North Division Semifinal Series Are Officially Set

The North Division will be the last of the four divisions to have all of its teams play the full 56 games, but they join the East and Central in officially locking in their Division Semifinal series. The Winnipeg Jets needed one point to clinch 3rd place in the North, and their 5-0 win over the Vancouver Canucks did just that, locking in third place and cementing the Montréal Canadiens in fourth. The Jets will face off against the Edmonton Oilers in the North Division Semifinals, while the other semifinal series will feature the Toronto Maple Leafs against the aforementioned Canadiens. With this divisional format back for the first time since the 1992-93 season (for this season only), it will assure us that a Canadian team will advance to the third round of the playoffs for the first time since 2018.

Let's take a look at each of the North Division's series.

Without question, this is the most heated rivalry in NHL history; the hockey equivalent of Yankees/Red Sox. The Maple Leafs and Canadiens have co-existed for well over a century, and have won a combined 37 Stanley Cups between them. The two teams have met 15 times in postseason play, including five Stanley Cup Finals. Overall, the Canadiens have won eight of the 15 meetings, but regarding the Stanley Cup Final, the Maple Leafs have won three of the five times they've met for the Cup, with the last one being 1967--the year that the Leafs won their 13th, and most recent, Stanley Cup.

Despite their vast history, this year's meeting will be the first playoff matchup since 1979, which saw the Canadiens sweep the Leafs in the Quarterfinals en route to winning the Stanley Cup. Many hockey fans (especially Leafs fans) say that this could/should have been the Stanley Cup Final in 1993, but controversy in Game Six of the Campbell Conference Final between the Leafs and Kings changed things regarding that potential matchup. The Leafs powered their way to the top record in the North behind perennial goal-magnet Auston Matthews, as well as key players such as Mitch Marner, Zach Hyman, and William Nylander. In net, Jack Campbell has done very well picking up where Frederik Andersen left off due to injury; however, Andersen is set to be back before the North's regular season ends, so we may have a bit of a goalie controversy here.

As for the Habs, their road hasn't been easy. They had been in danger of missing the playoffs entirely because they had the same exact problem that kept the Dallas Stars from qualifying this year: overtime. The Canadiens reached double-digits in overtime/shootout losses this year--yet, ironically, their 1oth OT/SO loss put them in the playoffs. Even so, overtime is a very important factor in the playoffs, because it literally doesn't end until someone scores and wins. They have the firepower to do it with: Tyler Toffoli, Brendan Gallagher, Tomas Tatar, Jesperi Kotkaniemi, all good snipers. They have an amazing goalie in Carey Price, who has been sidelined for a while, but should be ready for the playoffs.

The Leafs won seven of the 10 meetings with the Canadiens.

The Edmonton Oilers faced the original Winnipeg Jets team six times in the playoffs, taking place between 1983 and 1990--the Oilers' dynasty period. The Oilers won all six times. The Jets relocated to Arizona in the 1996-97 season, and became the Phoenix (later Arizona) Coyotes, however, the Winnipeg Jets returned when the Atlanta Thrashers relocated to Winnipeg in the 2011-12 season. Regarding this Jets team, this is the first time they will be facing the Oilers in the playoffs. In the regular season, the Oilers won seven of their nine meetings with the Jets.

Connor McDavid. That's it. That's the story here. McDavid has quite a team with him, but what he's done this season is just monstrous. In a season shortened by more than 25%, Connor McDavid still managed to reach the century mark in points, doing so in Game 53 vs the Canucks. McDavid, of course, has his right hand man with him in the form of Leon Draisaitl, last year's Hart Trophy winner, who continues to light the lamp on the power play this season. Other players include Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jesse Puljujarvi, as well as defensemen Darnell Nurse and Tyson Barrie. In net, Mike Smith has been dependable for the Oilers, and he may have to be due to the recent woes of backup Mikko Koskinen.

The Jets enter the playoffs on a terrible skid, winning only twice in their last 11 games. The team has been shaken since Nikolaj Ehlers has been sidelined, though he will most likely be back for the playoffs and join Kyle Connor and Mark Schiefele on that amazing top line. Andrew Copp and Paul Stastny serve as key role players, especially on the power play, and they do have the reigning Vezina Trophy winner in Connor Hellebuyck. However, if the Jets are going to survive, Hellebuyck needs to get back in that form that got him the Vezina last season, because the loss of that form has been the cause of the Jets' recent woes.

The North Division has been tough and hard hitting this whole season, and the playoffs will be that times 10! The playoffs will start Saturday, but there's no word (at this moment) regarding when the North's series will kick off. All I know is that it will be immensely intense!

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