The eight remaining NHL playoff teams have been to the third round a combined 15 times since 2018.
Four teams can add to their totals by winning their second-round series.
The Vegas Golden Knights lead the way with four trips. They’ll take on the Edmonton Oilers, who have been twice, including last season on the way to the Stanley Cup Final.
The Dallas Stars (three trips in the last five years, including the last two) will take on the Winnipeg Jets, who last made it in 2018.
The defending champion Florida Panthers have won the last two Eastern Conference finals. They’ll take on the Toronto Maple Leafs, the only team without a recent berth (2002).
The Washington Capitals (2018) will face the Carolina Hurricanes (2019, 2023) in the other second-round series.
Which teams will advance to the conference finals? USA TODAY Sports offers its predictions for the second round of the playoffs:
Washington Capitals vs. Carolina Hurricanes
Season series: 2-2. Playoff history: 1-0 Hurricanes.
Jason Anderson: Hurricanes in 7. Washington looked more or less like a No. 1 seed in the first round, holding their nerve and not letting some physical play in Montréal throw them off. If this series were against either of the teams in the other Eastern Conference matchup, the prediction would be Caps in 6. However, Carolina’s ability to control games with and without the puck will prove too strong to overcome, with the Hurricanes outlasting the Capitals.
Mike Brehm: Hurricanes in 6. The Hurricanes don’t give opponents a lot of room to maneuver, which will make life difficult for the Capitals. Washington goalie Logan Thompson faced the Hurricanes only once this season, but he gave up three goals before not coming out for the second period because of an injury.
Jace Evans: Hurricanes in 6. The Capitals have home ice and have defied the odds all season, so it won’t be surprising if they win – especially with goalie Logan Thompson looking locked in again. But Rod Brind’Amour’s possession-focused system has given the Capitals problems over the years, and I think that will play a factor given the Caps are a team that can get dominated in shots from time to time.
Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Florida Panthers
Season series: 3-1 Panthers. Playoff history: 1-0 Panthers
Jason Anderson: Panthers in 5. Florida looked impressive in the first round, dismissing Tampa Bay in five games. That bodes poorly for the Leafs, who wobbled at times against Ottawa. Matthew Tkachuk seems all the way back, Sergei Bobrovsky is stopping the shots he should and the Panthers just pose too many problems for Toronto to solve.
Mike Brehm: Panthers in 6. The Panthers downed the Maple Leafs in five games in the 2023 playoffs by playing a physical game against their stars. Toronto is built differently but Florida has the personnel to do that again, especially since they added Brad Marchand, who was a thorn in Toronto’s side when he was with the Boston Bruins.
Jace Evans: Panthers in 5. The way the defending champs ripped through a seemingly potent Tampa Bay team should put every team left in the playoffs on notice. The Panthers are the Stanley Cup favorites for a reason. Their depth and championship experience will be too much for the Leafs.
Winnipeg Jets vs. Dallas Stars
Season series: 3-1 Jets. Playoff history: First meeting
Jason Anderson: Stars in 6. Winnipeg’s incredible Game 7 comeback is one for the ages, and Connor Hellebuyck seemed to find his groove as one overtime became a second at the Canada Life Centre. Sounds like the start of a Cup run, right? Wrong. Jake Oettinger seems like the far more reliable goalie in this series, Mikko Rantanen is on fire and Dallas should march on to the Western Conference final.
Mike Brehm: Stars in 6. The Stars defeated a strong Avalanche team while missing Jason Robertson and Miro Heiskanen. Those two are expected back in this series. The Jets are dealing with injuries to Mark Scheifele and Josh Morrissey. If they can’t go or aren’t 100 percent, Winnipeg will be at a disadvantage.
Jace Evans: Stars in 5: The Jets needed a Game 7 miracle to beat the West’s last playoff team. It’s not going to take the soon-to-be reinforced Stars that long to dispatch with this bunch, particularly if Connor Hellebuyck is still letting in 17% of the shots he faces.
Vegas Golden Knights vs. Edmonton Oilers
Season series: 2-2 Playoff history: 1-0 Golden Knights
Jason Anderson: Golden Knights in 5. Edmonton finished the first round on a roll, winning four in a row after falling into a 2-0 hole against the Kings. That momentum comes to a shuddering halt against Vegas, who had to fight tooth and nail to get past Minnesota to get here. Neither of these teams has actually played all that well, particularly in front of their respective nets, but the Golden Knights have a clear top-to-bottom talent edge.
Mike Brehm: Golden Knights in 7. Vegas, which had trouble shutting down Kirill Kaprizov early in the first round, will have to face Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl in this series. But the Golden Knights eventually limited Kaprizov and they held McDavid to one assist and Draisaitl to one point a game in the regular season. If they can minimize the Oilers stars’ damage, the Golden Knights will win with their depth.
Jace Evans: Golden Knights in 6. The continued absence of Mattias Ekholm will finally catch up to the Oilers in this series. So, too, will the team’s goaltending – Calvin Pickard saved the day for the Oilers … with an .893 save percentage, after Stuart Skinner was rocked to the tune of a 6.11 GAA and .810 save percentage in the first round. Adin Hill will have to step up for the Golden Knights, though, as his save percentage was down at .880 in the first round.
