2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs Quarterfinals Predictions

Here are my predictions for the Quarterfinals of the 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs.

Eastern Conference
(M1) New York Rangers vs (WC2) Pittsburgh Penguins: Two division foes heading in opposite directions as the regular season ended will face off in round one, almost a year after a seven game semi-finals matchup. The Rangers have been on an incredible run since mid December and Pittsburgh has been a .500 team over the last few months. Despite having a great scoring duo threat in Sidney Crosby and Evengi Malkin, Pittsburgh is missing three of its top four defenseman and have a goaltender in Marc Andre Fleury who cannot be trusted in the postseason. The Presidents Trophy winning Rangers are just an overall better team at this point on all ends.
Prediction: Rangers in five games.

(M2) Washington Capitals vs (M3) New York Islanders: This should be a great series between these two division foes. Two of the leagues best players in Alex Ovechkin and John Tavares going against eachother is the top storyline of this series. Washington has been playing well down the stretch meanwhile the Isalnders, who got off to a great start this season, have faltered down the stretch. To me this series comes down to goaltending in this series and Braden Holtby has been great this season while Jaroslav Halak has been awful of late after a great start to the season. These are evenly matched teams, but give me the Caps.
Prediction: Capitals in seven games.

(A1) Montreal Canadiens vs (WC1) Ottawa Senators: This should be a great series between these division foes who met in the postseason two years ago. Ottawa was fourteen points out of a playoff spot at the All-Star break and they went on incredible run and ended up in the first Wild Card spot. Everyone knows about Andrew Hammond (The Hamburglar) by now, but Ottawa has a solid core on both ends. Montreal has a great goalie in Carey Price with a great defense behind him led by PK Subban. Montreal's offense isn't great, especially with Max Pacioretty not being one hundred percent. This series should be great, but Price will carry Montreal to the second round.
Prediction: Canadiens in six games.

(A2) Tampa Bay Lightning vs (A3) Detroit Red Wings: This should be a fun series to watch between these two division foes. Tampa Bay is a great offensive team with Steven Stamkos leading the way. Their defense has been dealing with injury issues of late. Detroit is a team that hasn't played great down the stretch, but they can't be underestimated with the great coaching by Mike Babcock and this team plays with a ton of pride and heart. Both teams starting goalies in Ben Bishop and Petr Mrazek have yet to play a playoff game. Although the Detroit can't be counted out, Tampa Bay's offense might be too much to Detroit to overcome.
Prediction: Lightning in six games.

Western Conference
(P1) Anaheim Ducks vs (WC2) Winnipeg Jets: Who saw Winnipeg making the playoffs before the season? I didn't. But it turns out, this is a pretty good hockey club. So is Anaheim, who owns the top seed in the Western Conference. Anaheim has a great offensive core led by Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. Winnipeg has a solid core of players as well such as Dustin Bufglyen, who is coming off a four game suspension. The goaltending for both teams is not very trustworthy, but with that said Anaheim is just the better team.
Prediction: Ducks in six games.

(P2) Vancouver Canucks vs (P3) Calgary Flames: Like Winnipeg, who saw these two teams making the postseason before the season started? Especially Calgary, who was pegged as a cellar dweller in the preseason predictions. Vancouver has a good offensive core led by the Sedin twins, Henrik and Daniel. Calgary has a solid offense led by Calder Trophy favorite Johnny Gaudreau and Jiri Hudler. Vancouver is missing Ryan Miller, although Eddie Lack has been great filling in. Karri Ramo has been great for Calgary as well. Both of these teams are well coached and this has the potential to be a better series than people think. That said, I like Calgary in this series.
Prediction: Flames in six games.

(C1) St. Louis Blues vs (WC1) Minnesota Wild: I really love this series between these division foes and this has the potential to be a classic. St. Louis is a great all around team on both ends and so is Minnesota. Offensively, Vladimir Tarasenko had a breakout year for St. Louis and Zach Parise had a solid year in Minnesota. Defensively, Alex Pietrangelo and Ryan Suter lead the way for their respective teams. From a goaltending standpoint, Jake Allen and Devan Dubnyk have been great down the stretch, Dubnyk in particular. This is a tough series to predict, but St. Louis should get by with home ice advantage.
Prediction: Blues in seven games.

(C2) Nashville Predators vs (C3) Chicago Blackhawks: This should be a great series between two division foes. Nashville had a great regular season under new head coach Peter Laviolette and Chicago is looking to get Patrick Kane back from injury, which could very well happen in this series. Both teams have great goaltending in Pekka Rinne and Corey Crawford respectively. The defenses are also great led by Shea Weber in Nashville and Duncan Keith in Chicago. Both teams are solid offensively as well led by Mike Riberio in Nashville and Kane and Johnathan Toews for Chicago. That said, with Kane coming back, Chicago should take the series.
Prediction: Blackhawks in six games.