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Primers: Storylines and questions for the Stanley Cup Playoffs

The Stanley Cup Playoffs begin today. The storylines are so good:

The league’s most tortured franchise has a real shot. I’m talking, of course, about the Sabres, the NHL’s obvious bandwagon favorites. When they host the Bruins tomorrow, it’ll be Buffalo’s first playoff game since 2011. This franchise had been an embarrassment, hockey’s version of the Jets (the New York ones, not the actual Winnipeg Jets), but this year has brought a true breakthrough. Hockey is revitalized in the city. Star defenseman and captain Rasmus Dahlin has an incredible story. Out of roughly nowhere, Buffalo put up the second-most points in the East. Series preview here.
The top contenders are either flirting with dynasties or trying to repair a lot of scar tissue. The Avalanche are the overall favorite, trying to win their second Cup in five years. The Lightning are right after them, trying to win a third in seven. But the other frontline option is the Hurricanes, eternal contenders who have lost in the conference finals four times since 2009 and been swept in all but last year’s (a five-game loss). Is that more or less frustrating than the Stars, aka Hurricanes West, who have lost in that round three straight years?
Then you get to the Oilers, who have lost two Cup finals in a row. Good news: The Panthers, who have beaten them both years, didn’t make the playoffs. Trickier news: Edmonton’s maligned goaltending remains untrustworthy (though it is trending up), and Connor McDavid’s costar, Leon Draisaitl, has been out for a month with a knee injury. It sounds like we’ll see him at some point in this series, maybe on the earlier side.

That’s but a small sampling of the suspense here. For a bit more detail, I’m tagging in Sean Gentille, The Athletic senior writer and “The Athletic Hockey Show” host. Three questions:

1. What’s the mood around the Oilers? A) Heavy anxiety at missing out on another Cup shot with prime McDavid? or B) Cautious optimism because the Pacific is weak?

💬 Hmm. Probably option B, with the optimism creeping back in over the past few weeks of better play. They still feel volatile and fatally flawed, but their defense and goaltending have smoothed out a bit, Draisaitl will be back and it’s never tough to talk yourself into Connor McDavid. Buddy just had a very casual 138-point season, fourth-most since 1996.

2. The year’s most shocking playoff team is the Penguins, who were a No. 1 pick candidate before the season and now face the also-surprising Flyers. What a wild story in the 20th year of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang as a trio. Is this team just nostalgia bait, or is a real run possible? 

💬 Nope, they’re legitimately good. The wildest part about their season — and I say this as someone who thought they’d finish with a bottom-five roster in the league — is that they’ve pretty well played themselves out of the “happy to be here” scenario. They’re favored in the first round against their biggest rival, and if they don’t beat the Flyers, the overriding vibe among the fanbase will be disappointment. Beating, say, Carolina in the second round would qualify as gravy, but they’ve got to get there first.

3. Please give us your Final matchup.

💬 Chalky: Lightning vs. Avalanche. The Avs have a fairly easy pass to the Western Conference finals and figure to face Dallas or Minnesota, who will have spent Round 1 pounding on each other. I feel fine about that. The Lightning less so, because I think the Canadiens (very young, very fun) could give them some trouble in the first round.

Also, if the Sabres wind up doing the thing, please pretend I was with them all the way. Thx.

Thanks to Sean. Here’s the full first-round schedule.

News to Know

Christian Petersen / Getty Images

Suns, Magic through as playoffs begin

The bracket is set after a satisfying Play-In, and mercifully it doesn’t include the Warriors looking a shell of themselves against the No. 1 seed Thunder. Whether the Suns can fare much better remains to be seen, but they were convincing in a 111-96 victory over the Warriors. Golden State now faces huge choices about its future direction.

Earlier, Paolo Banchero was his bulldozing best self as the Magic routed the Hornets 120-90, earning a first-round matchup against Detroit. Charlotte’s upturn this year gave fans much-needed hope but ends with a 10th straight playoff miss. Some will call it karma.

As we covered earlier this week, this playoff field has real intrigue, with several worthy challengers to the Thunder. John Hollinger has predicted the whole thing.

Note: You’d think he’ll go, but Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards is listed as questionable with knee soreness for today’s opener in Denver (3:30 p.m. ET on Prime).
Padres near sale for $3.9 billion (!)

Baseball owners pushing for a salary cap in this year’s labor talks will likely argue that MLB franchises are undervalued. The new counterpoint: Look at San Diego! A co-owner of Chelsea Football Club and his wife are reportedly closing in on a $3.9 billion purchase of the Padres, whose value had jumped 59% to $3.1 billion this year, per Forbes. The previous record sale for an MLB team was $2.4 billion (the Mets in 2020). Why so much for the Padres, specifically? Great analysis here on that question and the implications for MLB.

More News
Will Anderson Jr. will be the highest-paid non-quarterback ever in the NFL after he agreed to a 3-year, $150 million extension with the Texans. More here.
The Fever will extend star center Aliyah Boston for $6.3 million over four years, the largest total value in WNBA history.
Widely credited as a factor in the U.S. assembly of the Dream Team, Brazilian basketball legend Oscar Schmidt died at 68. Read the full story.
Angels World Series hero Garret Anderson died of a heart attack at 53. A lovely obit from Tyler Kepner recalls his quiet, steady excellence.
Notre Dame and Villanova basketball teams will open next season in Rome, visiting Vatican City and Pope Leo XIV — a Nova alum. Details.
Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe announced their separation after a decade as one of sports’ most accomplished and prominent couples.
Coventry City are headed back to the Premier League for the first time in a quarter century, with USMNT forward Haji Wright as their top scorer. More here.

📰 Find more news here 24/7.

Watch Guide

Jerome Miron / Imagn Images

đź“ş NBA: Raptors at Cavaliers, Game 1
1 p.m. ET on Prime Video
A fun 4-5 matchup in the East here. Here’s the series preview from Eric Koreen and Joe Vardon, and here’s Eric on Toronto’s path to an upset. It’s a stylistic clash: Cleveland has an excellent offense and middling defense, and Toronto has the inverse.

📺 Gymnastics: Women’s national championships
4 p.m. ET on ABC
On Thursday at this event, Oklahoma’s Faith Torrez won the all-around title. Team-wise, OU, Minnesota, LSU and Florida will decide the national title today in Fort Worth. The dynastic Sooners are angling for their seventh title in 10 years.

đź“ş NHL: Flyers at Penguins, Game 1
8 p.m. ET on ESPN
The Battle of Pennsylvania, a great playoff rivalry, resumes in Pittsburgh. This should be one of the tightest series of the first round. Our beat writers debate it here.

Get tickets to games like this here.

Pulse Picks

Christian Petersen / Getty Images

Ever wonder how the WNBA’s financial rules, especially after the new collective bargaining agreement, compare to those of other leagues? We have an interactive piece that crystallizes it all.

🎙️ “Starkville” returns today, now part of the “Rates & Barrels” podcast feed every Saturday, featuring a conversation with Yankees manager Aaron Boone. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Shoutout to Westway Diner in NYC, my go-to for a quick, perfect, no-fuss breakfast whenever I’m in midtown. Bonded with a local over the veggie omelette yesterday. Westway Diner will unite the world if we let it. — Patrick Iversen

Folarin Balogun’s Ligue 1 scoring streak leaves no doubt he’s the USMNT’s leading man for the World Cup, as our colleague Charlie Davies wrote this week.

How to make your own Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme. Claiming my most-clicked-link-of-the-weekend award now. — Jason Kirk

Lucky for the White Sox, they at least keep scoring with viral giveaways and gimmicks. Behold the Pope Hat.

Pro tip: Athletic subscribers can now share unlimited gift links (free-to-read articles) with anyone. This one is hitting my group chat. — Torrey Hart

If you don’t have time for exactly a million throws to perfectly break in a new glove, use this stuff. It really works. (Just don’t leave your glove in the oven too long. Seriously.) — Chris Sprow

Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: “Pablo Torre Finds Out” on the Knicks’ bizarre Orwellian surveillance tactics.

📫 That’s all for now! Say hello at thepulse@theathletic.com, and check out our other newsletters.