better goaltender if they were going to win this series. Nothing magical happened and they still need better goaltending.

2. Jeremy Swayman bet on himself during arbitration in the offseason. He was right to do so. He’s officially the No. 1 Bruins goaltender.

3. William Nylander deserves some more respect. The Leafs sorely missed the Swede on Saturday night after and it’s terrible luck that he’s out due to an undisclosed injury, especially after playing all 82 regular-season games.

– Sara Civian

It’s starting to feel like watching the Toronto Maple Leafs in the playoffs feels like watching the plot of the movie “Groundhog Day” unfold in front of our eyes.

Toronto tried to outmuscle, out-physical and make life miserable for the Bruins by getting in their face and trying questionable tactics to gain an edge in Game 1. But one does not simply walk into Boston and beat the Bruins at their own game. All that managed to do was give the Bruins power plays which they scored to roll to a sound 5-1 win.

The Leafs’ strengths lie with their skill players, and yes, they were without William Nylander in Game 1, but it’s not as if Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, Morgan Rielly and John Tavares weren’t there. Yes, Toronto had more than a few chances to turn the game on its head (Matthews shooting at a vacated Jeremy Swayman net in the second period comes to mind as well as an extended 4-on-3 power play they didn’t score on), but the Leafs wanted to be more annoying and physical than they wanted to be good and if they keep trying that tactic, this series is going to be extremely quickly.

– Joe Yerdon